Source your own deals. DM YC India founders, attend Surge/Antler demo days, write SAFE/CCD notes directly. Highest control, zero platform fees, requires effort.
Surge brings the highest-quality batch (15-20 founders, 2x/year). AngelList Scout gets you weekly syndicate flow at ₹2.5L tickets. Pair with daily Inc42 / The Ken to surface companies before they raise. Then use LinkedIn to DM founders you find compelling — the highest-conviction path.
We compared 7 deal-flow channels by signal-to-noise, ticket size, and NRI access. Three patterns matter:
Both pre-filter for you. Scout gets you the call from a vetted scout twice a month. Surge gives you 15-20 founders to pick from in one event. Best for NRIs who can't be in India daily.
Daily newsletters surface companies BEFORE they raise. LetsVenture lets you act on what you read. Cheap subscriptions ($30-50/mo combined) give you the broadest sourcing surface area.
Track YC India batches, identify 3-5 companies fitting your sector thesis, DM the founder with a pointed question. 3-8% reply rate but yields the highest-conviction deals because you control the filter, not a platform algorithm.
Detailed answers on our Q&A page.
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