Sarah Tavel's Newsletter

Sarah Tavel's Newsletter delves into the intricacies of tech startups, AI, and company building principles. It explores strategies for growth, competition, and innovation, emphasizing practical advice for startups navigating product development, market positioning, and team dynamics. Tavel shares insights from her experiences in venture capital and product management.

Startup Strategies Artificial Intelligence Company Culture and Hiring Market Analysis and Trends Product Development Competition and Innovation Customer Satisfaction Metrics Venture Capital Insights Social Media Trends Team Collaboration

The hottest Substack posts of Sarah Tavel's Newsletter

And their main takeaways

A few "Sell Work, Not Software" updated thoughts

943 implied HN points • 19 Jan 24

Selling work can open up larger markets than selling software per seat.
Focus on selling specific tasks or outcomes, not just 'virtual employees'.
Having your own humans in the loop can bring clarity and potential for dominant market positioning.

AI startups: Sell work, not software

2928 implied HN points • 21 Aug 23

🕹 Technology AI Startups Large Language Models Automation

Consider selling work instead of software in AI startups
Selling work opens up new vertical opportunities for AI companies
To succeed, AI startups leveraging LLMs must escape competition

Don't Fall Into the Trap of Taking the Wrong Lessons from Others' Success

1238 implied HN points • 14 Jul 23

💼 Business Success Lessons Companies Mistakes

Don't blindly copy successful companies' strategies without understanding if they fit your situation.
Just because a successful company did something, doesn't mean it was the key to their success.
Be cautious when assuming that all aspects of a successful company are what led to their success.

The Mitochondria in Startups

550 implied HN points • 25 Jul 23

💼 Business Startup Culture Company Values Organizational Culture

Identify and cherish employees who act like founders in startups.
Conduct values interviews to hire employees who align with company values.
Consider breaking compensation bands to properly value impactful 'mitochondria' employees.

Benchmark's New General Partner, Victor Lazarte

353 implied HN points • 24 Jul 23

💼 Business Venture Capital Investing Entrepreneurship

Victor Lazarte has a remarkable founder's journey, turning $100 into a successful gaming company.
Victor is a trusted resource for top founders, providing support and guidance with their challenges.
Victor's humble curiosity and diverse expertise make him a valuable addition to the venture firm Benchmark.

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Taking advantage when a window opens for you

393 implied HN points • 18 Feb 23

💼 Business Startups Entrepreneurship Funding Strategy Growth

When a window of opportunity opens in your business, take advantage of it.
Act with a sense of urgency to maximize the benefits of the open window.
Hiring great people and executing well during this time can extend the window of opportunity.

My "Two min workout"-equivalent post

334 implied HN points • 03 Mar 23

📚 Literature Writing Content Blogging Reading Attention

Even short workouts are better than skipping exercise altogether.
Writing helps focus attention and prioritize thoughts.
Prioritizing and controlling attention is crucial amidst a flood of content options.

Time to start cross posting on Threads :)

216 implied HN points • 06 Jul 23

🕹 Technology Social media Innovation Startups Competition Algorithms

Twitter's algorithmic feed quality has been declining.
Threads is a new social product that leverages Instagram's graph and Meta's infrastructure.
Threads poses a challenge to Twitter and may accelerate its decay.

Founding a company? My nudge to choose to be co-located (vs distributed).

176 implied HN points • 09 Mar 23

💼 Business Startups Remote work Entrepreneurship Team Dynamics

Consider starting a company with a co-located team for better collaboration and success.
Being together in person can enhance communication, creativity, and team strength in early stages.
As a company grows, balancing co-located and distributed teams becomes necessary for accessing talent and navigating trade-offs.

10x and cheaper in an AI world

157 implied HN points • 22 Feb 23

💼 Business Technology Startups Innovation Economics Entrepreneurship

Creating a 10x better product should also focus on making it cheaper for consumers.
A technology catalyst like AI can help recast cost structures and create new experiences.
AI advancements could lead to deflationary pressures on various industries, paving the way for innovative startups.

Feedback loops, and Google’s home-field advantage with LLMs

137 implied HN points • 11 Feb 23

Feedback loops are essential for continuous improvement in deep learning models like at Google.
ChatGPT lacks a native feedback loop to enhance its results based on user engagement data.
Google has a significant advantage with vast user queries and an integrated tech ecosystem for refining feedback loops.

Find a fast current, not a large body of water

137 implied HN points • 11 Jan 23

Think of markets like a river with a current, not a static body of water
Find the strong current in your market to make your journey smoother and faster
Don't ignore emerging trends and currents, like OpenAI with GPT-3, as they can propel your progress

Measuring Happy GMV, and why I'm over Net Promoter Score

412 implied HN points • 02 Sep 20

Measure Happy GMV as a better alternative to Net Promoter Score for evaluating customer satisfaction.
Happy GMV helps in understanding if you are on the right path towards achieving Minimum Viable Happiness.
Net Promoter Score may not be the best metric for early-stage companies; consider alternatives like Product/Market Fit survey.

How to compete against an incumbent: change the atomic unit (even in social)

39 implied HN points • 18 Jan 23

To compete against an incumbent, create a new and unique atomic unit.
Your product should improve with more usage and have a strong distribution strategy.
Focus on rapid product iteration and innovation on the core atomic unit to stand out.

Startup weapons against ChatGPT: focus and a tight feedback loop

19 implied HN points • 02 Feb 23

Startups can compete against ChatGPT by having a more focused interface.
A closed loop feedback system can be a strong weapon for startups against ChatGPT.
Designing interfaces with a strong feedback loop based on focus can lead to a compelling network effect over time.

The Danger of Early Hype in Consumer Social

39 implied HN points • 27 Jul 21

Avoid hype until your product and loops are really working
Hype can create the illusion of success before the reality catches up
Early hype can lead to a quick rise followed by a steep fall, hurting the user experience

rougher drafts

58 implied HN points • 29 Jul 19

Sarah Tavel has a newsletter.
She is from New York, currently living in San Francisco, and works as a GP at Benchmark.
She has background in product management at Pinterest and venture capital.

Thinking through the Bull Case for OpenAI’s threat to Google’s dominance

0 implied HN points • 24 Jan 23

OpenAI's ChatGPT is changing the game by expanding supply in a way Google can't.
Private capital backing and cost efficiency give OpenAI an edge over Google.
There's potential for a focused chat interface to outshine ChatGPT in certain areas.