Building An AI Startup: What's Different In 2025?
cxotalk.com, Friday, February 28th, 2025
In episode 871 of CXOTalk, Michael Krigsman and Arvind Jain, former Distinguished Engineer at Google, co-founder of Rubrik, and CEO of Glean, explore the dramatically transformed AI startup landscape of 2025.
This conversation is essential for entrepreneurs navigating the startup ecosystem and enterprise leaders making critical decisions about AI vendors and partnerships.
For Startup Founders:
- How the AI gold rush has paradoxically made fundraising both easier and harder
- Why building on foundation models creates new types of technical and business risks
- Strategies for standing out in a market with endless AI startups
- The challenges of sustaining innovation when AI capabilities evolve weekly
For Enterprise Buyers and CXOs:
- How to evaluate AI startup vendors in an overcrowded market
- Understanding the risks when startups build on third-party AI models
- Why some well-funded AI startups may not survive despite strong technology
- Framework for assessing which AI capabilities should be built vs. bought
Drawing from his unique perspective as a former Google executive and current AI startup founder, Arvind Jain provides candid insights into what's truly different about building and buying AI technology in 2025.