Most people saw AI startups. The real shift? AI as infrastructure.

~160 companies accepted. The signal was clear:

1. Agentic AI (~30%+)
   Not wrappers.
   Systems executing multi-step workflows autonomously.
   Replacing humans, not assisting them.

2. The vibe-coding edge (~25%)
   1 in 4 companies had ~95% AI-generated codebases.
   AI wasn t just a tool; it was the development process.
   Speed became the moat.

3. Vertical > Horizontal
   Generic productivity lost to domain automation.
   Tighter workflows. Clear ROI. Stronger defensibility.

4. Workflow automation (~15 20%)
   Hiring. Ops. Onboarding.
   Expensive, repetitive systems, now automated.

@Y Combinator didn t fund AI companies.

Not the loud roadmap requests.
The quiet idea you built on instinct.

A small UX tweak.
An automation you weren t sure about.
A default that just made things smoother.

I ve noticed these are often the features users don t talk about.
They only notice them when something breaks or disappears.

Those instinct-driven decisions rarely come from surveys.
They come from building, using your own product, and trusting that feeling of this should be easier.

When we launched our product here in April 2025, the playbook was quite different:

• Create a Coming Soon page

• Build your network through the Notify Me page

• Let Product Hunt notify everyone on launch day

• Launch, celebrate, and (hopefully) trend

We followed that playbook to the dot and ended up winning #1 Product of the Day.

The network effect from that launch still brings traffic even today.

I've recently come across Clay, and it looks like a super interesting tool for managing relationships and staying on top of networking. I'm curious if anyone here has tried it out.

• How has it fit into your workflow?

• Does it really help with staying on top of connections?

• Any pros and cons you'd call out?

Would love to hear your experiences especially if you ve found unique ways to get the most out of it!

I've recently come across Clay, and it looks like a super interesting tool for managing relationships and staying on top of networking. I'm curious if anyone here has tried it out.

• How has it fit into your workflow?

• Does it really help with staying on top of connections?

• Any pros and cons you'd call out?

Would love to hear your experiences especially if you ve found unique ways to get the most out of it!