TLDR FOUNDERS 2025-12-08

ALFRED LIN ON DECISION QUALITY

Long-term relevance in an AI-dominated world comes from learning to make strong decisions under uncertainty rather than mastering any single technical field. Being right, which centers on ego and rigid beliefs, is different from getting it right, which requires curiosity, updating views, and detaching identity from ideas. Leaders who prioritize getting it right foster open debate, psychological safety, and faster progress. Ego-driven cultures slow teams and limit contribution.

NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO SELL YOUR COMPANY

Valuations have grown faster than fundamentals, and corporate balance sheets are unusually strong. Antitrust risk is about to rise, so selling before this shift is rational. Acquirers are overlooking unhealthy financials because they fear missing out on AI or automation. IPO markets may reopen, but most major private companies are still staying away from going public.

YOUR EXPERTS WON'T TRAIN YOUR AI. YOU HAVE TO INTERVIEW THEM

The most valuable asset in every organization is the hard-won, implicit knowledge inside the heads of its best people. Chatbots fail because they produce generic AI that averages out expertise into blandness. The only way to capture true expertise is to build an AI interviewer that earns the trust to be seen as a peer. This article discusses how 99ravens cleared this technical hurdle.

NOTES ON BUILDING IN THE AI ERA

a16z General Partner Anish Acharya recently appeared on a podcast to discuss the speed/emergent properties of this product cycle, founder psychology in a period of intense competition, unbundling tasks from jobs, and AI native networks. a16z's core thesis is that founders make the best long-term CEOs. They have unique knowledge and networks - a16z builds its structure to provide these resources to founders indefinitely. A link to the full podcast, along with notes from the discussion, is available in the post.

FROM 10 TO 31 TASKS DAILY: THE AGENT INFLECTION POINT

The velocity of work changes instantly when we give agents the right tools. Businesses can now use agents to complete tasks, just like software engineers have been doing for the last several months. It is now possible to spin up multiple parallel workstreams, multiplying daily output without working longer hours. The agent inflection point is already here.

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PROTAIGÉ

Protaigé is an AI platform that creates complete, on-brand marketing campaigns using coordinated agent workflows.

CONVO

Convo is a drop-in SDK for logging, debugging, and personalizing LLM apps with memory and observability built in.

TRICKLE

Trickle is an all-in-one AI app builder for creating agents, websites, and forms with built-in models, database, and analytics.

THEY HAVE TO BE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT US WITHOUT US

You have to tell a story so clear, so concise, and memorable, and so evocative, that people repeat it for you even after you've left the room. This means that the people who hear it need to be able to do this the first time they hear the story. You have to explain your idea and make your case while teaching the listener how to do the same thing themselves. Delivering this kind of story requires actual substance - fakery is immediately obvious.

USING LLMS AT OXIDE

LLM use is encouraged at Oxide, but its use must be responsible to the product and to its customers. This article discusses Oxide's approach to using LLMs. It covers the company's values in LLM usage, the different use cases for LLMs, and more. A document that details specific tips is linked in the article.

YOU CAN HIDE FROM A LOT OF THINGS AS A FOUNDER. CASH BURN ISN'T ONE OF THEM

Founders can't ignore cash burn - it's a relentless reality that dictates survival.

THE 10 PRINCIPLES OF SLACK MAXIMALISM

Consider moving everything to Slack if you are doing high-intensity operations.

A SF VC IN NYC

A San Francisco-based VC reflects on NYC's influence over the past 15 years, highlighting key investments like Artsy, Hinge, and Brigit, which collectively represent over $2.5B in annual revenue

THINK FIRST, AI SECOND

Learn how to think with AI rather than letting it think for you.