Are co-founders going out of fashion?
⊹ A spark of Genius ⊹ Circe's spell book of ideas, people, and opportunities, curated to enchant your week
⊹ THE CIRCE BRIEF
Solo founders are on the rise.
In 2029, 23% of founded companies were led by a single founder. Last year it was 36%.
More than half of successful startup exits last year were achieved by solo founders.
The truth is AI tools killing the need for overhead and enables solo founders to build faster than ever before. Famously, Base44’s one-man team sold his company for $80 million six months after writing his first line of code.
The narrative writes itself: why split equity with another human when Claude – or as we like to call her, Claudia – can do market research, write BRDs, code faster than anyone, and take no equity? But the founders who are actually building a company that lasts, and creating culture instead of optimizing for a quick exit, are all looking for a cofounder. The solo founder wave is proof that long-lasting companies need human relationships to back them up. It's the sound of thousands of people discovering that operating completely alone is actually brutal in ways that no AI tool touches.
Look at what AI is genuinely good at. Research, code generation, planning frameworks, analysis, and keeping you organized. It's ruthless at operational work; the perfect COO, right?
But an AI cofounder can't talk you out of a bad idea at 3am because it fundamentally doesn't care how the company turns out. Claudia has no skin in the game, no vision of what success actually means, and no stake in whether you build something meaningful or just optimize for exit speed.
The cofounders who matter are doing irreplaceable work.
Calling you out when vision gets blurry or your company values slip under pressure, introducing you to their network when you need it, sitting with you in fear when growth stalls, and feeling the same pain as you when a customer churns.
About 65% of startups that die do so because cofounders can't get along. But does that mean you should skip the co-founder altogether?
I think it means we need to be ultra-intentional when choosing a cofounder, since it seems that this partnership is the deciding variable on the success of your startup.
The AI co-founder surge is real, but it's mostly the quick exits and the niche products. The stuff that works because one person's taste is enough to get it done. But zoom out to category-defining companies that attract serious talent: those almost always started with great partnerships.
And not because two people are faster than one. (No one is faster than Claudia!)
But some of the best founders I've watched don't actually want to be alone. They want someone who truly believes in the company like they do, who'll fight for the thing when they're too tired to fight, who brings a different brain to the problem and makes the decisions sharper because there's actual debate. AI can't argue with you. Can't have conviction. Can't tell you you're wrong about something because it actually believes something else.
So next time someone asks why give up equity to a cofounder when Claudia handles research and code, and you keep the whole pie?
I think the answer's simple. A great cofounder doesn't split the pie.
They make it much larger before you ever have to cut it into pieces.
If youre looking to find your next co-founder, join us this Thursday at The Match.
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⊹ CIRCE DEALFLOW
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Raising: Angel Round
MeetGia.AI is building a design platform that is made to assist wedding planners ideate and create their vision in a fraction of the usual time. Since launching in 2025, the company has gained early traction in the $70B+ wedding industry, a market that has been largely overlooked by tech.
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Raising: Pre-Seed
Radical is tackling a problem that affects the vast majority of women: 8 in 10 do not have a bra that fits. Founded by Ashley Wen after her own frustrating experience struggling to find bras that actually fit, Radical is building a more inclusive and precise approach to bra fit. The company offers 92+ sizes across 6 shades, has already fit over 500 women, and is now developing technology that could allow women to take a photo of themselves and receive a truly custom-fit bra. You can shop Radical bras now and use code CIRCE15 for 15% off.
⊹ TALENT MOVES
Kayleigh Migdol, founder of NextBest, is looking for a GTM lead to join initially in a contract role, with potential to grow into a cofounder position. Interested? Reach out to Kayleigh directly on LinkedIn.
⊹ CIRCE MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
CEO and Founder of Radical
UC Berkeley Haas
Ashley Wen is a founder, operator, and MBA candidate at Berkeley Haas. She is a true community person, Ashley comes from an edtech background, but her own experience navigating jobs while constantly worrying about bra fit pushed her toward a problem she could not ignore. That experience ultimately led her to found Radical, where she is building with both personal conviction and a deep understanding of what women actually want and need. She is building in a space too often defined by discomfort, Radical is bringing joy and confidence into something as everyday as bras.
⟡ EVENTS
APRIL 9 | Hosted by Circe, AIX Ventures, and The Tech Bros
Are you a technical powerhouse or an elite operator on the cusp of building something big? Join us for an evening designed to help you find your "professional better half."
MAY 8 | Hosted by Circe
We’re trading pitch decks for deep breaths and Slack pings for moving meditation. Join Circe at Vuori on Union Street for an intimate evening of movement, breath work, and reflection!
WOMEN IN HEALTH + HEALTHTECH DINNER | TBD
An intimate dinner with founders, operators, investors, and builders in the space.
If interested email us!
.⊹ GRAB COFFEE WITH US ⊹
Anna Gurney
Circe, Berkeley MBA/MPH, Chief of Staff @ Aura Finance
Topics: Early stage investing, Women’s Health, HealthTech, VC ecosystem, and building founder networks.
⊹ BOOK TIME
Isa D’Elia
Circe, Berkeley MBA, Bizdev and GTM @ Kenley (YC ‘24)
Topics: Applied AI, HR Tech, 0→1 product strategy, and building systems that help teams move faster.
⊹ BOOK TIME
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