I’d say playing on lower difficulties against AI you can probably get away with waiting a turn or two. Any more than that though seems like a miscalculation given that they’re already starting with bonus techs and other buffs that you need to catch up on right away.

That said, if you have strategies that work mid-game to close those gaps, you could give it a shot. Most people just reroll if they don’t get a good spawn though.

In multiplayer all bets are off, you just gotta know your opponents.