Real founder insights about surviving the AI commoditization era
Published October 31, 2025 • Based on Founder Reality Episode 37
Also available on: Apple Podcasts • Spotify • YouTube
For years, I preached the gospel of single product focus. "Build one thing really well," I'd tell founders. "Don't spread yourself thin."
If you'd asked me two years ago, I would have told you to stay laser-focused on one product. That was my religion, backed by years of experience and the conventional wisdom of building successful companies.
Today, I'm running SimpleDirect with four different product lines and ANC with three consulting verticals.
What changed? Everything.
The Basecamp Revelation
Recently, I was listening to a podcast with Jason from Basecamp, and something he said stopped me cold: "To everything there is a season."
In 2018, Basecamp shut down everything except their core project management tool. They had too many people, too many products, and couldn't focus. They wrote about this decision extensively - one product, deep focus, no distractions.
But in 2024-2025? They're launching four different products again. Hey, Campfire, and others.
Same founders. Completely opposite strategy. Both decisions were right for their time.
That's when it clicked: the season had changed.
My Winter: The Single Product Era (2019-2022)
When SimpleDirect started, we were in what I call our "winter season."
Picture this: University of Waterloo campus, student residence, completely broke with my co-founders. We couldn't afford to worry about anything except making one product work. We had tuition, expenses, survival - no room for experimentation.
We built from the ground up. We validated. We called customers. Pure sweat equity. We didn't pay ourselves until 2022 when we reached profitability.
During those years, it was not just difficult but impossible to entertain multiple products. We were in survival mode. Winter demanded focus.
And it worked. That single-product focus saved us.
My Summer: The Multiple Product Era (2023-Now)
Fast forward to today. We have cash flow from ANC consulting. We've been disciplined about spending. We scaled from 14 people to 5 using AI to amplify productivity.
We're no longer broke. We have something to lose, which means we're playing defense instead of offense.
Summer makes it possible - and necessary - to diversify.
Why AI Changed Everything (The Brutal Market Shift)
But there's a second type of season beyond personal capacity: market seasons.
In 2018, when Basecamp wrote about single product focus, we were in the pre-AI era. Product was the moat. Building took months or years. Competitors couldn't catch up easily.
I lived this reality. SimpleDirect took two years to launch our first real product. It had everything - partner API integrations, onboarding flows, dashboards, compliance features. A competitor would have needed 4-6 months minimum to replicate it, plus months more to establish banking partnerships.
That was my moat: technical complexity, execution quality, compliance edge.
The 14-Hour Wake-Up Call
Then I used Claude Coder to build a ChatGPT competitor in 14 hours.
Not 14 weeks. Not 14 days. 14 hours total, spending about an hour each day for two weeks, mostly watching Claude do the coding.
I built a polished front-end and back-end platform that could be sold commercially. We use it internally now - SimpleDirect Chat, plugged into Gemini API through our startup deal.
If I can build a sophisticated SaaS product in 14 hours as a non-seasoned programmer, what does that mean for every other founder?
It means product is no longer the moat.
The New Reality: Distribution Is Everything
I hate admitting this. I'm a product person. I love talking to developers, running sprints, working with designers. I want product quality to matter.
But the season has changed. If I don't adapt, my company dies.
The old moat was product differentiation through technical complexity. The new moat is distribution + trust + integrated ecosystem.
Product quality still matters, but it's no longer the competitive advantage. Your competitive advantage is people knowing you and trusting your founder journey.
The Four Mental Shifts I Had to Make
- From Perfect Product to Good Enough + Ship Fast
Old George: Build perfect product, validate carefully, then launch something people will love and tell their friends about.
New George: Ship scrappy product in two weeks, improve based on feedback.
With AI, iteration is cheap. Perfect upfront cost is expensive and slow.
- From Single Product to Integrated Ecosystem
Look at Notion's evolution. They saw the writing on the wall too. They launched Notion Mail (competing with Gmail), Notion Calendar (through acquisition), multiple adjacent products.
Even if I stop using Notion for notes, I'm still using their calendar and potentially their email. The ecosystem keeps the brand in my mind.
For SimpleDirect, this means building adjacent products that solve different pain points for the same target customer. Instead of one main product, we're building multiple solutions they can use together.
- From Product-First to Content-First
This one hurts the most. The old me wanted to build amazing products and hope users would find them.
The new me builds audience first, product second.
The brutal truth: Amazing product + no distribution = losing.
I've been burned by this before. Don't spend months building an amazing product with no distribution and lose to someone with a barely functional product but great distribution.
Case study: I launched a neobanking product that got 1,000 users in three weeks - not just signups, but people who linked their actual bank accounts. We did this through Product Hunt and referral systems. The product eventually didn't work out, but it was our most successful launch ever in terms of distribution.
- From Anonymous Builder to Personal Brand
People remember people, not companies. When you trust somebody, you'll use their product right away.
Look at 37signals' co-founders. When we hear their products and thoughts, we're more prone to use their products because we trust them.
That's why I'm spending time on Twitter, podcasts, newsletters - things I'd rather not do. I'd rather spend time on product, but personal brand is now the moat.
The Seasonal Framework for Founders
Here's how to think about your own seasons:
Winter (Early/Struggling):
- Survival mode, capacity constrained
- Single product focus essential
- High risk, nothing to lose
- Example: SimpleDirect 2019-2022
Spring (Stable/Growing):
- Expanding into adjacencies
- Similar products for same customer base
- Building on proven foundation
- Example: Adding second product line
Summer (Integrated/Compounding):
- Multiple products working as ecosystem
- Playing defense, have something to lose
- Distribution and brand become moats
- Example: SimpleDirect + ANC current state
Important: You can move between seasons. Being in summer doesn't mean you won't return to winter. Market changes, personal situations change. Adapt accordingly.
Market Seasons vs. Personal Seasons
Personal seasons are about your capacity and resources. Market seasons are about external forces changing the game.
Pre-AI Market Season (1999-2022):
- Product was the moat
- Deep focus made sense
- Technical complexity prevented copying
- Basecamp's 21-year single product success
AI Market Season (2023-Now):
- Product easily replicated
- Distribution becomes critical
- Speed of iteration matters more than perfection
- Multiple products protect against commoditization
What This Means for You
If you're in winter season: Don't diversify yet. Focus on one product until you have stable revenue and breathing room.
If you're in spring/summer: Consider how AI affects your competitive position. Can your product be easily replicated? If yes, start building distribution and considering adjacent products.
Regardless of season: Start building your founder brand now. Content, authenticity, trust - these become more valuable as products become easier to build.
The Hard Truth
Product differentiation is dying fast. Not dead, but dying.
Whatever SaaS idea you think is unique, someone else is probably building it right now. With AI, they can launch in 30 days.
This isn't fear-mongering. I've seen it with my own eyes using Claude Coder and Cursor. The speed of replication is terrifying and real.
My Current Reality
I'm running SimpleDirect with four product lines and ANC with three consulting verticals. It's not pretty, it's complex, but it's necessary.
As a founder, I still need to be focused - Claude AI actually called me out for over-optimizing across too many structures. But as a business, we need multiple streams because single products are no longer defensible.
The personal discipline of focus combined with business strategy of diversification - that's the new game.
What I'm Building Now
- SimpleDirect Chat (internal AI tool)
- Multiple SimpleDirect product lines for B2C
- Three ANC consulting verticals
- Content creation across podcast, Twitter, newsletter
- Founder brand as competitive moat
Each supports the others. The ecosystem approach in action.
The Bottom Line
The season has changed. What worked for Basecamp in 2018 doesn't work in 2025. What worked for me in 2019 doesn't work now.
Single product focus is still right for founders in winter season. But if you have capacity and the market is commoditizing your product category, you need to evolve.
Build distribution. Build trust. Build ecosystem. Build fast.
The founders who adapt to the new season will thrive. Those who stick to old playbooks will get left behind - not because their products are bad, but because products alone aren't enough anymore.
To everything there is a season. Make sure you know which season you're in.
Want more frameworks for navigating founder seasons? Check out my free ebook "The Anti-Unicorn" at founderreality.com and join the weekly newsletter for behind-the-scenes insights on building in the AI era.
