50 Best Tweets About Startups (2026)

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signüll

@signulll · May 8, 2026

All-time 2.1K View on X

a founder has three jobs. everything else is serious amounts of noise. 1. you have to tell the story. roughly in three registers. first investors need inevitability. customers need to *feel* what you do/stand for. & your team needs a mission worth their best years. 2. you must … Read more

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Carles Reina

@Carles_Reina · Jul 14, 2026

All-time 1.6K View on X

If I had to restart @ElevenLabs GTM from scratch, these are the things that I would change 🖊️ - Hire quicker. I was alone selling for the first 9 months because I believed we didn't have PMF. Main reasons: the AI tourist external mantra of 2023, and the uphill battle convincing … Read more

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Paul Graham

@paulg · Jul 6, 2026

All-time 1.5K View on X

If you want to start a startup, don't learn "entrepreneurship." Learn how to build things. The hard part of startups is not "entrepreneurship" but product: to know what to build, and to be able to build it.

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Finn Mallery

@fin465 · Jul 22, 2026

All-time 1.5K View on X

We went from 0 to 1,000+ paid customers in our first 20 weeks by religiously following these @ycombinator 12 rules: 1/ grow retention before growth. we didn't run a single growth campaign until we hit 90% weekly retention. scaling a leaky bucket just means you fail faster 2/ … Read more

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Naval

@naval · Dec 10, 2025

All-time 1.2K View on X

Founders cannot outsource recruiting. “Recruiting is the most important thing because you need creativity; you need motivated people. Ideally, the early people are all geniuses. They’re self-managing, low-ego, hardworking, highly competent, builders, technical—maybe one or two … Read more

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Ronin

@DeRonin_ · Mar 9, 2026

All-time 1.1K View on X

Somebody released a directory of 1,700+ dead startups (backed by YC) here is the link: https://t.co/sEdUPd5Dqv all of them have deep analysis of product inside and full funding story (in short, 100% product's description) many of these startups failed not because the idea was … Read more

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Peter Mick

@ThePeterMick · Aug 14, 2025

All-time 595.6 View on X

Here’s what a solo startup founder has to do: Backend code Frontend code Backend testing Frontend testing CSS styles UI Design UX Design Onboarding flow design OG image design Favicon design (multiple sizes) Logo design (multiple sizes) Domain name brainstorming Servers setup … Read more

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Andrew Warner

@AndrewWarner · Mar 19, 2026

All-time 470.7 View on X

This guy just raised $5.1 million for an AI that built 1,000+ startups. His process is insanely logical. That's Marik Hazan of Feltsense & his process is (roughly): Step 1: scrape social. find pain points. turn them into business ideas Step 2: assign ideas to one of its AI … Read more

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Cody Schneider

@codyschneider · Jul 1, 2026

All-time 354.0 View on X

if you're a startup founder just read this so I can sleep peacefully tonight most companies can get to $1M ARR with only two channels the channels you should pick from are - paid ads - cold email - cold DMs - founder led social the channels you should not pick from are - SEO … Read more

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Andrew Yeung

@andruyeung · Jun 28, 2026

All-time 353.5 View on X

I was featured in the @nytimes this week. They asked me what reasons I've seen VCs pass on founders for. There's an unspoken language in startup land called "anti-signal" ... these are the subtle red flags that make an investor not want to invest. I don't agree with all of … Read more

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Daniel Dhawan

@daniel_dhawan · Mar 17, 2026

All-time 351.2 View on X

My first 6 years as a startup founder: - Started by building AI mobile apps at 20yo - Failed with 4+ startups - Ran out of money multiple times - Was rejected by Y Combinator 8 times - Had a $15k credit card debt - Got 200+ rejections from investors My last year as a startup … Read more

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Founder Mode

@Founder_Mode_ · Jan 21, 2026

All-time 261.8 View on X

Marc Andreessen explains the 3 Necessities for Start-up Success: "The general criteria for a successful high-tech startup, in my view, you see different sort of rules of thumb from different people. But the three big things you always come back to are, is there a big market? … Read more

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Tibo

@tibo_maker · Mar 11, 2026

All-time 218.1 View on X

ok the secret is PG is my business coach for the last 10 years every time I'm stuck on a product issue, a team decision, or whatever I go back to him (through his essays 😅 ) & find the answers these are the 10 essays (out of 231) I re-read at least once a year: 1. do things … Read more

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Startup Archive

@StartupArchive_ · Jul 27, 2026

All-time 178.1 View on X

Elon Musk on building a company: “There are periods where it’s just awful” “A lot of times people think creating a company is going to be fun. I would say it’s really not that fun. There are periods of fun, and there are periods where it’s just awful. Particularly if you’re the … Read more

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signüll

@signulll · May 21, 2026

All-time 161.1 View on X

most ppl underestimate how chaotic early stage startups actually are. from personnel turnover & shifting commitments to the fact that everyone now operates with the same fomo/optionality glut you see in dating markets (dating markets are most visible form of this but this is … Read more

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Startup Archive

@StartupArchive_ · Apr 1, 2026

All-time 151.9 View on X

Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan’s advice for startups: “When you’re small, act small” A lot of founders try to emulate large companies, and will do things like use the same terminology as Microsoft to describe their products. But Garry argues this is a mistake: “When you’re starting … Read more

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Adewale Yusuf

@AdewaleYusuf_ · Jun 17, 2026

All-time 133.6 View on X

Stop applying to an investor’s website for a fund; it's largely a waste of time. Most startup founders don’t fail to raise because their business is bad. They fail because they’re playing the wrong game. Here’s how smart founders actually raise money in 2026: 1. Don’t chase … Read more

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Scott Stevenson

@scottastevenson · Jul 26, 2026

All-time 133.2 View on X

I have great respect for YC, but need to say what many are surely thinking: Startup School in a stadium feels antithetical to the YC brand and to what makes startups work. The YC brand felt like it was designed to filter out status chasers. The bare Mountain View office. The … Read more

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Tibo

@tibo_maker · Jun 12, 2026

All-time 119.1 View on X

if you're selling your startup - don't I sold my startups for $8m & I'll never sell again quick context: I sold Tweet Hunter and Taplio for $8m in 2024. $2m upfront, the rest as an earnout based on performance - on paper, a dream exit in reality, 3 things broke me first, I … Read more

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Romàn

@romanbuildsaas · Jun 11, 2026

All-time 108.9 View on X

10 @ycombinator's Lessons all Founder Should Know : (We grew from $0 to $250k MRR in under a year with this approach) 1/ Launch now, not when it's "ready". A mediocre product in front of real users teaches you more in a week than 6 months of polishing in the dark. Ship the … Read more

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Big Brain Business

@BigBrainBizness · Mar 30, 2026

All-time 102.9 View on X

Sam Altman on why the idea is the least important part of building a company. Most founders spend years obsessing over the right idea. The market timing, the differentiation, the pitch. And then they get started and realize the idea was never really the hard part. Altman puts … Read more

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Andrea Bosoni

@theandreboso · Jul 18, 2026

All-time 95.8 View on X

It’s sad seeing founders like Michael struggle to land a job when they need one. Companies hire for specialists and people like him don’t fit in a box. But someone who’s spent 15 years building and shipping is exactly who you want when things get hard. Startups say they want … Read more

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Justine Moore

@venturetwins · May 22, 2026

All-time 93.6 View on X

Creators are a critical distribution channel for most AI startups. But many don't know how to work with them effectively. I spoke with dozens of the top creators at Google i/o - some lessons learned and tips for startups 👇 1. It’s increasingly creators vs. traditional media … Read more

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Arpit Bhayani

@arpit_bhayani · Jul 3, 2026

All-time 92.9 View on X

The biggest lie startups tell during hiring is "We have a lot of problems, and you can pick whatever you want to solve." It sounds great. It plays directly to what we engineers love - autonomy, impact, and ownership. But here's the reality - this almost never happens. When a … Read more

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Opeyemi Awoyemi

@opeawo · May 13, 2026

All-time 59.9 View on X

This is the kind of advice that has the Nigerian startup ecosystem twisted, and I am glad YC partners are also calling it out. Founders started optimizing for what they thought investors wanted to fund, fintech. Now there are solid fintech companies struggling to raise, while … Read more

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Richard Chen

@richardchen39 · Feb 2, 2026

All-time 56.7 View on X

When most VCs talk about a good founder, they really mean someone who has a good resume and looks experienced on paper. But big corporate execs tend to flounder in startups because they: - Need a structured environment and big team around them - Are too by the book and don't … Read more

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Sahil Panhotra | Indie Builder | Dev

@SahilPanhotra · Jun 27, 2026

All-time 53.1 View on X

Meet Marc Lou → Grew up in France → Started building startups in 2016 → Launched startup after startup → Most of them failed → Spent years making little to no money → Burned out from chasing venture-scale ideas → Took a Product Manager job in 2021 → Got fired a few months … Read more

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Harry Stebbings

@HarryStebbings · May 18, 2026

All-time 51.3 View on X

I am going to piss off so many friends by saying this but if I could invest in one emerging manager sub $50M fund, it would be @Joshuabrowder. A few things you need to know about Josh: - He makes the founders he invests in live in his spare room at the Four Seasons until they … Read more

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Paul Mit

@pmitu · Jul 17, 2026

All-time 50.1 View on X

Most startup advice is garbage. 🍊 YCombinator's isn't. 23 YC lessons worth stealing: • Launch ASAP. Ideally today. • Build what users want, not what your imagination wants. • Do things that don't scale before PMF. • Write code. Talk to users. Repeat. • Find 10 people who … Read more

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Ashley Mayer

@ashleymayer · Jul 6, 2026

All-time 36.6 View on X

One of the most underutilized startup comms playbooks: teaming up with your philosophical peers to tell a much bigger story about the future than you can (credibly) tell on your own. Journalists used to play a big role here, promoting umbrella narratives like “the sharing … Read more

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Harry Stebbings

@HarryStebbings · Jul 6, 2026

All-time 35.0 View on X

I missed out on $100M+ by passing on the seed rounds of Suno and Granola. Mike @mignano did both. He is the single best example in the last 5 years of an operator successfully turning into a GP at a large fund. It is so hard to do. He crushed it. He has been a friend for 10 … Read more

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nico

@nicochristie · Feb 26, 2026

All-time 31.0 View on X

Founders don't typically talk about what happens after a viral launch @tryshortcutai I call it fighting gravity and the weight of it probably kills most startups Scaling issues, early churn, gtm questions, culture impact, dozens of copycats, etc Hold on and stay principled

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Hadley Harris

@Hadley · Jun 10, 2026

All-time 28.6 View on X

Ambitious young people used to join startups before founding their own. Now they skip straight to founding. Every founder says the best people are impossible to hire. All my AI native portfolio companies that fail are getting bought. That talent is too valuable to let walk.

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staysaasy

@staysaasy · Jun 29, 2026

All-time 23.7 View on X

One of the worst things a founder can lose is willingness to be rejected, get embarrassed, or look vulnerable. Many startups have an origin story that looks like absolutely fearlessness in the face of rejection. A thousand pitches. A thousand candidates. Rejection everywhere. … Read more

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Romàn

@romanbuildsaas · Jun 23, 2026

All-time 14.5 View on X

Paul Graham published “Startups in 13 sentences” back in 2009. I reread them after being accepted into YC. The advice is still relevant today. Here’s the summary: 1. Pick good cofounders. You can swap your idea overnight, but you're stuck with your cofounders, so pick them … Read more

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Jonah Lau

@jonahlau_ · Mar 17, 2026

All-time 12.9 View on X

Most funded startups die because the founder refuses to admit what's actually working You raise on the vision: platform play, massive TAM, change the entire industry in 10 years. Then you spend 18 months discovering that one small piece of it has traction, but it's not the … Read more

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Rohan Paul

@rohanpaul_ai · Apr 4, 2026

All-time 12.4 View on X

In this 2014 video, Sam Altman asks Marc Andreessen what venture capitalists are really looking for when judging startups. “The conventional statistics are that about 200 of the 4,000 venture-fundable companies per year will be funded by a top-tier VC. About 15 of those will … Read more

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Harshil Tomar

@Hartdrawss · Apr 12, 2026

All-time 11.3 View on X

8 signs your startup is actually HEALTHY : ( Full examples and LIST ) 1/ users come back without you sending a reminder > organic return rate is the cleanest signal of real value > you didn't ask. they came back. > no re-engagement campaign, no push notification, no discount > … Read more

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Erik Bruckner

@E_Bruxxx · May 8, 2026

All-time 11.1 View on X

Have seen a lot of debate lately around “traditional VCs” vs “operator/untraditional VCs” and honestly think both sides massively oversimplify it. Very real differences in how they think, underwrite risk, and work with founders. Traditional path VCs (MBA → banking → consulting … Read more

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Alexa | Startup founder

@alexabelonix · Jun 27, 2026

All-time 10.7 View on X

If you’re brave enough to build a startup, here’s what you should know. Day 185: One underrated founder advantage: Being close to a weird industry. Family business. Old job. Customer calls. A niche you accidentally understand better than outsiders. That knowledge is … Read more

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Big Brain Business

@BigBrainBizness · May 25, 2026

All-time 10.1 View on X

Sam Altman on why most young entrepreneurs quit their startups long before they ever had a chance to work: Sam has worked with thousands of founders and noticed the same pattern repeatedly. Most startups fail because founders give up long before their idea has a real chance to … Read more

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Ayush Jaiswal

@ayushjaiswal · Apr 29, 2026

All-time 9.7 View on X

I love startups - that's all I've done my entire life but today, I'm deeply concerned about something & I want to share my heart out. It's about the endless acqui-hire deals. The problem: with time, this definition has blurred out a lot & these deals are getting out of hands. … Read more

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Alex Rampell

@arampell · Feb 5, 2026

All-time 9.3 View on X

"The Comma MBA Problem" and Local Maxima The best entrepreneurs constantly “read the room” (or the market) and adjust their presentation style, their mannerisms, their product description, their team, their focus, their advisors — everything. They have the smallest number of … Read more

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Alexa | Startup founder

@alexabelonix · Jun 18, 2026

All-time 8.8 View on X

If you’re brave enough to build a startup, here’s what you should know. Day 176: Everyone says “customer obsession.” Almost nobody wants the real version. The real version looks like: → 5am panic → manual fixes → founder on the phone → solving the problem before writing the … Read more

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Anubhav

@Anubhavhing · Apr 2, 2026

All-time 7.9 View on X

🚨 GOLD GOLD GOLD GOLD I wish someone slapped me with this list before I started building startups. Would’ve saved me years. 1. Validate first. I burned 5 years building things literally nobody wanted. 2. Kill your ego. It’s not about your vision. It’s about what users … Read more

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1752vc

@1752vc · Jul 28, 2026

All-time 5.8 View on X

The most dangerous thing you can hand a pre-seed founder is $50 million. There have been 27 seed rounds of $100M+ since the start of 2025. Most of them pre-product, priced on the founders' résumés. I don't blame the founders for taking it. I don't blame the VCs for offering it. … Read more

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Gabriel Jarrosson

@GJarrosson · Apr 9, 2026

All-time 3.9 View on X

You’re crushing it online – 750,000 visitors in 120 days. You’re ready to raise a round, right? Wrong. Lots of Eyeballs... No Revenue Even if a startup gets a lot of attention online, it’s not enough to raise capital today. Take the example of a founder on Reddit… He’s built a … Read more

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Hustle Fund 🦛🌽💛

@HustleFundVC · May 27, 2026

All-time 2.4 View on X

Startup shutdowns are the founder's topic nobody wants to touch. But most startups don’t make it. So let’s talk about how to shut down well without ghosting investors, burning bridges, or letting valuable work disappear. 🧵

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Dylan (hiring)

@ThinksDylan · May 8, 2026

All-time 1.8 View on X

Lessons from raising $7.5M in seed round: let investors find you. It can save you months of pointless networking. If you’re a first-time founder, my biggest fundraising advice is this: stop begging strangers at networking events for warm intros to investors they barely know. … Read more

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Rohit Mittal

@rohitdotmittal · Mar 20, 2026

All-time 1.7 View on X

Venture built more ways to fund companies than ways to exit them. Having gone through an acquisition and then talked to a lot of founders who have, I see this often. The company is usually not dead. I hate to call it a zombie company. It has customers. It has revenue. … Read more