Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Jeff Bezos-backed Perplexity AI, believes many startup founders fail because they chase market trends instead of working on problems they truly care about.
What Happened: During a June 2024 episode of the Lex Fridman Podcast, Srinivas shared his thoughts on why many startups fail. He argued that passion and personal interest in a problem are essential for long-term success.
“I think the thing that most people get wrong after they’ve decided to start a company is work on things they think the market wants,” he said.
Adding, “If you work from that perspective, I think you’ll give up beyond the point because it’s very hard to work towards something that was not truly important to you.”
He advised that recognizing one’s motivations and dopamine triggers is vital for achieving founder-market fit.
“Market will guide you towards making it a lucrative business by its own capitalistic pressure,” he stated, adding, “But don’t start in the other way where you started from an idea that you think the market likes and try to like it yourself.”
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Why It Matters: Srinivas has quickly risen as a major figure in AI. He worked at companies like OpenAI and Google’s DeepMind before co-founding Perplexity AI in 2022.
Perplexity AI has gained traction as an AI-powered search engine aiming to rival Google. Srinivas has also become an angel investor, backing AI startups like ElevenLabs and Suno.
Earlier this year, he proposed a deal for TikTok’s U.S. operations, suggesting a new U.S.-based company partially owned by the government. If approved, this move could place him at the center of one of the biggest tech transactions in history.
Last week, Perplexity AI also introduced a self-hosted variant of China’s DeepSeek R1 model. The startup raised $500 million in the December 2024 funding round, elevating its valuation to $9 billion.
Photo courtesy: Shutterstock
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