Are you interested to know how things worked at Swiggy? Things that didn’t scale but still ensured that your food was getting delivered on time?

What’s the recipe behind the 0-1 story of Hyderabad launch and it’s growth?

If you're curious...then dive into this session to uncover the journey with Akhilesh.

Merlin AI by Foyer

Thine

Signeasy

-Ideated, scripted, and produced “Team Space” reels from the first messy brainstorms to the final, scroll-stopping videos—turning product launches into actual stories people wanted to watch (bonus: discovered accidentally we have great talent in the team).

-Pulled off US roadshows, handling everything from crafting invite copy that didn’t feel spammy, to venue scouting, pre-event comms, and keeping conversations rolling right up to the last handshake. If you left with a goodie bag and a new connection, I probably had something to do with it.

-Wrote social content, crafted stories, and built the Startup Community page—making sure every post had personality.

-Coordinated Black Friday campaign by working closely with product, design, and marketing to produce creative assets and messaging that actually got the team excited to share—reminding everyone that contract management could also be fun and showcase our real personality, not just another discount.

-Wrote tons of content for socials—from launches to culture posts to quirky stories. Built the Startup Community page, which didn't just collect leads but started plenty of "Hey, check this out, we started our company with this problem, but you don't have to!" moments.

-Handled sponsor events from idea to applause: booking, prepping, pitching, and yes, dealing with napkin shortages while somehow keeping things running smoothly.

-Jumped into brand activations head-first. At our Chicago gig as Gold Sponsors, I helped run a pop-up coffee bar that got more attention than most product demos. Good coffee, all eyes on us, and everyone walked away remembering Signeasy. 

-End-to-end execution has always been my thing: if a project looked polished on the outside, you can bet there were ten half-serious jokes and a lot of teamwork behind it.

-Pushed team campaigns and employee brand love. Peer shares on LinkedIn actually happened and folks didn't just scroll past our content - victory!

GrowthX

-Crafted gatherings for 1,200+ founders and operators, from city chapters to annual retreats, each designed for real connection instead of “networking fatigue.”

-Orchestrated a 3-day Goa offsite for 200+ founders and operators—think less “work conference,” more “startup summer camp” with real business impact. Packed learning, networking, and just the right amount of beachfront serendipity into one unforgettable event.

-Launched and scaled 12+ original offline event IPs, proving that business ideas don't just live on Zoom—they thrive with actual high-fives and storytelling.

-Grew our offline community connections from a single city to 6+ hubs across India (and pulled off micro-events wherever members landed or where present, including two international cities as well).

-Curated event guest lists like a party host who knows everyone’s secret superpower, which led to a 30% jump in turnout without relying on the lure of free swags. 

-Pulled off the “Founders Soiree” event, turning a roomful of high-growth founders who have now made it to shark tank as well into the kind of candid, advice-sharing circle.
 
-Hosted GrowthX Demo Day over 6+ cities and 1k+ viewers (zoom + in person), where I juggled top 1% founders, marketers and PMMs as our guests, worked on complete end to end execution, and watched the best 2 teams gather for caffeine emergencies to turn big ideas into standing ovations. The only place where a startup pitch could end in a job offer, a meme, or a spontaneous round of applause—sometimes all three in under 3 hours.

-Personally responsible for more relationship-building than some dating apps, with spotlights and stories that helped 50 members land new gigs, collaborators, or fame within their circles.

-Experimented with learning formats and feedback systems, so peer mentorship spiked by 10x; the kind of engagement you wish group projects in college had.

GeekyAnts

-Turned developer events into something people actually want to attend (yes, even on weekends).

-Emceed developer events, turning awkward pauses into laughs and making sure nobody wanted to leave before the last joke (or the last demo).

-Ran some Weekend Challenges and App Showcase that bumped participant engagement by 18%.
Translation: more people showed up, shipped code, and didn't just "like" the snack table.

-Produced interactive podcasts and talks like GeekCast, doubling attendance for niche topics.
Pro tip: nothing motivates a developer like live airtime and bragging rights.Launched and moderated new community channels for hot tech (React Native, Design, Flutter); saw a 24% jump in signups.

-Created an event highlight pipeline so the best moments got out to the wider network, because if it’s not shared, did it even happen?

Swiggy's 0-1 Journey with Akhilesh Gupta