Building 0-1
There is no ideal pitch deck. The narrative depends on what you’re building—but I really like this one: 1. Vision for the world in 5 years 2. The novel wedge that will get you there 3. How you plan to distribute it 4. What could go wrong 5. What you’ll prove by the time you need…
Nikita Bierx.comYou and your ragtag team of engineers likely won’t be able to create something that is competitive with any big incumbent product.
However, you can build features, seed content, and brand it in a way that is so obnoxiously relevant for a particular group of people that their only possible reaction is “Well, fuck. You... See more
Nikita Biertwitter.comAI is like water.
Or more specifically, generative AI applications are like water. We've looked at hundreds of AI companies, and much like bottled water, many of them are the exact same under the hood.
This is just the reality: there will be 100 teams trying to do what you are doing, in the same way you are doing it. True tech differentiation in AI... See more
Or more specifically, generative AI applications are like water. We've looked at hundreds of AI companies, and much like bottled water, many of them are the exact same under the hood.
This is just the reality: there will be 100 teams trying to do what you are doing, in the same way you are doing it. True tech differentiation in AI... See more
AI is Like Water

💡 30 Ideas as we wrap @beondeck's 19th Cohort 💡
Here are 30 ideas about founders, startups, San Francisco, sales, fundraising, and more taken from the second half of the program — sourced from fellows, guests, and me (blame me for the ones you disagree with most vehemently… Show more
We are unlikely to be able to sell “a group chat system” very well: there are just not enough people shopping for group chat system (and, as pointed out elsewhere, our current fax machine works fine).
That’s why what we’re selling is organizational transformation
That’s why what we’re selling is organizational transformation
The downside of lead generation businesses is that they can be a race to the bottom if they're in a crowded and competitive market. The barriers to entry are essentially aggregating supply (i.e. buyers of leads or businesses willing to pay for new customers) so there is little in the way of defensibility. The other downside is that they are very... See more
Marketplaces, Lead Generation, and Brokerages
I think the mistake too many entrepreneurs make is they start companies assuming they have scale. We’ve seen no scale, we’ve seen hyperscale, and what we realized was what we have to do is we have to start with that utility and the best networks. I didn’t realize Chris wrote that post, but I should maybe in the back of my mind that’s what I was... See more
Ben Thompson • An Interview with Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger About Artifact
There is no heaven for newthings. There is no Hall of Fame. There is only memory and change. Nothing (the opposite of newthing) and no one are immune.
The goal of newthing is to live as long as possible while staying true. The longer it does this, the stronger and more itself it will become.
The goal of newthing is to live as long as possible while staying true. The longer it does this, the stronger and more itself it will become.