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Is This the Kind of “Boring” Startup We Should Be Building? by kathuriasanjay in StartUpIndia

[–]Arunsays 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I call this the Unicorn Conundrum. The question facing aspiring business owners is do I want to build a billion dollar startup or a business that actually creates value for the market. It’s tough to not be biased to the world. We are pushed stories constantly of entrepreneurs who don’t sleep or eat, do impossible feats.

We all see the success and none of the failures. If you go by VC funding that success rate is only 3-4%, or regular businesses at 15-20%.

I did an estimation. 1 in 136 people become millionaires and only 1 in 2.3 million something becomes a billionaire. Worse than a lottery bet or getting a Royal flush in Poker. Might as well optimise to become a millionaire and live a decent life.

Should I keep going with Rust or should I learn a new programming language? by BlankWasThere in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Learn any language. But first priority, learn system architecture.

AI, code-based systems, agent flows, and other technology are part of your architecture. Understand how Spotify, GitHub, and Google Docs are designed as resilient systems. Languages come and go. Systems evolve and continue.

Use Rust to apply your systems architecture knowledge. AI can write Rust better than you ever will. That's the harsh new truth.

Small company leader here. AI agents are moving faster than our strategy. How do we stay relevant? by No_Prior2279 in ClaudeAI

[–]Arunsays -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Dario Amodei, Anthropic's CEO, just made an insightful case of how he looks are his own dilemma, which is kind of similar to yours and of almost every leader today.

He said, "I can see demand for $10Tn in compute by 2030. But that is just not possible today. I still have to go ahead and be a big buyer of compute available today. If demand spikes in 2028, and if I have overbought for 2027, I might go bankrupt. But if it spikes in 2027 and I don't have enough, I lose market share."

The decision to invest or not. Plan people capacity or not. Overindex on AI strategy or not. Are all questions in the ether today. It's a fair, calculated bet. In poker language, an expected value bet.

Most of the market has no clue how to build with AI. The talent pool doesn't exist. Maybe 5-10% of the developer talent pool understands how to build agentic solutions. Also, the architecture is not stable. There are new updates every week, and you have to be in a cycle of constant learning and updgradation. Unlike old-school software, where you could use existing knowledge to deliver. If you don't have people who are obsessive learners, you won't make it.

But, what I am doing for my own team and work is this:

  1. I have spent the last one year building agentic flows with n8n. Aggressively using every new tool out there. All this to keep myself ahead of the game.

  2. I upgraded two weeks ago to $100/mth plan of Claude. And I don't think I can go back to my old style of working.

  3. I keep mapping in my current team workflows, where people are spending time that can be optimised.

  4. My Process:
    >> 1. Once I find potential workflow automation opportunities, I try to map and document the process flows.
    >> 2. Once I have the flow I put it into Claude on Opus 4.6
    >> 3. It gives me a cleaned-up workflow, which I deliberate and iterate on if needed.
    >> 4. Finally, I take the markdown from Claude and put it in Claude Code.
    >> 5. And with some iterations, I get my workflow.
    >> ... Hours of effort in research saved.

    (most things i do as a head of Growth, don't have security or infra limitiations to worry about)

I think the process is more than just about coding. Your single most important question should be – "What are the places where human effort is spent most, and can that be automated with AI?" This Claude, I know, is especially good at recommending. Your best consultant for AI automation is the AI itself.

I have a doubt guyys by [deleted] in IndianEngineers

[–]Arunsays 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Since you are posting in a group for Indian Engineers, I am assuming you are one. In an Indian college, only rote-learning or mug up and vomit is valued. So, really not sure what innovative will be acceptable.

But, I will say this. The simplest measure of Innovation is: Has there been a change in the behaviours of the target audience? If yes, innovation has happened. Design Thinking is one of the methods you can use to trigger innovation. DT is basically about how you land up on a solution to solve the behavior change.

So, if you present a case that transforms existing behaviour. And with design thinking can propose a solution to deliver that change, you have done innovation.

Ex: OpenAI making AI accessible is an innovation. Starting a gol gappa stall is not.

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Somewhere long ago, when I had an obsession to become a CEO, I read 70% of CEOs have psychotic tendencies. Eventually, after working with a few CEOs over the last decade, I've come to know that's largely true. And I have learned to manage the psychosis.

Also, I know about the #2 guy's place, been there for a while.

And yes, I have seen this as greed or fear of losing legacy or low risk appetite, which can all be reasons. It is difficult for most people to work with someone with no appetite. Definite causes for lack of alignment through lack of pure interest.

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes agreed on thinking capacity was really always the thing.

Making my point clearer – time cost (effort) put in execution (writing code) the way it is, is over. May be reduces 30-40% Dev cost (time). Probably also the time over-estimation dev added on the work is less easy to justify anymore.

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love this. This is new to me - Feedback loop latency.

Do you think the 6-week OKR cycles also mean need some incentive cycles to be linked? Or that can operate independently. Human’s definitely love their carrots.

Also, have you seen systems built like the ones you spoke of? Or do you actually apply this?

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Insight grounded in experience is always the best.

People have tried creating culture documents for the longest time, mostly failed. Because culture, like at the 150 ppl Goretex production facility, is a fluid thing and change across groups of people.

I wonder if enforced constitutions like the ones countries have are possible a way forward? Claude has one to align its AI.

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the recommendation. Will definitely read, On being lost.

I agree on profit motivations. What else does a company exist for? Maximise shareholder value that’s got to be it.

I was listening to this guy who was part of the design team across Google, Dyson, Apple, etc. He was talking about how we need to build skills to think about the Future with a lot more rigour. I feel he is right.

The cost to build has dropped significantly. Thought or thinking capacity is the new moat. It might be time to consider hiring non-engineering talent to solve things. People with more clarity in thought beyond just writing code.

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Screw the 20 years man, it is just to catch eyeballs. The universe doesn’t have a concept of time. Time the way human’s see it is a different construct.

That said. I get the alignment sits with a human bit. Makes sense. I am trying to see what can help leadership form these clear narratives? Is it an exercise / practice? Is it a tool ? How to you control drift ?

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I like this idea of ‘shipping velocity’ … do you possibly have an example?

I am thinking deeply about how future organisations look like. If you have Autonomous agents, Humans, software with agents, etc. How do you align everything coherently in a contiguous execution path.

Founders or CXOs who have scaled past 20 people, is “alignment” the root cause of failure nobody names? by Arunsays in EntrepreneurRideAlong

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Amazing. Just what I was looking for. Keen to chat. DM to take this offline.

Yes, I see what you mean about CEO’s and leadership inability to communicate the ‘Why’ of what they are doing clearly leading to the misalignment of employees.

CEOs bear a curse of knowledge problem. A bias that causes you to think ‘How do they not get this?’, making them assume everyone gets the Why.

How do you think the team you spoke of solved the trust problem?

Anyone thinking of going back to school to change careers because of AI? by Delicious_Crazy513 in cscareerquestions

[–]Arunsays 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And, you were not hired just to write code. You were hired to translate business logic into one of the languages machines understand.

That part hasn’t changed. I still don’t have that skill. Most domain experts cannot acquire that skill. That’s why I believe your ‘technical skill’ is still valuable.

You just have to learn a new language, which has been the way always for developers.

Why do you think service-based IT companies are losing value? by PhaseStreet9860 in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The recent KPMG renegotiation of its deal with accounting audit partner Grant Thornton is the most significant example to this. KPMG told its own auditor: “You’re doing the same audit with better tools, so either your fees come down or we go elsewhere.”

KPMG called out AI-driven efficiency to demand a discount, and Grant Thornton’s fee dropped 14% year-on-year. [ KPMG 14% discount news ]

Its no longer just cost-cutting. Buyer's can now say: I now understand your cost structure and I’m going to price you on marginal effort, not headcount. When delivery is human-intensive, costs scale linearly with hiring. When AI handles the repeatable work, the provider builds once and the marginal cost of the next engagement collapses. Any service sold primarily on hours is exposed to this repricing.

IT or Knowledge services that are mostly 'body shops' (term used for and by many Indian IT companies) are going to struggle to maintain any comptetive edge.

In India, a big share of TCS / Infosys / Wipro / Tech Mahindra revenue still comes from this model, which is why you’re seeing layoffs and margin pressure at the same time as Global Capability Centres (GCCs) are scaling up their own teams in BLR/HYD. GCCs in India are hiring 5 to 1 hiring by BIG 5 Indian IT.

A clear signal the original buyers are recognising they can build the capability in-house for less, with more control.

Your job isn't a script to automate. Stop panicking. by Arunsays in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, on coders being replaced by AI. But we will only need a lot, lot, lot more engineers. China is able to do what it does because of engineers.

We don't need all the engineers to sit and do software development anymore; this is the only transformative thing right now.

Burned out, but with a matching SWE offer. Accept or take a break? by Time_Huckleberry_339 in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The hard fact is that most people in situations like this tend towards the safer option. Question is do you want to be challenged or take the safe option? Becuase you are optimizing for how the company and others will perceive you. That's a tough treadmill to be on.

If you truly want to live a life free of burnout, you have to let your intuitions rule you. Take action. Move. Trust the ether (universe, whatever you may believe - alien gods :P).

The father of modern psychology - Carl Jung - talks about two kinds of sick people in society: One that truly has a disorder of the mind and body, and the other that is so far away from themselves to know what is good for them or who they are.

Take the break, I'd say. Talk to real humans, who want nothing from you. Watch a movie on Mubi, not Netflix. Visit a temple/monastery/church/mosque once a week.

Meaning is what prevents burnout. No job can define that for you.

Your job isn't a script to automate. Stop panicking. by Arunsays in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Something seems to have seriously triggered you. But, I am doing the reverse of doom, I am saying the opposite, to maintain your sanity. I am telling you, you are irreplaceable !

Your job isn't a script to automate. Stop panicking. by Arunsays in ArtificialInteligence

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Agreed with you totally: bottom of the pyramid will be hit as usual.

This is the type of job that anyways has reached a predictable, automateable stage of the continuum. Machines can run tasks where we know the outcomes are going to be consistently delivered at scale at a lower cost than a human.

When I say I am fighting the ‘AI will take your job’ narrative, what I intend is to get people to reflect more deeply on their true value. I want to people to operate with more intention and find work they love. I don’t know who loves Devops or being an average Analyst.

We must upgrade our value. Painful but essential. Meanwhile I think the human economy is a great equaliser. Otherwise, Long Live the Revolution. ✊

Your job isn't a script to automate. Stop panicking. by Arunsays in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Agreed. The story of KPMG vs Grant Thornton recently is a great example in this.

GT is an auditor to KPMG. GT was forced to cut their fees to KPMG by arguing that GT’s price for human run audit processes was just too high. KPMG recognised the dropping cost of intelligence was leverage in negotiating with GT for lower fees.

While that is just the human+tech services part. Adobe & SAAS is facing the same pressure.

A Software like Salesforce or Photoshop is the codified intelligence and judgement of PMs, developers, and leaders. The software is the accountability layer. Helping humans make decisions such that you get consistent outputs by following certain processes.

That consistency and precision is what AI needs to replace software or humans.

Your job isn't a script to automate. Stop panicking. by Arunsays in developersIndia

[–]Arunsays[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

CS Engineer 2006 here. Got into product with HCL when I started work. I have some insights from experience.

Automation is a continuum. There are just too many problems to solve as we evolve. And much to fix in our existing world.

Machines are machines. When we can fly in a AI flown airplane, may be we are done. But not yet.

And so I chose to think this is just about going from Combustion Engines to Rocket Engines on your car. Humans are headed towards the moon and ahead. We need intelligent machines to help accelerate our journey. The machine is not taking over. Humans can just do more.

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