Startups often fail by making a slightly better version of an incumbent's product. This is a losing strategy because the incumbent can easily adapt. The key is to build something so fundamentally different in structure that competitors have a very hard time copying it, ensuring a durable advantage.

During a fundamental technology shift like the current AI wave, traditional market size analysis is pointless because new markets and behaviors are being created. Investors should de-emphasize TAM and instead bet on founders who have a clear, convicted vision for how the world will change.

A retired VC advised serial entrepreneur Elias Torres to "forget everything you've ever learned." Pattern recognition and past experience can become a trap for successful founders, especially during a technological shift like AI. The challenge is to let go of old playbooks and charge into the future with a fresh perspective.

Don't wait for a 'Shark Tank' invention. Your most valuable business idea is likely a proprietary insight you have about a broken process in your current field. Everyone has a unique vantage point that reveals an inefficiency or an unmet need that can be the seed of a successful venture.

Lacking deep category knowledge fosters the naivety and ambition required for groundbreaking startups. This "beginner's mind" avoids preconceived limitations and allows for truly novel approaches, unlike the incrementalism that experience can sometimes breed. It is a gift, not a curse.

Bizzabo's founders, being new to the events industry, used their lack of preconceived notions to their advantage. They could question established norms and identify problems that insiders overlooked, leading to innovative solutions. This "beginner's mind" is a powerful disruptive tool.

While technical founders excel at finding an initial AI product wedge, domain-expert founders may be better positioned for long-term success. Their deep industry knowledge provides an intuitive roadmap for the company's "second act": expanding the product, aligning ecosystem incentives, and building defensibility beyond the initial tool.

When evaluating revolutionary ideas, traditional Total Addressable Market (TAM) analysis is useless. VCs should instead bet on founders with a "world-bending vision" capable of inducing a new market, not just capturing an existing one. Have the humility to admit you can't predict market size and instead back the visionary founder.

Many iconic founders, like Southwest's Herb Kelleher, were beginners in their industries. This lack of experience was an advantage, freeing them from established dogmas and allowing them to approach problems with a fresh perspective. They built unconventional models that incumbents dismissed or couldn't replicate.