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So "startup" now means "company" and "early-stage startup" means "startup". I look forward to having to call them "incipient early-stage startup".
by StavrosK 7y ago
So "startup" now means "company" and "early-stage startup" means "startup". I look forward to having to call them "incipient early-stage startup".
- yborg 7y agoI guess startup is generally understood now to mean a VC-backed company that doesn't make any money.
- digitaltrees 7y agoI think it’s more about the nature of growth potential. Hyper growth with a hockey stick is the measure.
- travisjungroth 7y agoAirbnb claims to make money.
- skissane 7y agoOften, a "startup" just means a private company that plans to go public but hasn't done so yet (as opposed to already public companies, and private companies that don't plan on going public)
- Klinky 7y agoNo, that sounds like a private company trying to sound trendy. A startup has a small number of employees to start with and a 2 - 3 year window to go big, fizzle out, or pivot into a small - medium sized business. You're not a "startup" forever, nor does eventually marketing yourself as one, actually make you one.
- jedberg 7y agoI don't think so, because a whole lot of startups plan to get bought, not go public.
- digitaltrees 7y agoStart up has come to mean a company attempting hyper growth as opposed to a traditional business like a mechanic or brewery.
- jbay808 7y agoBut what about companies that achieved that hyper growth (Google, Airbnb, etc). Are they still startups? How would you view this dialogue? "I'm working at a startup". "Oh? Where?" "Google."