In the competitive world of startups, where 90% fail within the first few years, insights from seasoned founders like Madhu Basu are invaluable.
On October 14, 2025, Basu, the founder and CEO of Unnanu, an innovative enterprise AI search platform, appeared on the Tech Ascent podcast, hosted by Oliver Clingain. The episode, titled "Scaling Smarter: Why Most Startups Fail & How to Fix It," dives into Basu's 25+ years of entrepreneurial experience, from launching his first company in India in 1998 to building Unnanu as a solution for secure, intent-driven enterprise search. This SEO-optimized recap highlights key takeaways from the discussion, including strategies for scaling startups smarter, common pitfalls leading to failure, and practical fixes to build enduring businesses.
Watch the full episode on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shxazIPCa6k for an in-depth listen, and discover how Basu's patented AI innovations are reshaping enterprise data management.
Who Is Madhu Basu and What Is Unnanu?
Madhu Basu is a serial entrepreneur with over two decades in tech, having founded five companies, including three IT firms in Austin, Texas, with operations in India. His journey began in 1998 with his first venture in India, which he sold within eight months, before relocating to the US. Basu's latest creation, Unnanu, is an enterprise AI search platform designed to address the limitations of traditional keyword-based systems.
It uses a patented "triangular search" method incorporating semantic vectors, graphs, and KPIs to deliver precise, context-aware results without exposing sensitive data to public models.In the podcast, Basu shares how Unnanu evolved from pain points in recruiting and ATS systems, where outdated keyword matching fails to capture intent. With three patents and one provisional filing in 2025, Unnanu focuses on private, in-house AI that leverages the 80% of enterprise data often overlooked by public LLMs trained on just 20% of available information. This inward-focused approach, Basu argues, drives real business value, from boosting productivity to ensuring compliance in regulated industries like finance and healthcare.
What Does Scaling Startups Smarter Look Like in 2025?
Scaling smarter, according to Basu, hinges on discipline, culture, and strategic alignment rather than raw technical talent or hype. He stresses that while talent is crucial, it's discipline that turns potential into success: "A disciplined person can learn the talent. A talent cannot learn that." Basu advocates for fostering a team environment where creativity thrives without micromanagement, encouraging ownership and empathy.
For instance, he shares his philosophy of leadership: even as a founder, "if nobody's there you clean the floor," promoting a culture of accountability.In 2025's fast-changing tech landscape, Basu advises startups to create their own markets instead of copying competitors. He highlights the importance of sales and marketing skills for technical founders, noting that his engineering background initially limited growth until he honed storytelling abilities. Basu also ties this to AI adoption: startups should use private data for internal optimization, avoiding the pitfalls of public models that can lead to data leaks. This approach not only scales operations but also enhances KPIs, as Unnanu's search capabilities demonstrate by providing value-driven insights from enterprise silos.
Why Do Most Startups Fail According to Madhu Basu?
Basu identifies several core reasons why most startups falter, drawing from his experiences across multiple ventures. A primary culprit is the lack of discipline among talented individuals: "Most of the talented people doesn't really shine because of their indisiplined." He points out that technical founders often neglect sales and marketing, leading to products that solve problems but fail to reach customers.
Emotional attachment to ideas is another trap: "Businesses don't have emotions. Business numbers game," Basu warns, urging detachment for objective decisions.
Misunderstanding AI contributes significantly, especially confusing generative models like ChatGPT with search tools: "Search is for to find not to generate." Startups fail by relying on public AI, which exposes data and ignores the 80% of private enterprise information, resulting in misguided strategies. Basu cites a Gartner study indicating a $300 billion loss in search capability due to user abandonment, particularly in e-commerce, underscoring the economic impact of poor tech choices. Additionally, over-reliance on investors without understanding their expectations, and failing to build a strong team culture early, seals many failures.
How Can Startups Fix Common Failures and Scale Successfully?
Basu offers practical fixes rooted in his successes. To combat indiscipline, he recommends measuring success through consistent effort and learning: "Talent is measured in what direction? It depends on every person. But I would measure discipline." For sales gaps, founders should develop storytelling skills to pitch effectively, as Basu did during recent investor conferences.
Building a legacy-focused team is key: "It's nothing about only me. It's about team and it's about people because the legacy of any entrepreneurship loss it I always tell people even though I retire this should continue the journey should go."On AI, Basu advises adopting in-house solutions like Unnanu to leverage private data securely: "I can learn more if I adopt AI in our own enterprise. I can learn more about my own data and I can treat my customers or users more effectively and provide a value and it grows my business."
Watch the full episode at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shxazIPCa6k to dive deeper, and explore Unnanu at https://unnanu.com/ for secure enterprise AI solutions. Whether you're a founder or tech leader, these strategies can help avoid common pitfalls and build lasting ventures.
