Ujwal Arkalgud

Ujwal Arkalgud is a cultural anthropologist and tech founder who bootstrapped his consumer research company, MotivBase, from a $10,000 investment to a high eight-figure exit in under seven years. He achieved this by applying his anthropological training to decode the "invisible rules" of the industry—the unspoken codes that determine who gets funded, whose products get bought, and which ideas gain traction. By mastering these hidden patterns of perception and behavior, Ujwal developed a unique methodology for de-risking ventures, enabling him to pivot from a service model to a scalable AI-powered platform and achieve the first $5 million in ARR with zero sales hires. After his exit, he applied the same methodology to revive two stagnant, PE-backed firms with ~$50M in revenue, transitioning them into tech-led businesses and reigniting double-digit growth.

Now an investor and author of the upcoming book Invisible Rules, he teaches entrepreneurs how to outsmart the game by competing on perception, not just product.