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Michael Seibel, CEO of Y Combinator, shares the essential steps every founder should know to launch a tech startup the right way – fast, focused, and efficient. What’s crucial, and how can you apply these insights for real success?

1. Start with the right team

Build your founding team with two to four co-founders, at least 50% of whom should be technical. Everyone must have quit their jobs and saved enough for a year of extremely frugal living. You don’t need a fully formed idea at the start, but total commitment is essential.

2. Find and validate the right idea

Brainstorm with your co-founders and tackle a problem you experience personally or fully understand. Prioritise daily or weekly problems, not those that occur rarely – frequent problems drive faster relevance and growth.

3. Fast MVP launch (Note from IDEASCANNER: start with MSP)

Build your first prototype (Minimum Viable Product) within two months and launch immediately. Real user feedback matters most, and imperfection is perfectly fine at this stage. (Note from IDEASCANNER: Why start with MSP, Minimum Sellable Product? If people are willing to pay for your product, then you might be solving a real problem.)

4. Growth drives success

Investors focus on growth above all else – not team size or your credentials. Embed sharing and referral mechanisms directly into your product, right from the start.

5. PR, Fundraising & Operations

Own your PR from the outset. Build genuine relationships with relevant journalists and avoid unnecessary agency spend. Fundraising works best when you don’t desperately need the money – keep costs low, schedule investor meetings tightly to build momentum and FOMO. Speed and growth are decisive for successful rounds.

6. Hiring: Attract top-tier talent

Only hire if new recruits raise the average intelligence of your team. Your first hires are your best advertisement. Transparency, fairness, and long-term commitment drive loyalty and sustainable growth.

Why IDEASCANNER? Apply These Insights for Sustainable Business Success

IDEASCANNER helps founders implement these core principles from day one. Our AI-powered approach provides fast, effective analysis and optimisation of business models based on today’s most important success factors in business. The Pre-SCAN reveals new opportunities instantly, while our SCAN, SCORE, SCALE framework takes your business idea to the next stage.

Get hands-on: Start for free with the IDEASCANNER Pre-SCAN and discover how smart AI tools can accelerate your growth – www.ideascanner.com!

Book your appointment and follow IDEASCANNER for more actionable expert insights.

Get Priority Application to the Founder Institute!

Apply now to the world’s largest pre-seed startup accelerator – with personal recommendation from accelerator mentor and IDEASCANNER founder Andreas G. Stütz!

Your application will be prioritised by the admissions team, giving you exclusive priority access thanks to Andreas’ endorsement. Andreas is an award-winning serial entrepreneur, inventor, and AI expert.

What Awaits You at Founder Institute Berlin Fall 2025 cohort?

• Globally leading, proven accelerator for idea-stage and pre-seed startups: Over 8,100 founders launched, $1.9BN+ in funding raised.
• Structured validate, launch and growth track, guided by top mentors and European innovation experts with lifelong support and connections through the international FI network.
• Just 40% complete the program – it’s rigorous and deeply valuable, with weekly feedback, an authentic network, and the right push to succeed.

Andreas G. Stütz & IDEASCANNER – Your AI Co-Entrepreneur

Andreas G. Stütz, founder and managing director of IDEASCANNER, is a renowned IT entrepreneur, inventor, pilot, and mentor with over 20 years of experience in technology and business. He’s worked on projects for Daimler, Mercedes in Tokyo, and Dresdner Bank in New York City, received awards from Angela Merkel, and contributes his expertise as a member of MunichAngels investor network, startup mentor, and international keynote speaker.

IDEASCANNER is your digital “AI Co-Entrepreneur” – it allows founders and business leaders to quickly scan, evaluate, and improve ideas and business models in minutes, using criteria trusted by elite venture capitalists. The outcome: an objective, data-driven assessment with actionable recommendations for your next steps. The Pre-SCAN feature is free to use and helps founders pre-assess their idea, gaining instant insights for refinement, validation, and pitch readiness.

• IDEASCANNER’s SCAN, SCORE, and SCALE features are award-winning, science-based, and make venture-grade expertise accessible to anyone starting up.
• Start your free Pre-SCAN now at www.ideascanner.com and benefit from AI-powered support from Andreas and the IDEASCANNER team to supercharge your entrepreneurial journey!
• Stay ahead to think smarter with AI and follow IDEASCANNER on LinkedIn!

OpenAI’s new guide, Staying Ahead in the Age of AI, provides a practical, real-world roadmap for business leaders to accurately assess and accelerate their current AI adoption. In this summary, the blog highlights actionable insights and strategic lessons drawn from thousands of enterprise deployments, featuring key examples from sectors like healthcare, retail, technology, and finance.

Takeaways for CXOs & Decision Makers

The guide directly answers the pressing CxO question: “Am I ahead or behind on AI?”. It distils seven actionable best practices, including robust model evaluation (e.g., Morgan Stanley), product enhancement through AI (Indeed with GPT-4o mini), accelerated adoption for cumulative value (Klarna, 90% daily AI use among staff), tailored model fine-tuning, and empowering employees to innovate with AI technologies.

• Early and focused action delivers measurable competitive advantage.
• Integration and automation reinvent workflows and fuel new business innovations.
• Customising models for sector-specific needs maximises AI’s impact across organisations.

Industry Insights & Practical Examples

Case studies from organisations like Klarna, Morgan Stanley, Mercado Libre, and Lowe’s showcase how AI drives tangible results in diverse environments – from smarter products to more efficient support and advisory workflows.

Start today in just three simple steps

1. Request your free Pre-SCAN
   Receive an initial AI-powered analysis of your business – for instant insights to increase your company value.
2. Contact us directly
   Book a personal consultation to discuss your company’s individual opportunities and potential.
3. Follow IDEASCANNER on LinkedIn
   Stay up to date on the latest trends, best practices, and innovations in AI and business models.

Unlock the full value of AI in your business. Begin with IDEASCANNER. Let’s think smarter with AI and shape the future together now.

Will SaaS Survive the Era of Foundation Models?

Foundation models like GPT-4o or 5 can do it all – from copywriting to data analysis. So why do we still need specialised software? The answer: it’s not about what AI can do, but how and where it delivers genuine business value.

What’s under threat, and what will thrive?

Generic SaaS solutions are being cannibalised by powerful foundation models like GPT, Claude, and Gemini. Copywriting tools, presentation apps, and routine data analysis can now be fully automated, faster and better than ever. The future, however, belongs to SaaS platforms with real depth and business impact.

The success factors for tomorrow’s SaaS:

1. Vertical SaaS: Deep industry focus, tailored workflows and regulatory expertise form the backbone of lasting business success.
2. Proprietary Data & Ontologies: Those with unique, structured data and insights will win where foundation models cannot go.
3. Workflow Ownership: SaaS must own entire workflows – not just provide basic features.
4. Human-in-the-loop: Coaching, expert feedback and responsible decisions will remain essential and human-driven.
5. Agent Orchestration: Smart control and integration of foundation models, tools and data increases efficiency.
6. Audit & Governance SaaS: Trust, control and transparency are vital for business-grade AI and SaaS deployments.

Conclusion: SaaS will survive where it simplifies decisions, minimises risks and structures responsibility. AI brings the power, but only specialised SaaS makes it useful – in daily operations, with relevant context and for real results.

👉 Read the original LinkedIn post by Andreas G. Stütz (CIO, IDEASCANNER) here.

Start your future with IDEASCANNER

Try the free IDEASCANENR Pre-SCAN and discover how smart AI and SaaS can unlock your company’s hidden potential. With IDEASCANNER, you open up new growth opportunities and secure a competitive edge – www.ideascanner.com!

Book your appointment today and join IDEASCANNER for more insights here.

Stay ahead of the curve to think smarter with AI and follow us on LinkedIn.

How Much Growth Is Hidden in Your Business?

Most SME owners underestimate the hidden growth potential in their existing business. Ahead of a sale, many lack a clear view of their company’s true value and negotiate based on the past – while buyers focus on just one thing: The future.

Discover It with IDEASCANNER’s AI!

Our client projects show: With AI-based analysis, benchmarks from one of Europe’s largest private research projects, and a hybrid of human expertise and AI, +10% more revenue and +20% more profit are possible within a year – all with your current products and clients. The biggest insight: Every company already has a unique selling proposition that’s simply hidden from view.

How IDEASCANNER Reveals Growth Potential

• 150+ scientific success factors are analysed using AI
• Benchmarking against market leaders and deep research data
• Hybrid approach: AI and entrepreneurial expertise for actionable recommendations

IDEASCANNER clients have identified €1.47bn in revenue potential and, in some cases, achieved a 5–10x increase in company value.

👉 Read the original LinkedIn post by Andreas G. Stütz (CIO, IDEASCANNER) here.

How Much Untapped Growth Is Hiding in Your Business?

Find out with a free AI-powered Pre-Scan and individual consultation! Uncover hidden USPs and new avenues for growth – www.ideascanner.com. Book your appointment today and join IDEASCANNER for more insights here.

Stay ahead of the curve to think smarter with AI and follow us on LinkedIn.

What if founders didn’t have to fail?

Every year, Germany loses billions in investments, subsidies and talent due to failed startups. Yet, the failure is rarely down to the founders themselves or inherently poor ideas. The real issue is the lack of systematic, structured use of entrepreneurial experience.

The facts are clear:

• Mentoring triples the likelihood of securing funding.
• Early due diligence significantly reduces the error rate.
• Post-mortem analyses reveal that 42% of startups fail due to lack of market demand – a risk that could be avoided.

The biggest lever for success?

• Evidence-based support from the very beginning of the startup journey.

IDEASCANNER – AI for smarter startups

This is where IDEASCANNER comes in. The AI-driven pre-due diligence tool helps startup advisors, chambers of commerce, and universities to systematically and objectively assess the potential of business ideas – before time and money are wasted.

Why IDEASCANNER makes the difference:
🎯 No guesswork: scientifically validated success factors.
🧭 No trial & error: a clear action plan built on real data.
🤝 No one-to-one bottlenecks: a scalable tool designed to support entire cohorts of founders.

The impact? Each year, we could save up to €2 billion in funding and investments by systematically applying this knowledge.

Get your free IDEASCANNER Pre-Scan

Take advantage of the free IDEASCANNER Pre-Scan for startup initiatives and programmes and scan your business idea now here.

Stay ahead of the curve to think smarter with AI and follow us on LinkedIn.

IDEASCANNER is an innovative AI-powered analysis tool designed to evaluate the potential of business ideas more quickly and objectively than traditional advisory approaches. It supports startup initiatives, chambers of commerce, universities and funding programmes in systematically identifying the key success factors of startups – and provides clear, actionable recommendations. The goal: to make founders more successful and prevent billion-euro losses from avoidable failures.

👉 Read the original LinkedIn post by Andreas G. Stütz (CIO, IDEASCANNER) here.