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Ask HN: Has anyone quit their startup (VC-backed) over cofounder disagreements?

77 points stuck12345 | 1 comments | 11 Apr 25 16:16 UTC | HN request time: 0.199s | source

hey fam, i'm at a crossroads where i'm considering quitting my startup and taking a job or alternate paths and wanted y'alls opinion.

i've been working on a startup for the past 24 months with my cofounder - i'm technical and she's mostly focused on business side (with basic frontend skills). we got funded roughly 18 months ago for an idea i came up with, was excited about, and found some traction.

since then we pivoted away from it. we've roughly pivoted almost every month to something new. there is no longer any vision or clear problem we're trying to solve. each month is our team simply fishing for ideas in different industries and domains hoping to strike gold.

my cofounder and i don't see eye to eye on most things anymore and the relationship has also deteriorated significantly. my cofounder and i disagree upon what problems to focus on. for her, ideas only resonate if there are competitors who've raised $X million or hit certain revenue targets with no regard for interest or insights for a problem/industry. i'd much rather work on problems where i have some inherent interest and/or urge to solve the problem but it's hard to drive a shared vision between us both. this is a constant point of friction.

after 24 months of working together, i'm now considering quitting my own startup to either go do another one or take a job where i can find problems and a future cofounder. has anyone been through anything similar in the past? how did you navigate this?

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fzwang ◴[11 Apr 25 17:31 UTC] No.43656317[source]▶
I used to work in VC and have seen a few examples of this. Every case is a little different, but from what you've described I'd focus on salvaging the co-founder relationship. Conflict like this is totally normal. IMO, a pivot is when you change directions based on new information. It sounds like you're not pivoting, but lost. If you haven't already, addressing this head-on and having a candid conversation about being lost would be beneficial. Think of it as an exercise to possibly strengthen your relationship via conflict. Few other thoughts:

1. At this early stage of the business, the core asset is really the co-founding team and their relationship. Conflict is very much normal, but how you resolve it is important. You should be able to articulate your co-founder's concerns. For ex. she might feel the pressure to show "progress" to your investors.

2. It takes a lot of time and energy to build a good working relationship. Moving onto something else might seem like a good idea at the moment, but you could be right back with the same issue with another co-founder.

3. If you do decide to move on, end the relationship as amicably as you can. Note that this is not necessarily the "quickest" route, but it'll help keep your reputation intact.

Edit: spelling.

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1. bruce511 ◴[12 Apr 25 04:42 UTC] No.43661414[source]▶
At the risk of an unpopular view, and the inevitable downvotes, I think it's worth stating the following;

If your business model is raising money from VCs then doing things VCs want is important to getting paid.

All businesses tailor their output to suit their customer. Your customer is VCs. So you need to tailor your output accordingly.

In this sense your business partner is not wrong. There's no point on working on things that excite you, if it doesn't excite them. That's a hobby.

Sure, pivoting too often is also wrong. So you should try to improve that.

At this point it's probably worth sitting down with your partner with the fundamental understanding she is right; You need to find something to attract the next investor. However you need to stick with it, success or fail. You've thrown a lot against the wall, now it's time to choose.

Of course you'll likely fail. Most businesses do. VC based businesses at an even higher rate because your customer base is so small. But even failure is OK because VCs are looking for founders, not successes.

Make no mistake; founding a startup is hard work. Not fun stuff. Not interesting stuff. Mostly it's just work.

Being a founder isn't about coding. It's about business. You need to bring more to the table than just coding. Just like your co-founder takes an interest in the technical side, so you need to take more than a passing interest in the business side.

In any business, sales is the most important thing. Without them you will fail. Tech supports sales, not the other way around.

I'm sorry that this sounds harsh. I don't mean it that way. I wish you success. That success starts with you realizing the truth at the heart of your partners position. Start there. Fix your relationship.

Good luck!