Why Bolt.new Won and Most DevTools AI Pivots Failed - Victoria Melnikova

Challenges & Initial State - ST Blitz faced near failure due to practically zero revenue and flat growth after 7 years of development and millions in investment [1] - Investors initially doubted browser-based technology and web containers, viewing them as a dead end [3] Turnaround & Growth - ST Blitz experienced explosive growth, evidenced by 20 million errors in just two months [1] - 18 months later, the company anticipates surpassing 100 million AR (likely Annual Recurring Revenue) for product B [2] - The success was not overnight, but the result of 7 years of development [2] AI Integration Strategy - Simply adding a chatbot interface is often ineffective due to user fatigue and underwhelming results [4] - Attempting to AI-power everything leads to direct competition with industry giants like OpenAI and Anthropic, which is difficult for smaller teams with limited resources [5] - Waiting for perfect AI is not practical; companies must build tooling iteratively [6] - The biggest mistake is neglecting user feedback; companies should prioritize user interaction to avoid developing unnecessary features [6][7] Keys to Success - Identify the company's unique competitive advantage, not just product features, such as domain expertise, data distribution, or infrastructure [7][8] - Determine how AI can amplify this competitive advantage, focusing on what becomes possible when AI meets the company's unique capabilities [8][9] - Create a new category by reinventing the user flow, rather than fitting into existing workflows [10] - ST Blitz's secret was not unique AI (as everyone has access), but their unique competitive advantage [10] - Reinventing the user flow and betting everything on it was crucial for ST Blitz [11]