- Startups older than two years likely have obsolete business plans due to rapid changes in AI and markets.
- Venture capital has shifted heavily toward AI, making it harder for non-AI startups to raise funds.
- AI development tools enable building MVPs in days, reducing the need for large engineering teams and challenging old assumptions about cost and speed.
- Agile development must evolve from serial to parallel testing, with AI agents allowing simultaneous experimentation of multiple business models.
- AI Agents will transform software from providing information to autonomously delivering outcomes, shifting pricing from seats to results.
- Hardware startups can use AI for simulation and faster failure, but remain constrained by physics and supply chains.
- Sunk cost trap—clinging to outdated code, team structure, or business model—can kill a startup; founders must reassess and pivot if needed.
- Defensible moats now come from proprietary data, deep customer insight, or regulatory approvals, not just code.