In my freelance days, I would decline discussions when asked to sign an NDA upfront. Now, as a startup founder, I recently spoke with a company in a similar domain for 40 minutes. They expressed a desire to help, and told me they have abundant resources, but I have to sign an NDA to continue the conversation. My instinct is to continue independently rather than entangle myself in legalities without a clear understanding of their assistance. They seem impressed with my work, but I’m unsure of the mutual benefit. I’ve sent them a follow up email and detailed my challenges, requesting specifics on how they might assist, but doubt they will reply. My reservation about NDAs comes from my lack of a robust legal team. If there’s a breach, I can’t contest it as effectively as they might. Given our industry overlap, the risk of inadvertent NDA breaches is high for me. Am I overthinking this? Is it customary for collaborators to request NDAs without a formal employment structure or potential investment?