It's fair to ask about their exit strategy and plans for growth, to get a sense of how they're thinking about their company. At this stage I wouldn't expect the

It's fair to ask about their exit strategy and plans for growth, to get a sense of how they're thinking about their company. At this stage I wouldn't expect their plans to have much more than a tenuous connection with what will actually happen, of course. You're learning more about them than you are about the future of your company. It's a really good sign that the founders have successfully done this before, as long as they're continuing to build on and play to their strengths. If the founders' first startup was in a field they knew intimately (accountants building accounting software, say), but now they want to get into something completely unrelated (say, 3D printing), in my opinion that's a bit of warning sign. Previously successful people are susceptible to hubris - 'I did x, so I can do anything!' Often false. Still better than completely inexperienced founders, I think, but by choosing something they know nothing about they're canceling out a lot of their advantage. Yes, people at startups generally work long hours - that's a fair assumption. But there's a dividing line between long and soul-crushing that varies from person to person.