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Sam Altman: Why Copycat Startups Almost Always Fail

By Sam Altman · Leadership · 2 min read

Sam says copying someone else's startup is a death sentence.

Key Points

Sam says start small. Big things grow from tiny beginnings.
Failure is tuition. Sam says embrace it and move fast.
Sam says people are everything. Hire for resilience.
Sam sees technology as the biggest lever for founders today.
Play the long game. Sam says short-term thinking kills companies.

Are true copycat startups that go on to be successful the copycats almost always fail they're always a year or.

Start Embarrassingly Small

Sam Altman just said something every founder needs to hear.

Sam put it this way: "People worry about copycat startups a lot and I don't think you need to."

We we we did a study on this as. Well once there are very.

Few startups that are true copycat startups that go on to be successful the copycats.

We we we did a study on this as well once there

People Over Everything

Almost always fail they're always a year or two behind they have the people.

Aren't as good they don't have the same sense of mission. So there are.

Some examples I there's some debate about who copied who in Uber and lft..

Almost always fail they're always a year or

Your Idea Doesn't Matter Yet

That is an example of where you have have two serious players with.

Same idea it doesn't happen that often usually it's a pretty new idea people.

You you could say Facebook was a copy of Myspace. But it really wasn't honestly.

People you you could say Facebook was a copy of Myspace but it really

Where the Opportunity Lives

It was a pretty new idea you could say Google was a copycat of.

The 12 search engines before it but again it really wasn't they had this.

One big new technical idea that made it super different. So there are few things.

Was a copycat of the 12 search engines before it but again it really

Never Stop Learning

That are more stressful as a Founder than having a copycat launch. But they.

Don't really cause problems it takes many years to learn to ignore them..

I believe that is the answer one rule that we have at Y combinator is.

More stressful as a Founder than having a copycat launch but they don't really

Find Your Unfair Advantage

That we won't talk to you about your competitor. That you're stressing about until.

They're beating you in the market because it almost never happens now there is.

One subset of this which is copycats and other markets. And the normal version of.

If you're building something, this should hit hard.

You're stressing about until they're beating you in the market because it almost never

Play the Long Game

This is let's say a French company looks at a us company. And says.

Oh that's great I'm going to copy it in France. That doesn't work either.

Or at least doesn't work for long usually the the company. That started first will.

Oh that's great I'm going to copy it in France that doesn't