Startup Signals: Insights for Founders, Innovators, and Builders

Rethinking Resource Allocation: VC Jenny Fielding's Cautionary Tale for Founders

VC Jenny Fielding casually ignites a ruckus in the startup world by bringing up the topic of early-stage founders hiring executive assistants (EAs).

Fielding points out that many founders might still be riding the high wave of funding from 2020-2021, blissfully unaware that spending money like it's confetti isn’t the best strategy in the early days.

While early-stage VCs like Fielding are known for giving founders a bit of leeway when it comes to how they spend their precious venture capital, they’re also playing hawk when it comes to overhead costs—including those hefty salaries for EAs, COOs, and CFOs.

In fact, she highlights a rather concerning example of a founder who thought it was perfectly reasonable to pay themselves a jaw-dropping $300,000.

Spoiler alert: It's not. According to Fielding, a more sensible salary range at the pre-seed level should be between $85,000 and $125,000.

So, what’s the key takeaway here? Rather than splurging on fancy titles and high salaries too soon, founders should channel their energy (and funds) into creating a solid product and getting those early customers.

The Ups and Downs of Snap's Spectacles: Can AR Glasses Really Connect Us?

Snap has decided to take a stroll down the augmented reality (AR) lane with their brand-new Spectacles.

To get your hands on a pair, you’ll need to join a developer program—kind of like a secret club, but with fewer cookies and more coding.

Now, as for the design, these latest Spectacles sport a stylish black rectangular look and come loaded with some nifty features.

However, when you hold them up next to Meta’s Orion glasses, they do feel a bit like that awkward cousin at a family reunion—functional, but maybe not winning any fashion awards.

There are a few bumps on this AR journey, like the limited battery life that might leave you wishing for a quick charge while in the middle of a digital duel.

Plus, they carry a bit of a hefty weight and the field of vision isn’t precisely wide open, so you might miss a few things.

In the grand scheme of things, Snap is on a mission to spark social connections through tech, hoping to guide AR toward an approachable and immersive future.

Just remember, while the vision is bright, the current spectacles might need a little more time in the oven before they’re ready for the spotlight on the general market stage.

AI Deployments Made Simple

While AI Agents can be a great ally, it’s vital to have a human sidekick on standby.

We’re talking about implementing strategies to ensure oversight, like creating rules for when a human needs to confirm an AI's brilliant idea, and pairing those tech-savvy agents with safety nets to keep them in check.

It’s also important to measure the uncertainty in AI outputs because, let’s face it, nobody wants a robot throwing out random guesses like a toddler at a birthday party.

Starting small with your AI deployments is highly recommended, think of it as giving your agents a little training wheels before they race off into the big wide world.

Breaking down complex tasks into bite-sized pieces helps prevent overwhelming our digital friends, allowing for smoother operations without sending them into a spin.

Just because you let AI work overtime doesn’t mean it’s going to get better on its own!

Having the right capabilities in your models is key to avoiding an AI that thinks its job is to make pop culture references instead of deliver results.