Founder bets on old-school web, walks away from AI gold rush
Source: The Verge
Craig Campbell abandoned venture-backed AI pursuits for a simpler, web-based product. The move signals something beyond nostalgia: founders with optionality are choosing capital-light, profitable-from-day-one models over the winner-take-all dynamics of venture-backed AI. That matters because AI ventures face infrastructure costs and regulatory uncertainty that web products don't. If the pattern holds, the next wave of sustainable growth may come from businesses deliberately designed around defensibility and unit economics rather than growth theater.