@jaltma: "If you are building the same thing other people build, it can only be similarly good. It can't be actually much better…
Summary
Jack Altman shares a quote emphasizing that building truly great products requires originality, and promotes his conversation with Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke, which also discusses Shopify's AI transition.
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Cached at: 05/21/26, 08:13 AM
“If you are building the same thing other people build, it can only be similarly good. It can’t be actually much better. It can slightly look nicer, but you’re bounded a couple percentage points either direction. If you want to build something great or much better, it has to be different.
So this has to be your starting position.“
Jack Altman (@jaltma): My conversation with @tobi, founder and CEO of Shopify.
Timestamps: (0:00) Intro (0:49) A problem worth solving (5:58) Building products people love (10:14) Why originality matters (11:47) Conformity in Silicon Valley (15:47) Founder-led companies (18:44) Shopify’s AI transition
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