Startups are driven by founders, who are often seen as superheroes and in the rush to achieve everything quickly the hustle culture often turns toxic, said journalist and author Mihir Dalal while addressing students of ACJ-Bloomberg.

"Startups have the best and worst traits of both traditional businesses and MNCs, lying somewhere in between, said Dalal. He said  journalists need to keep in mind both these aspects while reporting on startups.

Dalal said building a startup in the current environment is very different from traditional businesses. Presently, the focus of startups has shifted to heavy use of technology, disproportionate focus on consumer and market share, and major dependence on external capital.

Later in the session, he discussed the functioning of venture capital funds. He explained how venture capital firms get funds from endowment funds, sovereign funds, pension funds, and other high-net-worth individuals.

In the current Indian market, with over 100 unicorns, venture funds play an important role in growth and mentorship for young founders. It takes at least five years for a startup to start making profits.

Dalal spoke about covering a startup beat by exploring different angles in a story. He gave an example of how he covered the Flipkart story, its takeover by Walmart, and later wrote a book on it titled 'Big Billion Startup: The Untold Flipkart Story'.