From Side Project to $10M AI Company: Strique AI's Journey

𝐀𝐈 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲 — 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭. 🤖✨ Here are 3 simple ways startups can use AI to build their brand smarter: 1️⃣ Content Ideas: Generate social post ideas that match your tone and niche. 2️⃣ Market Research: Use AI tools to summarize customer reviews and competitor trends in minutes. 3️⃣ Design Inspiration: Brainstorm color palettes, taglines, or layouts before your designer even starts. You don’t need to be a tech expert — just curious enough to experiment. The best founders aren’t the fastest. They’re the ones who adapt first. 🚀 Which of these would help your startup the most right now? #AIForStartups #CreativeStrategy #BrandingWithAI #StartupGrowth #Dichithram #MarketingInnovation

When GenAI burst onto the scene, Freepik was a high-growth, high-margin business. Yet they decided to change everything from the ground up. At Beelieve London, their CFO, Gary Lumsdon, told us all about it. Their market-leading stock content offering (with ~65m MAUs and ~700K paid subscribers at the time) was suddenly up against a fast-looming, existential collapse. “There was no doubt at that point if we didn't change the company we wouldn't exist for very many more years.” And transform they did. A year later: - They’re adding 60-70% more new customers overall - ~60% of their new users only come for their GenAI tools - They’ve managed to retain their existing base - They recently ranked 4th overall (while topping their category) on a16z’s and Mercury’s AI application spending report, ahead of Cursor, Canva, and Midjourney. In an excellent fireside chat (link in the comments) with our very own Alexandra Gibson, Gary thoughtfully broke down the many strategic, brave bets (across product and monetization) they made as they embarked on this shift: — Why they added AI features to an existing product without charging more — What it cost (~$12m just to serve existing users) to deliberately absorb GenAI into the P&L and why it was ultimately worth it — How they launched 3 usage-based price tiers with no testing — The limitations of the usage-based model for creative tools; “The worst thing you can do in a creative process is say, ‘if you click this button, it's going to cost you money’.” — Why the now-consensus “unlimited AI” plans are often second-rate and what Gary envisions as the ideal AI pricing model — How professional services became an unlock for driving enterprise adoption (ft. creative arts graduates and a car on a plane that no longer ships to Iceland :)) When he was speaking, I felt that Gary was as much a head of growth as the CFO. He also noted how this is just the beginning and how they cannot be complacent when they’re suddenly facing 10-member hyper-growth startups that didn’t exist a couple of years ago. It was great being in the audience. I was also really touched by what Gary said about Chargebee. And I must make it clear, this post ISN’T about us, but I really do want to share this. Because it’s heartening to have played a small part in their inspiring transformation: “We've been a customer of Chargebee since 2021. And given what we've been through in the last year, that relationship has been really important to us because we've just had a robust billing system that we didn't have to worry about while we were trying to worry about everything else.”

AI may make it easy to spin up a product — but turning it into a startup that works is still brutally hard. After four months at South Park Commons, former founder Palash Kala reflects on walking away from his AI agent startup even with funding on the table — and the counterintuitive lessons the AI boom has taught him about focus, conviction, and when to quit. Read his story👇

They have millions. You have AI. That's enough. Here's the truth; venture funding buys speed, not intelligence. Most bootstrapped founders think they can't compete because funded startups have bigger teams, faster growth, and unlimited marketing budgets. They watch competitors raise rounds and assume the game is already over. The reality? Money can't buy the one thing that actually wins, deeply understanding your customers and moving with precision. The difference? Resourcefulness beats resources when you know where to aim. We've seen funded startups burn through millions on the wrong bets while bootstrapped businesses with tight budgets build sustainable growth because they use AI to compete on insight, not spending. Here's how bootstrapped businesses are punching above their weight with AI today: Track competitors → Tools like Competitors App or Panoramata monitor competitor moves, pricing changes, and campaigns so you always know their playbook. Personalize outreach → Clay or Instantly.ai create hyper-targeted campaigns that feel human and convert better than generic blast emails. Analyze feedback → Dovetail or MonkeyLearn surface patterns in customer reviews and support tickets so you build exactly what people want. Optimize ads → Madgicx or Pencil AI test ad variations and allocate budget smarter so every dollar works harder than their hundreds. These are the practical tools I break down in Prompt & Go each week so you can operate with funded-startup impact on a bootstrap budget. In 2025, the businesses that win won't be the ones with the most funding. They'll be the ones who made smarter decisions faster with better data and stayed lean while staying lethal. AI doesn't replace capital, it multiplies strategic focus at almost no cost. If you had to compete with a funded competitor tomorrow using only one advantage, what would you bet on? #SmallBusiness #AIForBusiness #Bootstrapped #StartupStrategy #AITools #LeanStartup

Assessing a startup's "moat" or defensibility has become a bit more challenging in the age of AI. But these foundation principals can get you pretty far in doing that work — or knowing how to communicate it to your potential investors.

Most startups chase investors and ads… but their websites are invisible to Google’s AI. 🚨 Here’s the truth: SEO isn’t a “nice-to-have.” It’s the foundation of visibility and equity — and ignoring it is why so many startups fail before they even launch. 👉 Watch my quick breakdown on why angel investors overlook SEO, and what it means for founders trying to scale. #AISEO #AngelInvesting #StartupGrowth #SEOExpertLasVegas

I've checked over 100 SaaS startups over the past few weeks and was amazed by three things: → It feels like every second one is building AI agents. → Among all these agentic AI startups, only a few had a marketer on the team. → And the most surprising one: most are actually well-positioned. I almost don't want to admit it, but 60-70 % target a very specific ICP, have a well-defined value proposition, and showcase distinctive use cases. Well done! Friendly reminder for the rest, those building "Custom AI agents tailored to your needs": BEING EVERYTHING FOR EVERYONE IS A TRAP If I operate in the financial industry, I'll get an AI agent from a company that builds AI agents for the financial sector. There's almost no chance to win here as a generalist. The number of agentic AI startups is growing faster than advertising agencies were in 2010. And the best way to not get lost is to get specific. Pick a use case, find an audience that deeply cares, and show how you solve their problem better than alternatives. The usual outcome isn't getting more prospects, but getting better ones. Which means more strangers exposed to your marketing efforts become highly interested leads. Give it a try.

AI Startups Are Racing from $0 to Multi-Million ARR in Months But Is ARR Telling Us the Truth, or Just a Good Story? The rise of AI-native companies like Lovable, Replit, and Cursor has changed the game. These startups are hitting multi-million ARR milestones in record time, often within months of launch. It’s exciting time, dont get me wrong, but it also raises an important question: Does ARR still reflect the true health of a business in this new era? ARR has long been the crown jewel metric for SaaS and now AI companies. It signals predictable growth, attracts investors, and often drives valuations. But here’s the catch: Creative accounting can make ARR look stronger than reality think multi-year deals booked upfront (with generous clause to cancel anytime for no reason), or one-time fees counted as “recurring.” AI adoption cycles are still early. Some customers experiment with big upfront commitments, but will they renew at the same level? This isn’t about calling anyone out, it’s about asking the right questions. In a world where speed is everything, are we prioritizing optics over fundamentals? Maybe it’s time to look beyond ARR and consider: ✅ Net Revenue Retention (NRR): Are customers sticking around? ✅ Cash Flow & Burn Multiple: Can the business sustain its growth pace? ✅ Rule of 40 : Are we balancing growth with profitability? ARR is important, but it’s just one piece of the puzzle. The real challenge for AI startups (and investors) is building durable, repeatable revenue models not just hitting a flashy, headline number fast. 📌 What do you think? Should the industry standardize ARR definitions, or is flexibility part of the game in this new AI-driven world? #AI #SaaS #ARR #ProductManagement

Some founders spend hours every week thinking about what to post on the company page. Others just… stay relevant. And honestly — that difference changes everything. I used to overthink content. What to write, how to sound authentic, when to post. But then I realized — relevance isn’t built in front of a blank page. It’s built by listening better than everyone else. That’s when I started using https://newupdates.today. It sends daily niche updates : AI, SaaS, ClimateTech, whatever space you’re in , and gives you short angles that instantly turn into authentic posts for your product page. No ghostwriter. No content agency. Just clarity — every day. Now, while most founders scroll through news trying to “find ideas,” I wake up with 3 updates already tailored for my industry. That’s why people think I “always know what’s happening.” I don’t. I just use better tools. If you’ve ever envied how some founders always sound in sync with the world — this might be their secret too. https://newupdates.today Consistency isn’t about working harder. It’s about staying closer to momentum. #product #ai #startups #new upadtes