Social Pulse · Silicon Valley · 2026-10-22 13:51 UTC
@rayansadri: Founder culture: pay, grind and who actually builds
Wondering why does Canadian tech talent leave for NYC the second they graduate? Because Toronto is full of wannabe Silicon Valley founders demanding 996 grind culture, cosplaying as the next Elon M…
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Wondering why does Canadian tech talent leave for NYC the second they graduate? Because Toronto is full of wannabe Silicon Valley founders demanding 996 grind culture, cosplaying as the next Elon Musk, and paying Tim Hortons wages. They want Stanford talent, OpenAI output, and McDonald’s payroll. And then these delusional fucks have the audacity to call it a “talent shortage.” No, buddy. The talent isn’t missing. It’s just smart enough to leave.
Part of the conversation: Founder culture: pay, grind and who actually builds
@var_epsilon (3.6K likes, 342.0K views) calls head of coffee at an AI startup an incredible role. @rayansadri (3.5K likes) says Toronto founders demand 996 grind culture and Stanford talent while paying Tim Hortons wages. @thogge (2.1K likes) says about 100 people told him they wanted to build a startup but could not code, and precisely 0 have built a product now that anyone can write code. @gregisenberg (1.5K likes) posts a long list of startup ideas, many aimed at AI agents.
Why it mattersPosters argue over startup working conditions, who ships products, and where the next opportunities lie as agents spread.
Other posts in this conversation
head of coffee at an AI startup is kind of an incredible role ngl https://t.co/OxOnM50t8L
i know approximately 100 people who, at some point, have told me how badly they wanted to build a startup but didnt know how to write code. precisely 0 have built a product even though anyone can now write code. lesson in that.
The MOST obvious (but REALLY good) STARTUP ideas right now: 1. Zestimate for company data (what your data is worth to an AI lab) 2. Google Analytics for agents (see which agents visit your site and what they want) 3. Y Combinator for 1 person companies (back solo founders running a team of agents) 4. Okta for agents (who each agent is and what it's allowed to touch) 5. Marie Kondo for your company's data (clean it up so agents can use it) 6. FICO for agents (a trust score before an agent can spend money) 7. Geico for agents (insurance for when an agent makes an expensive mistake) 8. Datadog for agents (see every step your agents took) 9. Twilio for agents (phone numbers and texting for agents) 10. Upwork for agents (hire an agent for a job instead of a freelancer) 11. ESPN for AI (every model launch covered like a big game). 12. Shutterstock for robot training videos (get paid to film yourself doing chores) 13. Credit Karma for what AI knows about you (see it, fix it, delete it) 14. Norton for AI scams (protect your parents from fake voices and emails) 15. PayPal Buyer Protection for agent purchases (fixes it when your agent buys the wrong thing) 16. Geek Squad for AI (set up personal agents for families and small businesses) 17. Dell for private AI (AI in a box for firms that won't use the cloud) 18. Carfax for used GPUs (a health report before you buy secondhand) 19. Airbnb for idle GPUs (rent out computing power you're not using) 20. Rotten Tomatoes for AI models (real reviews instead of benchmarks) 21. G2 for skills (find the best skills for your agent) 22. Dropbox for your AI memory (take what your agent knows about you to any agent) 23. Canva for physical products (design it with AI and get it made) 24. ADT for your personal agent (alerts when your agent does something it shouldn't) 25. Hertz for robots (rent one for a move, a deep clean or an event) 26. Harvard Business School for internet businesses (a real education in building online) 27. Workday for agents (onboard, manage and offboard your digital workers) 28. Getty Images for your face and voice (license your likeness to AI safely) 29. Meta Muse for older adults (and other high LTV niche) 30. Google Ads for agents (pay to be what the agent recommends) 31. Loom for agents (a walkthrough of everything your agent did) 32. Plaid for agents (approved access to banks, airlines and stores) 33. Jiffy Lube for vibe coded apps (quick fixes when your AI built app breaks) 34. Ancestry for datasets (where your training data came from) 35. The organic label for human-made content (proof a person made it) 36. Strava for builders (track what you ship every week) 37. Honey that haggles for you (your agent negotiates the price) 38. SEM Rush for personal agent platforms (like Muse etc) 39. Frequent flyer miles for agents (loyalty programs built for agents)
How it compares
This post ranks #7 of the 14 highest-engagement silicon valley posts AgentFlare tracked on 2026-10-24, with 1.0× the median likes. See the full Silicon Valley briefing.
How this page is made. Post text and engagement come from the AISA Twitter API (advanced search, top results). Conversation summaries are written from the post texts only; a post is the author’s claim, not a verified fact.
Sources & citations
- @rayansadri on X 2026-10-22 13:51 UTC
- AISA Twitter API