Michael Willi

I have been building since high school: Ethereum mining rigs, products sourced from overseas manufacturers, small ecommerce brands, and most recently Impact Margin, software that read a business's operating and utility bills, flagged overbilling, and showed the owner exactly where money was leaking. We took it from an idea tested on campus to a live web app with a paying customer before winding it down. Some failed fast. Some made real money. All of them showed me a business from the inside, and that view is why I am drawn to both investing and operating.

I was selected for the IU Innovates Incubator, where I am currently doing market research and product discovery for the new ventures I am working on.

The same lens runs through my research and writing: a venture thesis, now in its second edition, on the startups pulling lithium out of Permian Basin oilfield wastewater, which drew engagement from energy industry veterans, and a twelve-unit multifamily underwriting, rent roll to returns.

I am exploring Summer 2027 internships in private markets, strategy, and operations, where I can bring an operator's perspective to businesses and deals. If you are a founder, an operator, an investor, or someone who likes talking about how businesses actually make money, let's connect: michael@michaelwilli.com.