So what is the solution for startups now? I’ve worked the whole gamut from FAANG to 1st employee (and founder of a side project startup) and I just don’t know

So what is the solution for startups now? I’ve worked the whole gamut from FAANG to 1st employee (and founder of a side project startup) and I just don’t know how they compete anymore. We need innovation and new companies. But for my own side project I can’t imagine hiring someone. I either are hiring if we become wildly successful or we just get acquired with our founding team and still make an outsized outcome. It’s a grim outlook for startups but we need them