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Sidekick brings founder signals and practical insights from the future of learning & work.
We distil the trends, frameworks, and lessons we see at Brighteye into short episodes with actionable takeaways for you to make better decisions and a European lens.
Think of it as your weekly download: what’s shifting in the market, challenges that founders are facing, and strategies to navigate the realities of building a venture-backed company.
Powered by Brighteye, Europe’s leading early-stage VC fund for learning & work.
👉 brighteyevc.com/sidekick
We distil the trends, frameworks, and lessons we see at Brighteye into short episodes with actionable takeaways for you to make better decisions and a European lens.
Think of it as your weekly download: what’s shifting in the market, challenges that founders are facing, and strategies to navigate the realities of building a venture-backed company.
Powered by Brighteye, Europe’s leading early-stage VC fund for learning & work.
👉 brighteyevc.com/sidekick
26 Episodes
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Three topics this week.
First: Brighteye launches its Founder Studio, a 12-week London residency helping early-stage founders in learning and work secure their first design partner or enterprise pilot.
Second: AI-native startups are restructuring product teams, running 20:1 engineer-to-PM ratios, and what that signals for the future of product management.
Third: David breaks down the Andreessen Horowitz thesis that AI will expand the software market and the four implications for founders building in AI, learning, and future of work.
Timestamps:
1:10: New Brighteye Founder Studio in London
3:45: The Future of product management
10:44: Good news: AI will eat application software (a16z piece)
Links:
https://a16z.com/good-news-ai-will-eat-application-software/
https://creatoreconomy.so/p/so-whats-going-to-happen-to-product-management-anyway
Founder Studio: https://www.brighteyevc.com/
This week on Sidekick, David and Rhys unpack three signals shaping the future of learning and work.
First, they introduce Brighteye’s new M&A Guide for Learning founders, built with insights from top founders, lawyers, and operators on how to prepare for acquisitions.
Then they explore a growing problem in the creator economy: an explosion of AI-generated content that is making authenticity the only real competitive advantage.
Finally, they analyse two deals in the space: Docebo acquiring 365Talents and Accenture acquiring Faculty and what these moves signal about the future of talent and AI.
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:09 How to Sell Your Company – Brighteye’s new M&A guide
07:52 The Creator Economy “Crisis” - Why authenticity is the last moat
13:37 Unexpected M&A Moves - Docebo × 365Talents & Accenture × Faculty
Links:
https://www.brighteyevc.com/sidekick-posts/how-to-sell-your-company
https://techcrunch.com/2026/02/22/can-the-creator-economy-stay-afloat-in-a-flood-of-ai-slop/
https://www.docebo.com/365talents/
https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/2026/accenture-to-acquire-faculty-to-scale-ai-capabilities
This week on the Sidekick podcast, we unpack three signals shaping the future of learning and work.
1. YC’s latest Request for Startups on AI guidance for physical work and what it means when expertise gets compressed.
2. The HumanOS manifesto, why we believe AI should augment human agency, not reduce it.
3. The shift from AI literacy as a “nice to have” to a compliance requirement under the EU AI Act, plus OpenAI and Booking.com’s push to train 20,000 SMEs.
Timestamps:
01:43 - YC RFS
08:16 - HumanOS
13:10 - AI Literacy (EU AI Act + OpenAI & Booking.com AI accelerator)
Links:
YC Request for Startups: AI Guidance for physical world: https://www.ycombinator.com/rfs#ai-guidance-for-physical-work
The next chapter for AI in the EU: https://openai.com/index/the-next-chapter-for-ai-in-the-eu/
In this episode, Rhys and David unpack our 2026 predictions for learning and work, and why the real shift isn’t about content, but about labour.
Three structural changes are already underway:
• AI training is exploding but context, not generic skills, will win
• L&D budgets aren’t shrinking: they’re being absorbed into productivity and ops
• Hyper-specialised AI agents are redesigning roles from the inside out
For founders, this isn’t trend commentary. It’s about who controls the budget, how ROI is measured, and whether you’re selling access or productivity. In 2026, learning companies won’t compete on content. They’ll compete on labour outcomes.
Links
Brighteye Learning & Work Report 2026
https://www.brighteyevc.com/sidekick-posts/the-european-learning-work-funding-report-2026
The 2026 SaaS Crash: It’s Not What You Think
https://www.saastr.com/the-2026-saas-crash-its-not-what-you-think
In this episode of Sidekick, David and Rhys go beyond the charts of Brighteye’s latest Learning & Work Funding Report to unpack what the data is really telling us.
The key takeaway is not simply about funding going up or down. It points to a structural shift: learning is increasingly valued when it is embedded in systems and tied to tangible outcomes such as productivity, employability, compliance, or progression.
The conversation explores the patterns that stood out across the data, the structural changes underway in the market, and the assumptions many founders are still holding onto for too long.
A practical discussion for founders building in learning and future of work who want to understand where real value (and capital) is flowing.
Europe’s skills gap isn’t a short-term problem, it’s structural. In this short episode, David shares one clear prediction from Brighteye’s newly released Learning and Work Report (link below): immigration is becoming a platform layer for the future of European work. As work and talent go global, immigration systems remain fragmented, slow, and hard to navigate.
David explores how the skills gap is being addressed in two ways: (1) importing talent and (2) building it locally - and why the convergence of these approaches will create the next generation of critical infrastructure companies in Europe.
Read/Download Report: https://www.brighteyevc.com/sidekick-posts/the-european-learning-work-funding-report-2026
In this episode, we unpack the hard truth shaping HR and L&D buying decisions in 2026: completion rates are irrelevant, operational impact is everything. David breaks down why proving tangible ROI is now non-negotiable as HR budgets tighten, and how showing real performance gains is the key to unlocking bigger, non-L&D budgets. If you’re building HRTech or EdTech in Europe, this simple shift will define your growth trajectory in 2026 and beyond.
In this episode, David breaks down new Udemy and YouGov research on how workers across the US, UK, India and Brazil are preparing for AI and reveals the real readiness gap leaders need to focus on. The problem isn’t technical skill. It’s miscalibration: workers believe they’re strong in communication, critical thinking and teamwork, while managers see these as the biggest gaps. Combined with a widespread belief that “AI won’t affect me”, founders face a psychological barrier, not an educational one.
Read Udemy's report: https://business.udemy.com/fr/resources/yougov-research-ai-transformation/
AI isn’t creating new marketplace categories yet. It’s bringing the “impossible” ones back. In this episode, And we look at why this shift is even more powerful in Europe, where labour costs and fragmentation used to make these models unscalable.
If you’re building in talent, learning, or services, this might be the moment your category gets a second chance.
Read the A16Z piece: https://www.a16z.news/p/marketplaces-in-the-age-of-ai
Every VC asks it (directly or indirectly) “what’s your market insight?”, but, in full transparency, only a few founders answer it well.
In this episode, David breaks down how to uncover and articulate your real market insight: the shift, behaviour, or timing that makes your idea inevitable. From Duolingo to Airbnb, we explore what genuine insight looks like, why it builds conviction in investors, and how to craft your own “market insight” story before your next raise.
Everyone’s worried about AI replacing workers but what if that’s the wrong narrative? In this episode, we explore how AI is reshaping tasks, not removing people. From the rise of “super-workers” to the hidden economic upside, we unpack why AI could lead to more jobs (not fewer) if we learn to redesign around it.
This week, David unpacks a powerful idea from Alex Rampell at Andreessen Horowitz: software isn’t just eating markets anymore, it’s eating labour. Watch a16z podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhyhR4Bzc0I
In this short episode, David explores what this shift means for founders in learning and work. AI is moving us from systems of record to systems of work: tools that actually do the job, not just track it.
David breaks down why this matters:
- The education labour market is worth over $3 trillion -> 15x larger than the software market.
- The next generation of learning startups will monetise outcomes, not licences.
- Pricing will shift from per seat to per result, think “per certification delivered” or “per learner supported.”
This week on Sidekick, David unpacks ChatGPT’s newest feature: Apps in ChatGPT and what Coursera’s launch inside Chat means for founders in learning and work. Distribution, discovery, and learning design are being rewritten: from platforms to conversations. Learn why this shift could redefine how learners find your product, and how to build for the chat-native future.
Read more on Coursera app in ChatGPT: https://blog.coursera.org/making-coursera-learning-more-accessible-worldwide-through-an-app-in-chatgpt/
This week on Sidekick, David briefly digs into one of the hottest topics: the current state of the VC market in Europe.
He highlights Gil Dibner’s perspective on how investors try to generate alpha by being short-term contrarian but long-term right. He explores why the market feels like a gold rush, with VCs chasing the same few AI plays, valuations soaring above €50 million at seed, and billions at risk of being burnt.
For founders in learning and the future of work, the episode offers a clear takeaway: don’t get distracted by hype. Focus on defensibility: trust, distribution, and workflow integration; because those are the moats that will outlast the frenzy.
Read Gil Dibner piece - "Alpha in the age of agreement": https://newsletter.angularventures.com/p/alpha-in-the-age-of-agreement?_bhlid=3e9cf52481151b5559aaa1ddde09572f22ede262
Growth used to mean buying ads, running SEO campaigns, or hiring big teams. But AI is flipping the playbook. In this episode, David explores how AI is reshaping growth at startups: from making every product output a marketing asset, to Answer Optimisation Engines (the new SEO), to the return of the one-channel playbook, and why automation is shrinking growth teams.
Action: Run a quick “growth design check”:
- Is your product output shareable?
- Does your company appear in ChatGPT or Perplexity?
- Which single channel could you fully own?
The ultimate guide to AEO - Lenny's podcast" : https://youtu.be/iT7kq-R3Gjc?si=EzilR9R026R2v-Sa
Every marketing channel sucks right now - Andrew Chen: https://andrewchen.substack.com/p/every-marketing-channel-sucks-right
![The hidden [potential] opportunities in OpenAI’s new job marketplace](https://s3.castbox.fm/47/89/0d/0c76c532c76b899e1bf440317f1cbf971d_scaled_v1_400.jpg "The hidden [potential] opportunities in OpenAI’s new job marketplace")
OpenAI is moving beyond AI models into certifications and a job marketplace: a direct challenge to LinkedIn’s territory.
In this short episode of Sidekick, David explores the hidden opportunities behind OpenAI’s new jobs play:
- How certifications could become the “AI literacy exam” of record
- Why bridging tools for HR tech could be a real unlock
- Where vertical job networks in regulated industries (healthcare, construction, etc.) could thrive
If you’re building in the future of learning and work, this move could accelerate or block your strategy. Tune in to understand the implications and where the potential opportunities might lie.
This week on Sidekick, David explores two founder archetypes emerging in 2025: the AI-first founders and the business-as-usual founders still adding headcount into manual processes. The gap between these two approaches is becoming clear.
He also references one recent article wrote by his colleague Rhys, the Head of Platform and Research at Brighteye: AI stocks faltered, exposing a human skills gap.
Read article: https://bitly.cx/aesQ
AI hype is cooling, features are easy to copy, and the big platforms move fast. So where’s the real edge?
In this episode, we share our reflections on four *potential* levers founders can actually control: trust, distribution, depth, and speed. These might be the traits that separate lasting AI companies from features that get swallowed overnight.
Takeaway: If Google or OpenAI launched your feature tomorrow (i.e. Study mode), what would keep users with you?
Let us know how you’re tackling this at dg@brighteyevc.com. Thanks!
In this episode, Rhys and David from Brighteye explore how AI is reshaping workplace training: from real-time coaching and compliance-led innovation to the emerging white space opportunities founders should watch.
TIMESTAMPS:
(0:00) Intro
(0:37) Personal intros
(1:44)Avenues of Differentiation
(13:31) White spaces
(18:28) Rapid-fire questions
(29:00) Outro
Read AI in Training Research/Market Map: https://www.brighteyevc.com/post/podcast-ai-training
In this short teaser episode, Rhys and David from Brighteye explore how AI is reshaping hiring: from smarter talent matching to the emerging white space opportunities founders should watch.
TIMESTAMPS:
(0:00) Intro
(2:46) Summary of the report
(6:43) White spaces
(10:37) Moats/Avenues of Differentiation
(20:35) Rapid-fire questions
(24:58) Final thoughts
Read AI in Hiring Research/Report: https://www.brighteyevc.com/post/ai-for-hiring-transforming-talent-acquisition-with-ai
Website: http://brighteyevc.com/post/podcast-ai-hiring
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