Founder Weekly (Issue 749 September 23 2026)

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Welcome to issue 749 of Founder Weekly. Let's get straight to the links this week.

The best in influencer marketing. And you’re invited.

Get ready for Return on Influence Festival '26. An entire day dedicated to influencer marketing with speakers running some of the best programs in the world. 

Already booked: 

• Maya Shaff, ŌURA

• Leah Walker, Adobe

• Georgia Humphries, Stanley 1913

• Tyler Vaught, Edelman

• Josh Rangel, Ogilvy 

and many more to be announced soon…

It’s free, it’s online, and you’ll take away something you can apply to your job the very next day. Scout’s honor!

Save your spot now

General

Tobi Lütke: AI Agents, Better Decisions, and the Future of Work

Shopify's CEO on his AI council for stress-testing hard decisions, why taste and judgment appreciate as AI grows more capable, and how Shopify approaches pruning, rebuilding, and refounding events. A masterclass in choosing well between good options and making long-term calls without immediate feedback.

90 minutes of unfiltered product advice from Snap and Discord’s product chief

Former Snapchat and Discord product leader Peter Sellis shares lessons on building high-performing product teams, driving growth through the core product, and what distinguishes great product managers. He also discusses managing Nikita Bier, Snapchat’s advertising challenges, and his three seemingly contradictory principles of effective product management.

Moats & the Barbell-ification of Software

What happens as the cost of creating software goes to zero?

2026: The State of Consumer AI

Menlo Ventures’ 2026 survey of 5,067 U.S. adults finds that AI adoption rose only slightly, from 61% to 64%, while estimated global consumer AI spending more than tripled to $40 billion as existing users increased their usage and spending. The report examines how power users, AI agents, and specialized applications are reshaping the market, with trust, engagement, and workflow ownership emerging as important factors for consumer AI startups.

Enterprise AI is Finally Delivering on the Promise SaaS Made

Traditional SaaS sold access to expertise through human services, but AI applications can now embed that expertise directly into products and improve through real-world outcomes. Enterprise AI startups can build defensible advantages by using scorebooks and continual learning loops to compound process knowledge and improve their handling of edge cases across customers.

Marketing, Sales and PR

The new battleground in GTM

GTM now requires both creativity and data.

We Doubled Revenue with Agents. Here's Exactly How.

Amelia and Jason break down how SaaStr built an AI-powered revenue stack spanning inbound, outbound, and renewals, doubling revenue and increasing new business by 60% over 12 months. They demonstrate the agents, tools, workflows, and results behind the system, including an inbound agent that generated 17,000 conversations and 600 booked meetings from 3 million website sessions.

10 unconventional ways to brag about your customers

The author shares 10 creative ways startups can turn customer success into social proof, with examples from Stripe, Shopify, Notion, and others. The tactics include publishing customer workflows as templates, highlighting measurable results, linking to verifiable proof, celebrating customer milestones, and organizing customer logos by relevant categories.

Google AI Ranking Factors

What influences Google AI to recommend your brand or website? We asked over 130 search experts what moves the needle.

Best Cold Calling Scripts for B2B in 2026, Ranked by Connect Rate

The article covers seven cold-calling frameworks, with sample scripts, suggested use cases, and guidance on adapting pitches to different buyers. It also discusses measuring conversion rates, training sales representatives, and testing scripts.

‘Not enough usage’: your biggest churn reason is a broken habit loop

Usage churn drives up to 40% of subscription cancellations. Learn the four-part framework to diagnose it and fix each stage of the habit loop.

Money and Finance

How to Raise Venture Capital Chapter 1: The Speed Run

This chapter provides a tactical roadmap for raising venture capital, covering fundraising preparation, investor relationships, pitch development, diligence, term-sheet negotiations, and closing. It emphasizes starting well before runway becomes critical, running a tightly coordinated fundraising process, creating urgency through genuine momentum, and choosing the right investor rather than simply the highest valuation.

The Cap Table You Didn’t Notice You Were Building

SAFEs are the right instrument. That's exactly what makes them dangerous.

What Does "Investor Ready" Actually Mean?

A Founder's Guide to Legal Readiness Before You Raise.

Who Controls Your Startup? Why Governance Matters from Day One

Why governance matters more in startups than in public companies, why investors who own a minority need protection, and why decisions in your first round shape every round that follows.