Begin Ventures — Friends & Family Update
Plus an opportunity to join our growing investor community
Hey all,
Hope everyone is having a great summer.
First, some housekeeping.
I've been managing a few different email lists over the past two years — here on Substack plus three others for my investor community. I'm consolidating and will be using Substack for general updates on the firm and our community going forward.
If you've been following me on Substack and are unfamiliar with the investor community, here's the gist — my partners and I find opportunities to invest in startups that would normally be challenging to access. We pool capital and invest together, and so far, ~300 members have invested just under ~$1M.
You have to be an accredited investor and you can apply for membership HERE.
If you found my Substack because you like the founder coaching tools and insights for creativity and building, those will continue to happen here too.
(And if this isn't for you, you can unsubscribe below.)
Onward…
The second quarter at Begin was chock full of learning:
We invested in three new companies; five including the first two weeks of July
We built two AI agents, and these “digital employees” make my life easier plus actively manage and conduct research on a funnel of early-stage investment opportunities
We tightened our thesis and we’re excited to share it — it’s about original ideas and humans living healthier and more connected daily lives in a post-AI world
The “AI is taking our jobs away” story.
Every big technological shift in history comes with it a story. One side of the story seems always to be written from victimhood — "AI is going to take my job away." There's another side that's usually overly optimistic, like "AI is the most important thing that's ever happened and it's going to change the world." Finally, there's what's happening in reality. Which, to me, is that we're undergoing one of the bigger technological shifts in history. There's going to be an adjustment period as technology continues to enter our lives and take on more of the manual lift. Like, for example, writing Substack posts. (Kidding, I'm really writing this.) Some people will lose jobs. But past that adjustment period, there's never been an elongated period in history where technology hasn't created more for everyone.
Some perspective:
ATMs were supposed to end bank teller jobs. Instead, teller jobs grew from ~500K to ~550K between 1980 and 2010 because cheaper branches meant more branches
The personal computer created 15.8M net new U.S. jobs from 1980 to today — 90% of those jobs were outside the technology industry
The spreadsheet was supposed to end bookkeeping. Bookkeeping jobs did drop by ~400K since 1980, but strategic accountant jobs grew by about 600K
Between 2010 and 2016, the U.S. auto industry installed 52K new robots. Auto jobs did not shrink, but instead grew by ~260K over the same time period
Like many of you, I’ve been using these tools a lot and here’s what I’ve found so far: they’re excellent at execution and pretty bad at originality.
Why? Because creativity doesn’t come from logic. Creativity comes from you — your unique, one-of-one, quirky, idiosyncratic, novel and hopefully peculiar point of view on the world. The view that was shaped by a lived experience that only you’ve lived.
If you view AI as a creativity enhancer, not a killer, the more it takes off your plate, the more room there is to get original. My view is that AI is going to open up an entirely new genre of founders that can now get their original ideas out into the world without the gates of having a technical co-founder or attending Stanford. They probably aren’t going to be building data center infrastructure or enterprise technology. I think they probably are going to be building the next generation of incredible consumer experiences.
There’s one final stat I left out — new business applications hit an all-time record of 5.7M in 2025, up from just 3.5M a year before COVID, a trend that started with the pandemic and never reversed. As it turns out, humans are resilient and this time will be no different. The most recent data shows new business applications once again accelerating in 2026. This is my favorite data point because I want more people to build.
Originals.
At Begin, we believe there are three things that AI can’t replace and our thesis is built entirely around these three things: expertise, taste, and leadership — a concept we’re branding Originals. An original is someone who has:
Expertise — Craft, and the knowledge that only comes from years in a category or subject… the vendors, the buyers, and the hard-won lessons
Taste — Knowing what’s cool, having a point of view all your own, then building a one-of-one product that nothing else compares to
Leadership — Setting a vision people follow, hiring people better than you, making the hard calls, and carrying a team all the way to a win
Final thoughts.
If you’re an original with 7+ years experience working in a subject or domain that you think you know better than anyone else, I’d love to meet you.
If you’re interested in investing in originals, apply for membership. Right now we’re investing in Pre-Seed/Seed opportunities out of Begin Ventures Fund I* and deal-by-deal via SPVs into later-stage private companies that align with our thesis. For more information on Begin, you can also schedule a call with me directly here.
In the coming weeks, I’ll be sharing more on our thoughts and some of the investments we’ve made over the last 12 months — 15 in total.
Thanks for reading this update.
Talk soon,
Mike
This letter is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any security. It is written for the broader Begin Ventures community and is not directed to any particular investor or intended to imply that any recipient is already an investor in Begin Ventures. Any specific opportunity to invest in Begin Ventures Fund I is available only to verified accredited investors and only pursuant to Fund I's confidential offering documents, in reliance on Rule 506(c) of Regulation D. *Fund I is a 506(c) fund and may market to the general public. Begin Ventures also sponsors select special purpose vehicles ("SPVs") offered under Rule 506(b) of Regulation D to accredited investors with whom Begin Ventures has a pre-existing, substantive relationship established prior to any such offering; nothing in this letter should be construed as an offer or solicitation with respect to any SPV. Private investments are speculative, illiquid, and involve a high degree of risk, including risk of total loss. Past performance is not indicative of future results. This letter contains forward-looking statements that are inherently uncertain. Recipients should consult their own legal, tax, and financial advisors before making any investment decision.