If you ask Mark Cuban—what business are we really in?

Delivered June 6, 2025 @ 5:00pm ET

Weather in Bloomington, IN - Partly Sunny, 24⁰ C / 76⁰ F

Table of Contents

• Doriot® product innovations 🧧

• This week in the democratize venture movement 🚀

  • Shared Risk. Shared Prosperity. Shared Information …

• Mindset Corner: What business are we really in?

My name is Gerry Hays, Founder & CEO of Doriot® (pronounced “Doe-ree-oh”), a movement to break open the gates of venture and expand innovation and wealth beyond an elite few. Democratize Venture is my platform to explore the venture markets and share the insights, strategies, and frameworks I bring into the classroom. It’s where education meets execution—for anyone ready to play the startup game.

Doriot® product innovations 🧧 

VentureStaking™ - a zero-to-one innovation in venture investing — designed to put the smallest investors on the same playing field as the largest.

FantasyStartup® - #1 global startup investing simulation with more than 14,000 downloads worldwide.

QAI - Qualified Accredited Investor™ - An exam and certification program for anyone serious about launching a venture-backed company or investing in high-growth startups.

This week in the democratize venture movement 🚀 

This week, the Global Entrepreneurship Congress (GEC) was held in Indianapolis, IN—an absolute gift for me, since it was only an hour's drive north to attend this amazing event.

Most people aren’t familiar with the GEN—I certainly wasn’t. The best way to describe it is that it’s an effort to connect entrepreneurial and startup ecosystems from around the world, fostering global collaboration. It’s a tall order, and interestingly, many of the Ambassadors hail from emerging economies in Africa, Latin America, the UAE, and the Caribbean.

Beyond how incredibly kind and welcoming everyone was, what struck me most was how hungry these communities are for innovation and entrepreneurship. Having lived in the Midwest my entire life—and spent meaningful time in the startup ecosystems of San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and at multiple SXSW events in Austin—I’d say the U.S. is at a “4” on the hunger scale for entrepreneurship, while these countries are at an “8 to 10.”

This urgency is palpable. They need more entrepreneurs to be funded now than ever. With traditional NCOs, grants, and capital drying up, these nations are urgently seeking ways to unlock their human potential.

Africa, in particular, is at an inflection point. Its population is projected to grow nearly 80%, reaching almost 2 billion people by 2043. This growth is expected to coincide with significant economic expansion—annual economic output is projected to hit USD 11.85 trillion, with GDP per capita around USD 5,996 in the next 20 years.

In my conversations with delegations from Nigeria, Ghana, and Algeria, I was overwhelmed by their passion and drive to, again, unlock human potential and ambition. As I shared the concept of establishing VentureStaking™ Arenas in cities like Lagos, Accra, and Algiers, I could literally feel the energy and pull. From 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day, I was engaged in conversations with people from all over the world who need more entrepreneurship—and a better venture system than what Silicon Valley currently offers.

Here’s the thing: they all recognize that the Silicon Valley model isn’t working for them—and even Silicon Valley knows it’s broken. Too much capital goes to too few startups, with no real path to exit. That’s not a system these countries want to replicate. Which made our conversations about VentureStaking™ all the more compelling. We kept getting invited into more and more rooms.

What I noticed in these emerging markets is also true in the U.S.: everyone knows the traditional venture model has “jumped the shark.” While we’re creating new systems to decentralize and democratize startup investment, unless we offer a winnable game, we’re just layering on top of a broken model—not disrupting it.

And speaking of disruption: many people asked if VentureStaking™ replaces crowdfunding, angel investing, or venture capital. Actually, it’s the opposite. VentureStaking™ is designed to help entrepreneurs get started with early capital—without selling debt or equity. Once they’ve figured things out, they can raise traditional rounds through the crowd, angels, or VCs. So, if we can 10x the number of entrepreneurs who get started through a VentureStaking™ Round, we’ll 10x the deal flow to those later-stage funding pathways. The only caveat is that the people that VentureStake™ a founder get the right, not obligation to invest in all future rounds at the same terms and conditions as the VCs.

Shared Risk. Shared Prosperity. Shared Information.

On the exit side, no funding model can fully solve the challenge—yet. I’m convinced the secondary market isn’t a long-term solution unless companies like SpaceX or OpenAI eventually go public. Otherwise, we risk creating a new class of bagholders. Right now, Silicon Valley is more than happy to offload shares. Good for them—bad for the broader ecosystem.

Solving this will require fresh, systems-level thinking. I believe the answer lies in blockchain, tokenization, and ICOs—but done right, much like how companies went public in the 1990s.

It’s an incredibly exciting time. I hope you’ll join our mission—and consider purchasing a VentureStake™ in what we’re building.

Mindset Corner: What business are we really in?

Mark Cuban was the keynote at the conference—and as you’d expect, he was electric, candid, and full of wisdom. But of everything he shared, one quote stuck with me more than anything else:

As founders, we’re trained to always be selling—pitching our product, our idea, or even our equity. But Mark’s point is powerful: people don’t buy your product or invest in your company first—they buy trust. They want to know that after the transaction, you’ll still be there with the same energy and commitment.

He offered a simple, memorable formula:

What does that mean? Simply put: more transparency builds more trust. Self-interest is fine—it’s expected—but when it’s not paired with openness, trust erodes. If you hide your motives or withhold information, trust breaks down, and so do your relationships with investors, customers, and your team.

That’s exactly why, through our VentureStaking™ model, we’re training founders to embrace radical transparency. Good news, bad news—it doesn’t matter. If you’re trusted, your VentureStaking™ Community, your customers, and your ecosystem will stand behind you.

So take it from Mark Cuban: know what business you’re in. You’re in the trust business.

That’s it for this week. Wishing you a focused and fulfilling weekend,

– Gerry ([email protected])