LinkedIn News: I read your note on how AI startups have chosen the path of “leave no time for fun” and quoted Emily Yuan, a co-founder of Corgi, which Tekedia Capital invested in. Emily asked, “Why would I go drink at a bar if I can be building a company?” As an investor, I commend the tenacity and unalloyed dedication and absolute commitment the Team has demonstrated. I mean they largely sleep in the office and put uncommon level of personal sacrifice to WIN.
And they’re winning because Corgi is the world’s fastest growing insurtech company today. I also posit that it is the world’s first AI-native insurance company. With insurance and reinsurance licenses baked with category-defining technologies, Corgi is growing rapidly. Since I have been in this business, Corgi is the fastest growing company we have ever invested in.
The quote from Emily is what we’ve seen. As investors we are proud of Corgi because founders are expected to work harder than investors since you only give your money to people who are going to work harder, think better, and grow money faster than you. If not, why the investment?
Register for Tekedia Mini-MBA edition 19 (Feb 9 – May 2, 2026): big discounts for early bird.
Tekedia AI in Business Masterclass opens registrations.
Join Tekedia Capital Syndicate and co-invest in great global startups.
Register for Tekedia AI Lab: From Technical Design to Deployment (next edition begins Jan 24 2026).
And that brings me to the conclusion: building startups is not a vacation job. Most fail because they’re lazy. I mean, in all the companies we have invested, there is a clear correlation between outcome and uncommon personal sacrifices. Work-life balance is an illusion and can work in BIG established companies. But in these startups, no chance specially in the fledgling AI era where changes are happening weekly, not quarterly!
The “996” culture may be taking root in the U.S. While the number refers to a tendency among employees in China to work from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week, signs are it’s popping up in San Francisco. According to data from fintech company Ramp, corporate card spending on meals has ticked up on Saturdays this year. It suggests that more employees are on the clock that day — a trend centered in but not limited to Big Tech companies based in the city.
---
Connect via my
LinkedIn |
Facebook |
X |
TikTok |
Instagram |
YouTube