“2-person AI startup raises $50M, 8-figure ARR, no employees.”
This whole AI wave is confusing as hell...
So I try every new AI tool. Honestly? Feels epic.. for 30s.
Then it’s:
↳ Clunky UI
↳ Never-ending load times
↳ 30% of what I can do in ChatGPT raw
Most AI “products” today are vibe-coded garbage with a YC badge glued on top.
Yeah, there are AI tools I actually use (ChatGPT, Cursor, Lovable (sometimes)), but that’s it.
Most get deleted faster than they onboard.
I ping builder friends making the leap into AI.
They all say the quiet part loud:
↳ Retention is a bloodbath
↳ Slap “AI” in your pitch, get users overnight, nobody stays
↳ You literally have to masquerade as an AI company just to get a VC reply
Here’s what happens next:
1/ Every Substack bro is on the payroll to shill whatever tool just raised.
2/ The metrics are smoke and mirrors, the only real number is how well your story sells to investors.
3/ VCs can’t stand FOMO, so they light money on fire for the next “Cursor” while founders pray someone sticks around.
All we see are TechCrunch dopamine hits:
↳ “3-person AI side project raises $50M from A16Z in six days”
What’s really happening behind the curtain?
Nobody knows.
There’s zero clarity.
All you see is blur and hype.
Am I crazy here?
Is this just me, or is the AI space the wildest, noisiest, least honest game right now?
Call me jaded, but at BuddiesHR, we play for retention, not headlines.
Stacking value, not VC dollars.
And yeah, it’s confusing as hell.
Who else is seeing through the facade? Or is this just the new normal?
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👋 Hey, I'm J.Y!
I'm the co-founder of BuddiesHR, the #1 Employee Engagement Software that lives in Slack.
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