It is. Big companies (or really anyone) usually don't have the time to copy an idea unless it becomes too big already. And if your idea becomes too big, it was worth pursuing it.
Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
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Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#12in the valley at least its difficult to pursue that unless you’re in a “hot” field. A few years ago, it was cloud, then big data, then crypto and now AI. When startups in those fields can raise hundreds of millions, they can lure away a lot of talent (both tech and non tech).
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#13Depends on your goal - do you have an idea you care about and want to solve? Probably a good idea. If you "want to be your own boss" or looking for something just to be acquired, hard to say, depends on who you know, etc.
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#14Thought this would be a thread about the crazy offers being handed out to join AI teams at Amazon, Meta, Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, Apple, or any of the massively capitalized 'neolabs'.
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#15You're gonna get a lot of positive responses here, but frankly only do it if you think you can make meaningful money within a month or two. Everything is going off the rails this year. You only have to use Claude Code for 10 minutes to realize every job involving a computer is going to get flipped upside down within a year.
Claude Code is useless for anything that requires advanced knowledge.
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#16Yes! All startups are created to solve a problem, regardless of the tools used. Apps are simply tools to solve human problems. Because humans will always have challenges to address, software will remain a vital tool. While AI makes writing software much easier. It's likely to lead to an explosion of new apps. Only those that fill a genuine need will survive. Your job is to identify these new problems and determine wh…
Plus, how many of these existing apps were just databases wired up in different ways?
And how many of these apps were just files wired up in different ways?
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#17The fact that people look to start a business based on searching foe a moat shows they don't believe in free markets. As well as shows what's wrong with Silicon Valley.
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#18You mean the big companies who still haven't moved away from abominations like SAP and Oracle? The ones where you require twenty approvals to get a small pilot done? Instead of moving to saner and cheaper alternatives, they would just say, "hey, why don't we just start making our own software?" Every effort like this—if it had any takers—will fail spectacularly. I get it people are skeptical about the future. But I c…
I can imagine a future where it will be possible for a family to host their own essential services ... There got to be something between homelabs and cloud services bc the gap is too big.
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#19In my experience (enterprise software), customers buy our products not because we have a moat or some hard-to-achieve technical advantage but because they can speak to us in their words, they know we care, and we try solve their problems quickly. Just yesterday I was speaking with the COO of a $200M/yr revenue company in the supply chain space. He'd learned Claude Code and built a couple apps to solve internal proble…
One of the better, more levelheaded responses here.
Re: Ask HN: Is it still worth pursuing a software startup?
#20in the valley at least its difficult to pursue that unless you’re in a “hot” field. A few years ago, it was cloud, then big data, then crypto and now AI. When startups in those fields can raise hundreds of millions, they can lure away a lot of talent (both tech and non tech).
Nah. Regardless of where the company is nominally headquartered there are always an effectively infinite number of employees who can be hired to work remotely or out of satellite offices.