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# The Fortune 100 Trap: Why AI Startups Are Wasting Time Chasing Big Customers
- URL: https://adjacent.media/signals/the-fortune-100-trap-why-ai-startups-are-wasting-time-chasing-big-customers/
- Published: 2026-07-27T16:12:24.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-27T16:12:24.000Z
- Description: Andreessen Horowitz has identified a founder mistake: chasing prestige logos at Fortune 100 companies as a growth lever. These deals require sales cycles that span multiple funding rounds and lock engineering resources without closing.
- Author: Jonathan Greene
- Tags: #signal, theme-brand, go-to-market strategy, sales strategy, founder strategy

Source: [a16z](https://open.substack.com/pub/a16z/p/lighthouse-or-landgrab-how-to-pick)

Andreessen Horowitz has identified a founder mistake: chasing prestige logos at Fortune 100 companies as a growth lever. These deals require sales cycles that span multiple funding rounds and lock engineering resources without closing. The alternative is building "lighthouse" products that gain velocity through smaller, faster-converting segments first—a constraint that enforces product-market fit discipline.