Many founders in the last 18 months are going to realize that just because there are no “moats” in AI left anymore doesn’t mean “scale and capital” become your main moat. We have seen this movie before.. all of us will benefit from reading a little bit of history. Webvan Groupon MySpace Yahoo AltaVista Blockbuster Nokia (zombiecorns of 2021) Each one was structurally and capital-wise in a very good position, but eventually got beat by a company with a much better unique insight. Or just collapsed under the weight of their own scale. This is the needle founders have to thread: find a unique insight worth a 10+ year journey, while being prudent enough to not let capital & scale become a substitute for it.
过去 18 个月里的很多创始人将会意识到：仅仅因为 AI 里已经几乎不剩什么“moats（护城河）”，并不意味着“scale（规模）和 capital（资本）”就会成为你的主要护城河。这样的戏码我们以前见过……我们所有人都能从多读一点历史中受益。Webvan、Groupon、MySpace、Yahoo、AltaVista、Blockbuster、Nokia（以及 2021 年的 zombiecorns）——它们每一家在结构和资本层面都处于非常有利的位置，但最终要么被一家拥有更好独特洞察的公司击败，要么就在自身规模的重压下崩塌。这就是创始人必须拿捏好的关键：找到一个值得投入 10 年以上去走的独特洞察，同时又足够谨慎，不让资本和规模变成它的替代品。
This VC to “fast growing startup” train is insane to watch.. another three people just this past week. I guess it’s similar to the IB/consultant to BizOps train I saw in 2012. Top title for this cohort? Special projects ⚡️
眼看着这种从 VC 转去“fast growing startup（高速增长的创业公司）”的列车一路狂飙，真是有点离谱……就在过去这一周，又有三个人这样跳了。我猜这有点像我在 2012 年看到的那波从 IB/consultant 转去 BizOps 的潮流。这个群体里最热门的头衔是什么？Special projects ⚡️