Opportunity brief
About the Case:
TrueFan AI: The Synthetic Scale-Up is a strategic business case challenge under the Founders' Office, Executive Operations & Corporate Strategy track, in association with Masters' Union School of Business.
Founded in Gurugram in 2020, TrueFan AI evolved from a B2C celebrity fan-engagement platform into a B2B enterprise generative AI video infrastructure company. With over 100 enterprise clients, support for 175+ localized languages, and ₹17.1 crore in FY25 revenue, the company is experiencing rapid growth alongside critical operational, financial, and strategic challenges.
Participants will step into the role of Chief of Staff to TrueFan AI's CEO, tasked with eliminating executive bottlenecks, redesigning monetization and unit economics, and resolving a high-stakes investor conflict while preparing the company for global expansion.
Problem Statement:
With only 12 months of runway and significant GPU infrastructure requirements, how can TrueFan AI transform its rapid growth into a profitable, operationally efficient, and globally scalable enterprise AI business?
Participants must address three key pillars:
Executive Operations & Resource Allocation
- Design a three-tier delegation matrix to reduce the CEO's workload from 110 to 45 hours per week.
- Optimize GPU compute and engineering bandwidth between batch video generation and real-time AI video agents.
- Evaluate the ₹20 lakh charity-bond Chief of Staff recruitment model, considering its impact on talent quality, brand perception, socioeconomic diversity, and operational effectiveness.
Monetization, Unit Economics & AI Governance
- Calculate baseline Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) and the LTV ratio.
- Redesign pricing for light, mid-market, and power enterprise customers through platform fees, usage-based GPU charges, and celebrity-avatar surcharges.
- Develop a financial model targeting at least 60% gross margin, monthly churn of 2.5% or less, and an LTV ratio of at least 3×.
- Establish robust celebrity image-rights, approval SLA, and AI-generated content safety frameworks to prevent deepfake misuse and unauthorized endorsements.
Boardroom Mediation & Strategic Alignment
- Resolve the conflict between Bajaj Finance's demand for exclusive BFSI rights and Series A investors' push for global SaaS expansion.
- Protect relationships with existing BFSI clients while addressing strategic investor requirements.
- Calculate TrueFan AI's post-money valuation and develop a three-step boardroom compromise plan that balances commercial partnerships, data security, and global scalability.
Flow of Events:
Round 1: Executive Screening Deck — Online Submission
Participants submit a 2-slide PDF proposal covering:
- The CEO delegation matrix and operational restructuring.
- Baseline LTV and LTV calculations.
Round 2: Strategic Pitch Deck & Financial Model — Virtual Submission
Shortlisted participants submit a 5-slide strategic deck supported by a financial model covering:
- Monetization redesign and financial projections.
- Unit economics and profitability improvement.
- The boardroom compromise plan and strategic investor alignment.
Round 3: Live Boardroom Simulation — National Finals
The top 5 finalist teams present their recommendations live to a panel of venture capital investors and startup founders, demonstrating strategic thinking, financial rigour, and executive decision-making.
Mystery Box Challenge: The Spot Crisis
Exactly 10 minutes before presenting, each finalist team receives an emergency regulatory alert concerning the MeitY Synthetic Media & Deepfake Transparency Directive 2026, as described in the case brief.
Teams must rapidly adapt their real-time AI video agent roadmap, estimate compliance costs, and propose cryptographic watermarking and mandatory 24-hour ethical verification while preserving a low-latency user experience.
Evaluation Criteria — 100 Marks:
Operational Realism & Delegation Matrix — 35 Marks
- Feasibility of reducing CEO workload from 110 to 45 hours per week.
- GPU capital expenditure (CAPEX) roadmap and engineering resource allocation.
- Critical evaluation of the talent acquisition model.
Unit Economics & Strategic Pricing Redesign — 30 Marks
- Accuracy of baseline LTV and LTV calculations.
- Innovation in pricing architecture and quantitative financial modelling.
- Achievement of gross margin, churn, and LTV targets.
- Celebrity service-level agreements (SLAs), image-rights governance, and brand-safety controls.
Board Governance & Equity Valuation Math — 25 Marks
- Correct calculation of the $40 million post-money valuation.
- Strategic positioning against global AI video competitors.
- A practical three-step investor compromise plan.
- Protection of existing BFSI client relationships and recurring revenue.
Presentation & Mystery Box Spot Crisis — 10 Marks
- Clarity of presentation, slide design, and executive storytelling.
- Adaptability, compliance-cost estimation, and response to the regulatory crisis.
What Participants Will Gain:
- Hands-on experience in executive decision-making and operational restructuring.
- Practical exposure to SaaS monetization, financial modelling, and unit economics.
- Experience in investor negotiations, stakeholder management, and boardroom decision-making.
- Insights into AI governance, deepfake safety, image-rights management, and regulatory preparedness.
- The opportunity to demonstrate strategic thinking, problem-solving, and adaptability under time pressure.
The Challenge: Build a roadmap that balances growth, profitability, operational excellence, and investor alignment to transform TrueFan AI into a sustainable, globally scalable enterprise AI business.
Academic Partner: Masters' Union School of Business
Track: Founders' Office, Executive Operations & Corporate Strategy