What if your first $10 million term sheet came from a game world your family built at home. Meet The Veil, a new novel for kids that's actually a founder story. Prototype pitch failure loops and one ridiculous shot at changing your family's future.>> The Veil is a novel coming out on September 16th from Third State Books. It follows the journey of 13-year-old Bran Lee, who is a hacker and coder living in Silicon Valley. His inventor family has fallen on hard times at the start of the story.And what they hav ...

Risk & Opportunity - Avoiding risks due to comfort can cost more than any failure, especially for highly skilled individuals in tech where the upside can be in the billions [5][6] - Taking risks is essential for founders to get funded, build billion-dollar companies, and change the world [5] - Missed opportunities can provide courage and knowledge for future success [15] - One risk could change one's trajectory [17] Mindset & Perception - Belief in being unlucky can lead to tunnel vision, causing one to miss opportunities [9] - Lucky people expect good things, keeping their minds open to see shortcuts and opportunities [9][10] - Setbacks should be seen as redirects and chances to discover something better [12] - Bad luck can force resourcefulness and teach lessons that comfort cannot [13] Pivoting & Resourcefulness - Lucky people pivot when faced with bad luck, seeing setbacks as opportunities for something better [12] - Bad luck forces resourcefulness and pushes individuals to new places, teaching valuable lessons [13]

Craft & Product Development - Focus on perfecting craft, described as "shokunin kishu" in Japan, which means craft perfected for its own sake [1] - Compounding involves making numerous small, invisible improvements that eventually lead to significant results [1] - Aim for a "10-star experience" by exceeding expectations beyond the obvious five stars [1] - Product quality relies on continuous improvement through empirical testing, one change at a time [1] - Prioritize fixing bugs immediately rather than building new features on buggy code [1] Customer Focus & Value Creation - Identify user problems that are so painful they are willing to pay to solve them [1] - Create products that customers will "pull" from you due to their high value [1] - Emphasize that customers form opinions on quality from their own experience with products or services, not marketing [1] - Great chefs and founders are impatient to bring out the potential in their work, driven by a desire that aligns with the customer's needs [3] Key Attributes for Success - Take work seriously, consistently perform at the highest level, and aspire to improve skills [2][5] - Maintain cleanliness and be impatient to achieve greatness [2][3] - Be a leader, be stubborn, and insist on having things your own way [3] - Be passionate about the work [3]

Content Creation & Social Media - Content creators should focus on creating and sharing their work, regardless of immediate metrics like followers or likes [1] - The unpredictable nature of social media means content can reach unexpected audiences [1] - A strong work ethic is crucial for long-term success in content creation [2] Career & Future Prospects - Future career paths are uncertain, emphasizing the importance of continuous effort [2]

Key Principles for Founders - Desperation repels investors and others, signaling risk [5] - Contentment attracts capital and opportunities, as founders building independently signal confidence [6] - Handling rejection with resilience demonstrates potential for success [6] Strategies for Success - Focus on building something undeniable to attract helpers and funding organically [9][10] - Detachment, not as passivity but as inward power, allows opportunities to arise [11] - Embrace the present and stop chasing future outcomes to create space for opportunities [12] - Believe in a real chance of success, even if not 100% certain [8] Mindset and Action - Avoid performative actions and focus on real calm and progress [7] - Turn dreams into tangible code or hardware [14] - Look inward for design space, code, character, and conviction [13]

Model Performance & Cost - Model performance is expected to improve significantly, exceeding current expectations [3] - The cost of using models like 03 decreased fivefold within a week, and further price reductions are anticipated [2] - Open-source models are expected to enable running powerful models locally, surprising users with their capabilities [3] Market Opportunity - There is a significant gap between current model capabilities and the products built utilizing them, indicating substantial opportunities for new product development [2]

One of the classic questions is how do I uh start a startup that doesn't get run over by open AI. That's sort of the number one question that's in our chat. We don't want to run you over.Um look, we're going to do our thing hopefully very well. We are going to try to make the best superent out of chatbt that we can. We're going to add the things that we think we need to add to that.Um, but that is like one small part of the opportunity in front of us. And it makes us sad when people are like, I'm gonna star ...

Key Principles for Innovation & Entrepreneurship - Build products that the company itself desires, rather than solely focusing on market research or investor demands [2][3] - Embrace the "maze mindset," viewing the startup journey as non-linear and pivoting when encountering obstacles instead of giving up [9][14] - Encourage interdisciplinary thinking and hiring diverse talent beyond specialists, integrating humanities and arts with technology [15][17] Steve Jobs' Early Ventures & Lessons - Steve Jobs' early experiences, such as hacking AT&T's phone network, were formative in shaping Apple's revolutionary DNA [1][4] - Jobs and Wozniak sold their prized possessions, including Wozniak's HP65 calculator (valued at $500) and Jobs' VW van (valued at $1,500), to fund their early ventures [7] - The initial sale of 50 Apple 1 units to a local computer shop generated $25,000 in revenue [7][8] Apple's Trajectory & Impact - NeXT's initial hardware failure led to a pivot to software, which was later acquired by Apple for $400 million and became macOS [10][14] - Apple's success stems from integrating a liberal arts perspective into technology, attracting a broader audience [16] - Apple's current valuation is in the trillions of dollars, with over a billion users worldwide, originating from humble beginnings in a garage [22]

Core Philosophy - The company emphasizes maximizing usefulness to a large number of people, defining it as the "area under the curve of total utility," akin to the physics definition of true work [2] - The company suggests aspiring to work rather than glory, focusing on the external impact and benefits for others [3][4] Operational Strategy - The company advocates for assessing the potential usefulness of a product by considering how many people it will benefit and to what extent [4] - The company encourages individuals, regardless of their role, to do whatever it takes to succeed while maintaining internal responsibility and humility [4] Hiring Considerations - The company prioritizes candidates who demonstrate a focus on the product's impact on others [4]

Model Capabilities & Product Development - The current product development is significantly behind the capabilities of the latest models, indicating substantial opportunities for innovation [2] - Even without model improvements, there is a vast amount of new products to build [2] Pricing & Performance - The cost of 03 model decreased fivefold within a week, suggesting a rapid decline in price per performance [2] - The industry anticipates a significant drop in price per performance [3] Open Source Initiatives - An open-source model is soon to be released, expected to surpass current expectations [3] - The open-source model will enable running powerful models locally, surprising users with its capabilities [3]