Clinkle was a payments startup founded by Stanford student Lucas Duplan. At age 21, he raised a jaw-dropping $25M seed round — the biggest ever at the time for a student-led company. Clinkle operated in total secrecy, promising to revolutionize mobile payments. But years went by with no real product, just pivots, rumors, and extravagant perks. Inside sources described dysfunction, mass resignations, and a culture obsessed with appearances. When the company finally launched a debit card + app combo called “Treats,” it flopped. Clinkle quietly died, having spent most of its $30M without ever making a dent.

Pitch: “Revolutionizing how we pay.”