Founders Need Insight, Not a COO—Build Dashboards First
unpopular opinion: most founders don't need a COO. the reason you feel overwhelmed isn't because you need someone to manage your team. it's because you have no visibility into what's actually happening. build the dashboard first. hire the COO never.
Veteran Employees Turn Founders Leverage Deep Experience
Recently met a couple of founders who were employees for ~10-15 years before starting their startup I’m impressed on how they run stuff - building on their work experience Examples: - @Sirupsen at turbopuffer - @thdxr at OpenCode Don’t sleep on this kind of experience…
Feature Kill List: Patterns to Avoid Unnecessary Development
I've killed more features than I've kept this year. A short tour of the patterns. In case it saves you from building yours.
Complaints, Not Trends, Reveal Market Opportunities
The best opportunities I've seen in 30 years didn't come from trend reports. They came from persistent, widespread complaints that nobody was taking seriously enough to solve. The frustration was the signal. The universality was the market. @askdrbrown
AI Startups Thrive Amid Fearless, Lightning‑Fast Funding
Spent a day in the company of many early stage founders, disrupting many real world industries. 1. The power of what AI can accomplish for them is almost overwhelming 2. They question how fast to grow (and burn along the way)...
From Manager to Founder: The Next Startup Mode
.@jack started it, @brian_armstrong built on it, most 2025 vintage startups are running it. What is it called? Manager Mode -> Founder Mode -> _____ Mode
Distribution Wins; Data Fuels Superior Product Development
"The company that gets the most users, that gets the most data, is then able to train their product to be a superior product." — @CeciStallsmith from @Lovable_HQ at #YPO When anyone can build, distribution IS the moat.
Start Small, Personalize Fast, Empower Others to Build
Some cool lessons learned from Stripe in this podcast in the @lennysan network. ✅ Don't engineer the platform right away. You can start with what you have around ✅ Quickly personalize with your context ✅ Let more people build to unblock themselves https://t.co/ful1vfbMFG
Founder-Led Sales Drive $800K in Six Months
New wildly successful Founder Led Sales Factory graduate. $0 -> $800k in six months and now hiring AEs. Founders *can* sell.
Being First May Hurt More Than Help
Being “first to market” means making far more mistakes, and making them in public. New entrants can learn from those mistakes, and get there faster and better. Maybe being “first” is a hinderance, not an advantage. https://t.co/zEfthVpcCs
Jay Kreps Traces Kafka’s Birth and Confluent Foundations
During @IBM Think day 1, keynote 3, @confluentinc and @apachekafka co-founder Jay Kreps explains how Kafka came about and how it became basis of Confluent. #Kafka #IBMThink #Think #Think2026 @robdthomas @ArvindKrishna @furrier @dvellante @dhinchcliffe @holgermu https://t.co/cb9TDjuQG2
Don’t Let Money and Fame Replace Your True Purpose
This is the biggest mistake I've seen great people make -- they get on a path to do great things, then the means (building a big company, making $$$) becomes the new ends, and people get lost in the dollars...
Grow Faster by Doing Less; Stop Being the Bottleneck
Want to grow faster? Start doing less. You started your business KNOWING you could make a difference. And for a while, hustle got you here… The late nights. The 80-hour weeks. The weight of knowing it’s all on you. But here's what I...
Merging Profitability and Conviction: The Ideal Bitcoin Company
What does the dream Bitcoin company look like? Today you have: - High profits, low Bitcoin conviction (crypto companies) - High conviction, low operating income (treasury cos) I want to build a Bitcoin company that executes the best of both worlds. That’s my vision...
Opinionated Brands Earn Loyal, Paying Fans
An opinionated company is a more human company. People like that. Some won’t agree with the opinion and won’t join. The ones who agree (enough) will be loyal and even excited to give you money. That’s why it’s better. See also: https://t.co/ZA4WruqhYd
I Swapped SaaS for DIY Code—Just My Experiment
I replaced almost all my SaaS subscriptions with my own vibe coded replacements But n=1
Ex-Apple Designer Launches Wearable to Quantify Emotions
.@Michaelblhssn spent 5 years at Apple designing iPhones, recently the iPhone 17 Pro enclosure. He spent a decade asking: can human emotion be scientifically understood? Today he's launching @Anoria_inc, the first wearable that reads your emotions to enhance your EQ. https://t.co/dsxBzodbtp
Free AI Beats Paid: Why Gating Smarts Fails
"Why pay $20/month when the free version is already smarter than I am?" That's the paradox Google hit while designing its AI bundle. Vikas Kansal helped craft Google's AI freemium strategy, which has become arguably the most successful (and profitable)...
Robotics to Make Healthy Food Affordable and Scalable
How do you make the world healthier? Make healthy food convenient and affordable. Rethink restaurants from the ground up with robotics to increase margins. Scale. If this mission excites you, they are currently looking for a Head of Operations to join...
Engineering Barrier Gone, SaaS Competition Explodes Overnight
Someone gave Claude Code a domain name, and 4 hours later had Typeform. When someone can reproduce a year-old SaaS product in an afternoon, the product itself is not the moat anymore. Many people in SaaS heard that story and...
First $400 Client Taught Me Priceless Lessons
my museum of failure as a content strategist... I charged my first client $400/month to manage all of their social media. I made absolutely no money in the beginning.
Bill Gross Pioneered Paid Search, Shaping $300B Industry
Bill Gross was a genius out of Caltech. When we met Bill, he explained how he was going to create the search tool for commerce. We were so impressed with his idea that we agreed to fund him. The idea was a...
The $200M‑$500M Leap Is Healthcare’s Toughest Scale
Scaling a healthcare unicorn looks a lot different from the inside. @_KateRyder and I go deep on why the $200M–$500M jump is the most challenging phase, the absolute absurdity of pitching postpartum care to rooms full of "trolls", and why...
From Telecom to Longevity: Big Science Aging Talk
TODAY @ 10AM PT: LBF Conversation with Todd White @DToddWhite (Director @ Thalion Initiative). We'll be discussing Big Science for Aging Biology, fundraising, and his founder story pivoting from a career in telecom to longevity biotech. 👉 RSVP: https://t.co/UJP8xs8nrc
Charge Your First Customer or Offer It Free?
Should your first customer pay you, or get your product for free? In this episode, I answer listener questions on charging your first customer, what metrics to track for a transaction fee-based SaaS, and when freelancers help vs. hurt your...
Profit From Easy, Repetitive Businesses, Not Hard Glory
Always take the path of least resistance: I think too many entrepreneurs are gluttonous for punishment. They love doing hard things for the sake of it. They think success = glory after facing massive challenges. That is bullshit. Business is a series of games and...
Cytospire Secures $83M to Develop Novel T‑Cell Engager
Cytospire hauls in $83M for a new type of T cell engager https://t.co/19BkL5JiHk by @gwendolynawu #biotech #startups
From Goldman Sachs to Hong Kong: Launching a New Venture
Not too many people are willing to quit their job at Goldman Sachs to start a business. But it gets even better… He decided to move from the US to Hong Kong. Very glad I got to talk Alex. It was great to...
Founders Overthink Decisions, Masking Reputation Protection
Founders are disproportionately good at generating reasons to revisit decisions. It often looks like intellectual rigor. It often feels like staying open. Sometimes it is. And sometimes it's an attempt to anticipate every possible criticism so there's no risk to reputation.
Founder Mode Fuels Hyperbolic Momentum and Record Enhancements
The most rewarding part of being back in founder mode is when outsiders notice how momentum has gone hyperbolic. FreightWaves and SONAR are both shipping more enhancements than anytime in our history and every single metric reflects how strong of...
AI Cambrian Explosion: 835 Startups in 25 Months
Y Combinator just launched 835 AI startups in a single batch—more AI companies in one cohort than existed in the entire world a decade ago. The Cambrian explosion took 25 million years. AI's is taking 25 months.
Inside the Mastermind Behind Vitamin Water and More
This is a great episode with the guy behind Vitamin Water, Poppi, Smartwater, and Vita Coco — insane run of brand building https://t.co/tGRp3UlvNs
Rare Traits: Clarity, Conviction, Courage, Craft, Commitment
Original ideas aren’t rare. Here’s what is: 👉 Having CLARITY on what you actually believe—that’s rare. 👉 Having CONVICTION in your approach even when others may disagree—that’s rare. 👉 Having the COURAGE to share your idea publicly before it feels “perfect”—that’s rare. 👉 Having the...
Pivot with Evidence, Not Anxiety, for Real Strategy
A pivot based on clarity is strategy. A pivot based on discomfort is just movement. Before you pivot, ask: what specific evidence tells me this isn't working? "It's been three months and growth is slow" isn't evidence. That's anxiety. @askdrbrown
Peter Thiel Funds $1B Wave‑powered Ocean Data Centers
Get ready for an ocean full of....data centers?....Peter Thiel backs $1bn ocean data centre start-up powered by waves https://t.co/wZZ1Ll6grK via @ft
Decade-Long SaaS Lessons: 5 Tips for My Younger Self
I'm 40. Been trying to build a SaaS for years. 5 things I'd tell my 30 year old self. Took me a decade to learn each one.
Founders' Real Issue: Untested Offers, Not Marketing
Most founders don't have a marketing problem. They have an offer they haven't stress-tested yet.
Plans Show Assumptions, Not Predictive Forecasts
Most business plans aren't forecasts. They're mathematical consequences of your assumptions — and your assumptions are guesses in suits. The real question a plan should force you to answer: what has to be true for this to work, and how do...
Systems Thinking: Key to Scaling Complex Businesses
The Systems Thinking Approach emphasizes understanding the interconnections within a company, which is essential for scaling successfully in today's complex business environment. https://t.co/2ZkdIswD1j
Even Starbucks Faced 200 Investor Rejections Before Success
Good luck to everyone who applied to @ycombinator tonight. And if you don’t get in remember 200 investors turned down Starbucks before one said yes. 😳
Closed Doors Often Open Better Opportunities
Something I didn't understand in my 20s, but understand clearly now, is when an opportunity shuts the door in your face, very often that frees you up to pursue a new and often better one.
USVC Opens Startup Investing to Everyone with $500
In 2026 you can buy any shitcoin you want. You can bet on Polymarket for how long Trump shakes someone's hand. All perfectly legal. But investing in a startup? Accreditation wall. Apparently retail investors can’t be trusted to invest in...
Dubai Unveils Agentic AI Incubators, Funding Future Economy
Dubai is launching dedicated incubators and funds specifically for Agentic AI startups to build the economy of tomorrow. A massive leap forward for global AI adoption. 🇦🇪 This is going to be a game-changer for the global tech ecosystem. 🌍💡 ...
Seeking Approval Leads Founders to Business‑Killing Decisions
Founders who need everyone to like them will make every decision that kills the business.
Allocate 30‑40% Time to Sales, Hire Ops Help
Most business owners do things that are urgent, not important. If you aren’t spending at least 30-40% of your time selling new business and making strategic decisions to grow your company, then you need to hire someone to help you with...
Leaders Reveal Unfiltered Ambitions on Standing Table
Pull up a chair while Dan and Guy, co-founders of RiskReversal Media and contributors to CNBC’s “Fast Money,” break bread with founders, CEOs, and creators in this season of Standing Table. These guests have built empires, disrupted industries, and dominated...
Upcoming Founder Events: AI Camp, Pitches, Global Meetups
Founders & investors, listen up — we’ve got a packed lineup coming your way. AI, camp vibes, live pitches, and founder stories included. 🤖 May 5: How to Build an AI-Native Company Vibe Camp featuring the @weareambient team - @lawrencecoburn, CEO &...
Building Companies in the AI Era: Insights From Bchesky
Tomorrow, a conversation w/ @bchesky that I’ll return to often, about building a company in the AI era. This thing is jam packed. https://t.co/EkMFpbnwCs
Name Calendar Invites to Signal Mutual Evaluation, Not Pitch
Founders: Calendar invite naming sets expectations: ❌ 'Demo of [Your Product]' ❌ '[Your Company] Presentation' ✅ '[Their Co] [Your Co] - Discovery' ✅ '[Their Co] / [Your Co] - Initial Conversation' Signal: This is mutual evaluation, not a pitch.
Founders Hustle without Personal Cash, Fueled by Sacrifice
"Despite not investing any of his own money" Yes, that's how being a founder and grinding on a company with blood sweat and tears works....