Lilly Tech Systems
AI Startup
Build, fund, sell, and scale an AI startup. 50 deep dives across 300 lessons covering ideation & validation, product & engineering, fundraising, go-to-market, growth & scale, operations & team, defensibility & moats, and legal/exit.
All Topics
50 startup topics organized into 8 categories. Each has 6 detailed lessons with frameworks, scripts, and templates.
Idea & Validation
Finding AI Startup Ideas
Find AI startup ideas that actually become businesses. Learn the 'AI-native', 'AI-enabled', and 'AI-augmented' frames, idea filtering rubrics, and how to spot defensible wedges.
6 LessonsAI Market Sizing & TAM
Size AI markets honestly. Learn top-down vs bottom-up TAM, SAM/SOM math for AI, the right comps to use, and how to present TAM in a pitch without fluff.
6 LessonsCustomer Discovery for AI
Run customer discovery interviews that produce real signal. Learn the Mom Test, JTBD interviews, AI-specific buyer personas, and how to avoid leading questions.
6 LessonsAI MVP Scoping
Scope an AI MVP that ships in weeks, not quarters. Learn how to pick the smallest valuable surface, the manual-Wizard-of-Oz pattern, and the 'cost of being wrong' rubric.
6 LessonsValidating Willingness to Pay
Test willingness-to-pay before you build. Learn the price-anchoring interview, LOI patterns, design partner agreements, and the 'commit before product' approach.
6 LessonsPicking Your Wedge
Pick a wedge tight enough to win. Learn how to choose a beachhead, sequence adjacent markets, decide ICP narrowness, and resist scope creep.
6 LessonsProduct & Engineering
AI Product Strategy
Set AI product strategy that compounds. Learn the AI roadmap, how to balance features vs evals, the 'capability flywheel' pattern, and product/research alignment.
6 LessonsBuilding an AI MVP Fast
Ship an AI MVP in 2-4 weeks. Learn the right scaffolding, framework choices that don't lock you in, the demo-to-design-partner path, and demo-day patterns.
6 LessonsAI Tech Stack Choices
Pick a startup AI stack that survives the next 18 months. Learn the Day-0 vs Day-1 stack, frontend/backend defaults, and when to switch from defaults to specialized tools.
6 LessonsBuild vs Buy for AI
Decide build vs buy for AI components. Learn the build/buy matrix, when to self-host models, when to use a vector DB SaaS, and when to roll your own framework.
6 LessonsAI Quality & Evaluation
Build the eval discipline that separates winning AI startups. Learn eval set creation, golden test patterns, LLM-as-judge calibration, and CI for AI quality.
6 LessonsAI Cost Engineering
Cut AI cost-per-task 50-90%. Learn model routing, prompt caching, batching, output budgeting, and the per-tenant cost ceilings that keep margins healthy.
6 LessonsAI Latency Engineering
Drive perceived AI latency below 500ms. Learn streaming, speculative responses, parallelization, model routing for speed, and the perceived-latency tricks.
6 LessonsAI Reliability & Reproducibility
Make AI features reliably reproducible enough to ship. Learn deterministic settings, retry/fallback patterns, version pinning, and the SLA conversation.
6 LessonsOpen vs Closed Models
Choose between API models and self-hosted open-weight models. Learn the cost crossover, latency tradeoffs, IP and compliance angles, and the 'fallback' pattern.
6 LessonsAI Telemetry & Observability
Instrument AI features so you can debug and improve them. Learn LangSmith/Helicone/Langfuse patterns, the metrics that matter, and the data-collection consent loop.
6 LessonsFundraising
Pre-Seed Fundraising for AI
Raise a pre-seed for an AI startup. Learn what's needed at pre-seed, target check sizes, the typical investor archetypes, and the timeline from first email to wire.
6 LessonsSeed Round Fundraising
Raise a seed round for an AI startup. Learn what's needed at seed, lead vs follower dynamics, building a process, and closing within 6-8 weeks.
6 LessonsSeries A for AI Startups
Raise a Series A for an AI startup. Learn the metrics bar (ARR, growth, retention), the deck differences, lead investor selection, and term sheet negotiation.
6 LessonsSeries B and Beyond
Raise Series B and later rounds. Learn the growth-stage metrics bar, structured rounds, secondary, the rule-of-40 for AI, and pre-IPO mechanics.
6 LessonsAI Pitch Deck Patterns
Build pitch decks investors actually read. Learn the 10-slide template, AI-specific slides, demo-vs-deck, narrative arcs, and the Q&A slides nobody talks about.
6 LessonsAI Startup Valuations
Understand AI startup valuations. Learn the 2024-2026 ranges, ARR multiples, AI-premium reasoning, comparable comps, and dilution math.
6 LessonsSAFE vs Priced Round
Choose between SAFE notes and priced rounds. Learn caps, discounts, MFN, post-money vs pre-money SAFEs, and when to convert.
6 LessonsStrategic Investors
Decide whether to take strategic money. Learn what NVIDIA NVentures, OpenAI Fund, a16z, Sequoia, and corporate VCs offer, the tradeoffs, and how to negotiate.
6 LessonsGo-to-Market
AI GTM Motions Overview
Pick the right GTM motion for an AI startup. Learn PLG vs sales-led vs hybrid, when each works for AI, and the bottom-up enterprise pattern that wins in AI.
6 LessonsPLG for AI Products
Build a product-led-growth motion for AI. Learn free tier design, time-to-value, conversion funnel, viral loops, and the PLG metrics that matter for AI.
6 LessonsEnterprise Sales for AI
Sell AI to enterprise. Learn the procurement gauntlet (security, legal, AI governance), POC patterns, pricing models, and the enterprise sales cycle for AI.
6 LessonsAI Pricing & Packaging
Price AI products without burning margin. Learn per-seat vs usage vs hybrid, value-based pricing, the BYOK question, and pricing experiments for AI.
6 LessonsBuilding an AI Sales Team
Build the first 10 hires of an AI sales team. Learn founder-led to first AE, AE/SE pairs, sales engineering for AI, comp plans, and ramp.
6 LessonsAI Marketing Channels
Pick the right marketing channels for an AI startup. Learn what works in 2026: LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Discord, conferences, and the channel mix by stage.
6 LessonsContent Marketing for AI
Build content that wins for an AI startup. Learn topic strategy, the build-in-public pattern, technical blogs, SEO for AI, and content distribution.
6 LessonsAI Developer Relations
Build a DevRel motion for an AI/dev product. Learn DevRel hire profiles, content calendars, OSS strategy, sample apps, and the developer experience metrics.
6 LessonsGrowth & Scale
AI Product Analytics
Instrument AI product analytics. Learn the activation/retention/expansion funnel for AI products, AI-specific metrics, dashboards, and analytics tools.
6 LessonsRetention in AI Products
Drive retention in AI products. Learn the AI retention paradox, habit loops, value reinforcement, and how to ship features that stick.
6 LessonsScaling AI Infrastructure
Scale AI infrastructure as the startup grows. Learn the GPU sourcing journey, multi-cloud, BYOC, autoscaling, and the cost-vs-control balance.
6 LessonsAI Customer Success
Build a customer success function for AI. Learn implementation patterns, the AI value-realization journey, QBRs, churn prevention, and CSM staffing models.
6 LessonsLand and Expand for AI
Land small and expand in AI. Learn the wedge-to-platform expansion, multi-product strategy, expansion metrics (NRR, GRR), and the expansion playbook.
6 LessonsInternational Expansion
Take an AI startup international. Learn when to expand (timing), where to expand (markets), data residency for AI, EU AI Act, and the international hire patterns.
6 LessonsOperations & Team
Hiring AI Engineers
Hire AI engineers. Learn the role profiles (AI eng vs ML eng vs research eng), interview loops, take-home patterns, sourcing channels, and offer dynamics.
6 LessonsHiring AI Researchers
Hire AI researchers when you need them. Learn the researcher vs engineer trade, how to evaluate publications, comp expectations, and managing researchers in startups.
6 LessonsAI Startup Org Design
Design org structure for an AI startup. Learn pod vs functional, when to split research and product, the AI infra team, and reporting lines for founders.
6 LessonsEquity & Compensation for AI Talent
Design equity and comp for AI talent. Learn typical ranges by role and stage, refreshers, top-of-market negotiations, and the levers founders have.
6 LessonsRemote vs In-Office AI Teams
Decide remote vs in-office for an AI startup. Learn what works at each stage, hub-and-spoke models, AI-specific collaboration patterns, and offsite cadences.
6 LessonsAI Founder Wellbeing
Stay sane as an AI founder. Learn the AI-specific stressors (model paranoia, talent wars, hype cycles), peer networks, decision fatigue, and recovery patterns.
6 LessonsDefensibility & Moats
AI Moats
Build defensible AI startups. Learn the four moat types (data, network, workflow, brand), the 'fast-feet' moat, and how to compound moats over time.
6 LessonsProprietary Data Flywheel
Build a proprietary data flywheel that compounds. Learn how to design products that generate training data, feedback loops, and the legal angles of user data.
6 LessonsAI IP Strategy
Build an IP strategy for an AI startup. Learn patents (helpful and not), trade secrets, the open-source paradox, and IP in fundraising due diligence.
6 LessonsCompeting with Big AI Labs
Compete with OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta. Learn where startups beat labs, the platform-on-platform risk, and how to defend against feature absorption.
6 LessonsLegal, Compliance & Exit
AI Startup Legal Essentials
Cover the AI legal essentials founders must know. Learn entity choice, IP assignment, customer data terms, model terms, AI Act compliance, and indemnification.
6 LessonsAI Exit Outcomes
Plan exit outcomes for an AI startup. Learn acquihire vs full acquisition vs IPO, the talent-deal pattern (Inflection, Adept, Character), and timing exits.
6 LessonsWhy an AI Startup Track?
AI startups face the classic startup challenges plus AI-specific dynamics. This track gives you a single map.
Ideation + Product
16 topics: idea filtering, market sizing, customer discovery, MVP scoping, WTP validation, wedge selection, product strategy, MVP building, tech stack, build-vs-buy, evals, cost, latency, reliability, open-vs-closed, telemetry.
Fundraising
8 topics: pre-seed, seed, series A, series B+, pitch decks, valuations, SAFE vs priced rounds, strategic investors (NVIDIA NVentures, OpenAI Fund).
GTM + Growth
14 topics: GTM motions, PLG, enterprise sales, pricing, sales team, marketing channels, content, DevRel, analytics, retention, infra scaling, customer success, land/expand, international.
Team + Defensibility + Exit
12 topics: hiring engineers + researchers, org design, equity/comp, remote vs office, founder wellbeing, moats, data flywheel, IP, competing with big labs, legal essentials, exit outcomes.