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Startups in the AI Era: Peter Deng on What Will Win

Peter Deng, a visionary product leader turned investor, joins the podcast. Peter helped shape Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and ChatGPT, driving major launches like ChatGPT Enterprise, voice, and memory at OpenAI. He is now a General Partner at Felicis, where he backs founders building AI-native companies. In this episode, Peter shares how investors evaluate AI startups today, what separates lasting businesses from surface-level integrations, and what founders must rethink to build companies that hold up over time. Cam's notes on Substack: promptedwithcam.substack.com Timestamps 01:12 The Prompt Challenge 01:51 Building a Childhood Boat 03:56 Cultural Differences at Meta and OpenAI 05:45 Joining OpenAI After Launch 08:01 Shipping Products at Lightning Speed 08:39 Using AI as a Thought Partner 10:24 Making AI More Human 11:33 Design Principles and Affordances 13:20 Creative Friction with AI 16:06 The Model is the Product 18:29 OpenAI's Expanding Ecosystem 20:58 AI Native Startups 23:44 Advice for AI Founders 24:53 Foundational Models vs Products 27:02 Social Media Meets AI 29:59 Using ChatGPT Daily 32:36 Advice for AI Founders 35:27 AI and Human Creativity 39:27 The Future of Work 42:41 AI in Ten Years 44:24 All Star Creative Team 47:12 Designer Reveal 50:31 Closing Thoughts Links Subscribe to the Prompted Newsletter: https://promptedwithcam.substack.com/ Cam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/themaninblue/ Peter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterxdeng/ Link to Peter, Jade and AI’s Creative Collaboration: https://promptedpodcast.com/episode-10