As a bootstrapped founder (and an AI founder, at that), I find it a bit… baffling. Sometimes slightly annoying, if I’m being honest.
Not because planning is bad. Planning is great.
But because in AI, a “precise” 5 to 10-year roadmap can quickly become an expensive piece of fiction. The ground shifts. New capabilities appear. Customer expectations change overnight. What matters isn’t pretending we can predict it all… it’s building a company that can respond well.
So here’s what I can say about Synaptyx AI right now:
✅ We’re growing organically ✅ We’re breaking even ✅ We have clients who want to work with us (including multi-year deals) ✅ We’ve got a genuinely brilliant team ✅ I’m still deeply enjoying the work… and that counts for more than people admit
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘁. Or an “approved” month when I’ll be open to funding.
I’ll raise if it helps us serve customers better and build something stronger. I’ll stay bootstrapped if that keeps us sharp, calm, and properly focused. Either way… I’m not building this like a countdown timer.
The Stoics had a simple obsession: control what’s yours to control. Today’s decisions. Today’s standards. Today’s effort.... and I come back to something Epictetus nailed centuries ago: “Some things are up to us and some things are not.”
And speaking of standards… my weekend reset is extremely unglamorous: crochet and coffee. Counting stitches. Using my hands. Making something real and slightly imperfect. It’s oddly therapeutic for a brain that spends all week living in ideas. And the odd laugh-out-loud messing around with the fun side of AI with my son to create 'Mummy Caricatures'
𝗔𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗽𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝟱-𝗼𝗿-𝟭𝟬 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻… 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟯𝟲? And also… what’s your version of “crochet and coffee” when you need to properly switch off?