Mostly Growth

AI may be rewriting the playbook for growth, but it’s also leaving behind some of the old startup gospel. CJ and Kyle (with Ben jumping in) dig into what happens when the “rules” no longer fit — from dead frameworks and disappearing SEO traffic to board members quietly checking out.Is T2D3 Dead? Did AI Kill It?The “triple-triple-double-double-double” path to $100M ARR worked in the old SaaS world. But what happens when AI companies blow past $100M in less than a year — often with questionable margins and pass-through revenue?SEO Down 20–40%: Is AEO the Savior?Google traffic is tanking. ChatGPT is rewriting recommendations. Is “AI Engine Optimization” the new growth channel, or just SEO with a different wrapper?The Brutal Tech Job MarketCS grads face unemployment rates double those of art history majors. With 5,000+ applications going nowhere, does anyone get hired without networking or Loom videos anymore?Is Your Board Quiet Quitting?When growth slows and AI isn’t your story, some VCs go ghost. From missing intros to pushing for M&A, boards are quietly exiting stage left.Business BlundersHospital Bed LinkedIn Photos: Hustle so hard you end up in the ER (and still post about it).The @Company Non-Tag: Execs copy-paste updates but forget to actually tag anyone. Peak passive-aggressive LinkedIn.Ramp’s Y-Axis Crime: A 0.4% bump in weekend meals turned into a chart that looked like the apocalypse. Two burritos never looked so big.Pricing in the Real World: Bob’s BarricadesIt’s not Bob, it’s Happy — and he’s quietly running a barricade rental empire. Fifty cents per cone, thousands per site, tens of millions a year. The most Florida business model you’ve ever heard.Something We Tried This WeekKyle runs a test with Typeform — what worked, what didn’t, and what it says about the state of survey tools today.

AI may be changing how we work, but it’s also changing how we interact with software — and not always for the better. CJ and Kyle Poyar dig into the growing pains of product design, IPOs in weird markets, and the unexpectedly depressing world of startup networking.Navan IPO: Why a $613M company burning $80M is still pushing for an $8B valuation — and what it says about the state of software IPOs.Prompt Bars Are Everywhere: The rise of “blank box” UX, why every app suddenly looks like ChatGPT, and how that’s giving users prompt anxiety.Referral Programs: Ponzi Scheme?: Incentives are up, CAC is down — but is this growth channel actually sustainable or just marketing MLMs in disguise?When to Disclose AI-Generated: If your calendar link feels cold, wait until your AI avatar shows up in an ad. We debate where the ethical (and strategic) line is for AI transparency.Business Blunders:• Sad Dinners (CJ): Why every LinkedIn dinner photo looks depressing — and what it says about startup culture.• ChatGPT Bad Chart (Kyle): An incredible dataset ruined by a rainbow mess of tiny fonts and meaningless categories.Potentially Reliable Thing at 2AM:• Arnold Twins Revenue (CJ): The wild deal behind Arnold Schwarzenegger’s comedy debut — and how it made more money than Terminator.• Reese Witherspoon Book Club (Kyle): Viral influence, middle-of-the-night decisions, and what media we trust half-asleep.Pricing in the Real World:• CJ: Iced Coffee Variable Pricing: Starbucks, cold brew, and the surprising economics of how product pricing actually works day to day.Something We Tried This Week:• Kyle: Fyxer Virtual Assistant: A hands-on experiment with offloading operational drag — what worked, what didn’t, and what Kyle’s still skeptical about.

AI was supposed to make software cheaper and companies more efficient. Instead, costs are exploding, CFOs are getting squeezed, and founders are pushing their teams harder than ever. CJ and Kyle Poyar dig into the economics behind AI, usage-based pricing, and what all of this means for SaaS growth.Usage-Based Credits: Why they’re supposed to save SaaS margins but often trap customers in bad deals.996 Hustle Culture: The rise of 9 a.m.–9 p.m., 6-days-a-week work schedules — and why it’s both romanticized and unsustainable.SaaS Payback Periods: Public companies now take 3+ years to recoup CAC, with growth slowing and margins tightening.Go-to-Market Engineers: Hype vs. reality of the “unicorn hire” role meant to automate GTM motions.Consumer Businesses: Are we sleeping on DTC plays like Blue Apron and ButcherBox while chasing AI trends?The “Cracked Engineer” Archetype: Why the most impactful hires might be the failed founders who love solving cross-functional problems.Subscription Carwashes: What they teach us about predictable revenue and retention psychology.More RVs Than EVs: What this surprising stat says about adoption curves and how we misread “the future.”This Week’s Growth Experiments: The tools, tactics, interview questions, and hacks we tried — what worked, what didn’t, and why Kyle is disillusioned by some of them.

Mostly growth brings together go-to-market strategist Kyle Poyar and CFO CJ Gustafson who swap smart takes on growing revenue and running a company. From pricing and packaging to unit economics, AI trends, and the day-to-day realities of leadership, they share candid insights for CEOs, CFOs, and CROs who want to grow and operate at a high level. Serious topics tackled with a light touch for leaders who keep the trains on time.