I am not an ambitious founder
Philippe Beaudoin · November 10, 2025
I am not an ambitious founder.
At least not given what “ambitious” seems to mean to most VCs.
When I hear a VC say “I am looking for ambitious founders” I now hear “founders who want to build businesses that dominate their market”.
I don’t want to do that. I think doing that goes against what I want to do. I don’t want to dominate over anyone, I want us to collectively understand there are other ways to live our lives. Ways that could make us happier…
But instead of trying to convince you with words, I’d like to build a small version of that alternative future and invite you to step in so you can see for yourselves.
This is how I am a builder. I am a builder the way storytellers are.
But building a business that dominates its market? Building a moat? Protecting it?
I don’t want to do that.
Because if I do, my company shows a better world but tries to keep living in the old one.
In the alternative future I am dreaming of, we grow together but we also care for each other. We recognize the value of our drives, we keep encouraging people to do their best… but we also acknowledge that their best is not what we think is best.
So we don’t build moats. We don’t dominate.
We tell each other: “You do you, and if I can help by providing an external incentive for a while, I will… But if at some point it starts to hurt too much, if the made-up game pushes you in a direction you don’t feel like going, then you can get out. There is no moat, no trap, no hidden mechanism by which I can keep you playing the game I invented.”
Now I hear some of you say… “Whoa! That’s an ambitious program!”
And you’re right. That is why the word ambitious used by VCs is so good at protecting the current world.
There are those of us who recognize ourselves in it, but don’t yet realize it means something else to the person-with-money who is wielding it.
And I think some VCs know, but they don’t tell us. Instead they subtly divert our ambition for a better world toward an ambition for domination: “Wow! This is a really ambitious vision you have there! Let’s get started on it… and we can find your moat together.”
The moat seems like a small concession to make to the old world. But it is a cancer which, in time, will eat at your entire vision. A time bomb that will let you feeling as the shell of the person you wanted to be.
We need alternate funding mechanisms. We need capital that cares about building companies for the new world.
We need ambition without domination.