Good assessment - I can't imagine any credible startup founder saying their reason for failure was "we didn't get lucky", even though plenty of successful ones

Good assessment - I can't imagine any credible startup founder saying their reason for failure was "we didn't get lucky", even though plenty of successful ones (but not all, as you observe) can point to moments or periods of good luck that helped them survive. I continue to believe that luck is the meeting of preparation and opportunity - that doesn't guarantee you good luck or business success, but it sure beats building a business in a basement without talking to the market and hoping you get it right!