its strange, someone comes to HN and posts something very similar to this once every month or so. and this is usually what i say: Startup companies can come i

its strange, someone comes to HN and posts something very similar to this once every month or so. and this is usually what i say: Startup companies can come in all forms, including those that are simply life-style companies, but the phrase "startup company" is often associated with high growth, technology oriented companies. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Startup_company http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Startup_company typically, the definition of a startup is based on rapid scalability with the possibility for high risk/rewards. and it tends to imply that the company is funded or looking for funding to make use of the opportunity for rapid scalability. all of that tends to slant towards making efficient use of technology. can you have a very successful business that grows quickly? sure. and you can do so without it necessarily being a "startup".