Tools for progress #49

China’s manufacturing power, Pricing AI features, Leveraged careers

We (humans) read hundreds of articles on company building, angel investing, and self-management and curate the best ones into a weekly summary—helping founders and operators stay on the top of their game.

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Better thinking

How China leapfrogged the West (47 minute read)

Ever wonder how China became the world’s manufacturing giant? This deep dive traces China’s journey from Deng Xiaoping’s reforms to today’s climate (AI-powered factories and tariffs). China has mastered the sweet spot where hardware meets software, potentially reshaping who leads the global economy this century. Grab a coffee for this one.

AI companions are a good thing (14 minute read)

Blade Runner, Her, Ex-machina, they all show the protagonist developing a relationship with some kind of AI. Seemingly far fetched when they came out in the early 2010s, but today, not so much. We’re inching our way towards that reality, and perhaps it’s not a bad thing. The world, despite being super connected, feels significantly more lonely. AI might play a helpful role in providing mental health support, help with grief, and offer companionship to kids and seniors.

Gardener vs Architect (1 minute watch)

An older video of George R. R. Martin talking about the two types of writers — Gardeners and Architects. Basically, there are authors who outline their entire book before writing the first chapter, and there are others who just let the story play out however it does while writing. I think these archetypes extend far beyond writing.

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Operational tactics

Pricing AI features (10 minute read)

I don’t think per seat pricing is dead, but things are certainly changing. AI can’t be priced the same because it burns cash with every use. If you don’t cap it, users can literally bankrupt you. Companies are getting creative with three main pricing moves — bundling some AI usage into subscriptions, creating AI credit systems, or selling AI as a premium add-on.

AI horseless carriages (17 minute read)

Today’s AI apps feel frustratingly limited because they hide the system prompt - the instructions that teach AI how to behave. Using Gmail’s clunky AI email writer as an example, this essay shows how editing your own system prompts transforms AI from generic to personally tailored. The future belongs to apps that let users build and customize their own AI agents instead of forcing everyone into the same one-size-fits-all experience.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The future of SaaS is a hybrid of agent, platform, vertical AI (12 minute read)

Despite buzz about AI killing traditional SaaS, the reality looks more like a strategic evolution than a revolution. Enterprise software won’t disappear but transform into hybrid systems where AI agents enhance rather than replace platforms. Big companies still need structured data systems and standardized workflows that DIY solutions can’t match. The most exciting opportunities now exist in vertical AI applications that solve specific industry problems with deep expertise and focused solutions (ahem, Linear).

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Refer and we’ll send you our favorite books as a “thank you” for spreading the word.

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Angel investing

The rise of production capital (10 minute read)

A $68 trillion infrastructure boom is coming, but traditional investors can’t handle it. “Production Capitalists” are emerging to fill this gap – experts who blend venture capital with sophisticated debt structures to help physical tech companies scale efficiently. These hybrid players will own the future by orchestrating complex capital stacks that traditional VCs simply don’t understand.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

A technical framework for valuing AI companies (23 minute read)

This analysis unpacks why traditional valuation methods fail for AI companies and introduces a framework that accounts for their unique “displacement risk.” Dive into the full article to see why most foundation models face a brutal zero-value threshold, how technical leadership determines survival, and what makes OpenAI worth closer to $175B than $300B. Essential reading for anyone investing in or building AI companies.

Shrinking the gap between sci-fi and sci-fact: Josh Wolfe (87 minute listen)

In the second installment of ‘The Generalist’ podcast, Josh Wolfe shares his investment philosophy, deeply influenced by speculative fiction, and how understanding macro trends leads to smarter micro investment decisions. He identifies the tech sectors determining future geopolitical balances, discusses America's position in the AI race against China, and reveals his methods for staying informed on global economic shifts.

Patrick O'Shaughnessy x Neil Mehta (104 minute watch)

Neil Mehta, founder of Greenoaks Capital, discusses his unique approach to investing in future S&P 500 companies. In this deep dive, Neil explains his concept of "jaw-dropping customer experiences," and how Greenoaks identifies and partners with exceptional founders. Neil reveals how his firm remains hyper-focused on finding just 10-15 extraordinary founders each year while ignoring "the trivial many.

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Managing your career

How to disagree without being annoying (8 minute read)

Much of any career is about persuading people to do something. Commit to a project, work for you, allocate budget. Invariably, you’re going to disagree at some point. How you push your ideas through a disagreement is important. No matter how strongly (or not) you feel — stick to the facts, remove emotion, try to understand their POV.

Why you probably have a low leverage career, and how to create more leverage (7 minute read)

The antidote to career commodification is leverage. Having career leverage means high impact relative to your input and yielding greater returns across dimensions like autonomy, flexibility, and level. In high leverage roles like founder and investor, there isn’t a well-defined track and the opportunity ahead of you is wide. This piece explores how to add leverage to your career.

The network effects of where you build (6 minute read)

Your company’s location creates invisible currents that either push you forward or hold you back. Being physically present in your industry’s hub (like San Francisco for AI startups) puts you in daily contact with investors, talent, and insider knowledge that remote founders miss. While great companies emerge everywhere, the network effects of the right location can make bonding those critical early resources 100x easier during your vulnerable early stages.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ The same goes for operating.

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