It was not too wise to start out down this path with your co-founder in another country - with that said - my advice to you would be to simply trust your gut. Based on what you have described, I don't think equity is the problem. There seems to be an established history of 'flakiness' and he clearly doesn't seem to share your passion. If you continue to sense his heart just isn't in the project then you should cut your losses and sever the relationship. If you do split up make sure you get a waiver from him.
I can relate. Only a couple of weeks ago, days after submitting our YC application, my co-founder (technical half) bailed on me. Fortunately, I had a few other friends that were interested in my idea and they jumped on the opportunity. You can't dwell on it. Shit happens! As an entrepreneur this probably won't be the first or last time that something comes out of left field. I would try to find out why this dude bailed and then use this opportunity to find another co-founder, ideally one you know in person. As an active student, you have access to so many people on campus. Find someone that is passionate about your idea and compliments your skill set. If there is an entrepreneurship club or program at your school, that might be a good place to start...
My friend was faced with a similar problem (10K+ ATT bill) after traveling to the middle east. He hired an attorney, who was able to negotiate with ATT and after some back and forth they agreed to significantly adjust and settle the bill for only a few hundred dollars.
Shortly after submitting our application, my co-founder (technical half) informed me he could no longer devote the time necessary to the startup for various personal reasons. This caught me completely off guard and I was pretty bummed. Determined not to let this phase me, I called another friend the next day who had been really interested in the idea and asked him if he would want to be my co-founder. He agreed and now he's on board.
I have since removed my original co-founder from the application and I plan to update the application with my new co-founders information. I wanted to know if there was a particular way I should handle such an update to the application? I guess I am also curious to know how this might affect our application, and whether this has occurred before? Thanks for any help in advance.
Thank you kerben. I already knew Ben The Bodyguard and it is fantastic, I love it.
Well, let's say that Dayri will let you write about your day in less than 2 minutes. And it won't be a private blog, it's a completely different concept. :)
