The 10 Biggest Startup Myths in 2026

Have a startup idea?👉 Let’s talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to get your idea scorecardHave a question you’d like us to answer in an episode or a topic you’d like us to cover? Reach us at [email protected] we cover in this episode:Verena sits down with 𝗧𝗼𝗺, founder of 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗔𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗺𝘆, to tackle one of the biggest misconceptions new founders carry: 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀?Tom’s story is a masterclass in doing the opposite. After six years in business consulting, he niched down into 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 and spotted an obvious flaw in traditional in-person training - 𝘯𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺. That realisation became the seed for 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗱, the virtual toolset now wrapped around his in-person product, powered by AI and designed to embed capability over time rather than hope it sticks.In the conversation Tom shares why he launched with 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹 instead of a bloated MVP, how he took an established 360 feedback product and infused it with his own IP to make it genuinely differentiated, and why he’s a firm believer in 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 to generate the feedback loop that actually moves the product forward.He also opens up about his honest “𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦” early growth story, why cold outreach mostly didn’t work for him, and the mindset shift that unlocked real traction: 𝘥𝘰 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬, 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘹𝘦𝘥𝘭𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let’s talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to get your idea scorecardHave a question you’d like us to answer in an episode or a topic you’d like us to cover? Reach us at [email protected] we cover in this episode:Verena and Simon take on 𝟭𝟬 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗺𝘆𝘁𝗵𝘀 - the ones still being taught in books, articles and advice columns that no longer hold up in the age of AI.They bust the myths one by one: "𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼-𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗺𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝘆 𝗷𝗼𝗯, 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗻, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝗵𝘂𝗴𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝗻𝗲, 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺𝘀, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁, and 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗷𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗵𝘂𝗯."Along the way they share real examples - from Uber reinventing taxis to Apple’s “copy and reframe” strategy, from the WeWork cash trap to why bootstrapped founders are becoming the new norm - and reveal which myths still carry a grain of truth (hint: there’s one surprising answer that isn’t a clean “busted”).If you’ve been held back by old-school startup advice, this episode will give you a fresh playbook for building in the AI era.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let's talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to get your idea scorecardHave a question you'd like us to answer in an episode or a topic you'd like us to cover? Reach us at [email protected] we cover in this episode:Verena and Simon dig into one of the biggest blockers keeping aspiring founders stuck: 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴?They break down why you don't need the next Uber or Airbnb to build a great business, and share their three-part framework for spotting hidden opportunities: 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 by studying reviews on Reddit and Product Hunt, 𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 the way Calendly and Duolingo did, and 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀, the way Klarna took instalment payments from finance into e-commerce.Then Verena sits down with 𝗦𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗲, founder of 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗘𝗱𝗴𝗲 - an executive coaching movement helping high-performing female CEOs build sustainable leadership without burning out. Sophie shares how her own burnout led her to breathwork and trauma-informed coaching, why she built her platform without outside investment after a rough experience in her first business, and her honest take on why 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 have grown her business faster than any marketing channel could.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let's talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to get your idea scorecardHave a question you'd like us to answer in an episode or a topic you'd like us to cover? Reach us at [email protected] we cover in this episode:Verena and Simon open the mailbag for an Ask Us Anything deep dive, answering listener questions from every stage of Start - Launch - Grow, including the one so many founders are stuck on: 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗯?Along the way they cover how much market research is enough when AI makes building so easy, how to find an idea worth pursuing, which AI tools to pick as a non-technical founder, why you might still need a developer, how to know your MVP is ready to launch, where to find your first paying customers, and whether it's too early to raise investment.

Have a question you'd like us to answer in an episode or a topic you'd like us to cover? Reach us at [email protected] What we cover in this episode:Verena and Simon answer two listener questions, starting with the one every founder is quietly asking themselves: 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗜?Then Simon sits down with Ben Dickens, Director of Technology at UK Coaching, and talks about building Play Their Way - a child-first coaching app that went from discovery to launch in both app stores in under three months. A charity, not a startup, working at startup speed.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let's talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀 👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to get your idea scorecardHave a question you'd like us to answer in an episode or a topic you'd like us to cover? Reach us at [email protected] What we cover in this episode: Verena and Simon tackle the question that decides whether a startup ever gets off the ground: 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁, 𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘁?They open with a hard truth drawn from working with 𝟮,𝟬𝟬𝟬+ 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀: the number one reason startups fail to get traction 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺 - it's that most get their go-to-market wrong, or never really do it at all.This isn't a "which ad platform should I use" episode. Founders always want to start with the channel - Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok, SEO - but that's the 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. Channels don't fail. Targeting does. So Verena and Simon walk through their three-step framework for finding your first paying customers.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let’s talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to find your biggest priority & get a Million Labs Giveaway. 👉 Join our Free Masterclass on how to go from idea to paying customers in the age of AI.--- What we cover in this episode: Verena and Simon tackle one of the most common misconceptions founders bring to the build phase: 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝘄𝗲𝗯 𝗮𝗽𝗽 𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲?Most early-stage builds that go native too early end up 𝟯𝘅 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 and take 𝟲+ 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 - thanks to testing across thousands of devices, Apple's brutal approval process, and rebuilding for two operating systems instead of one.This isn't an anti-native episode - Verena and Simon build native when the product needs it. But they walk through the three things founders get wrong when choosing their launch platform:𝟭. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗯 𝗔𝗽𝗽 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗚𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝟯. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 "𝗔𝗽𝗽 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗿" 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗽Their takeaway: 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝘄𝗲𝗯 𝗮𝗽𝗽 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼. 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Verena sits down with 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗶𝗲, 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝗰.Charlie has helped build and grow 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 including Mission Inc, an AI-powered platform helping leaders identify performance gaps and delegate decision-making down the hierarchy - built on a military-inspired 𝘵𝘪𝘱-𝘰𝘧-𝘵𝘩𝘦-𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳 philosophy.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let’s talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to find your biggest priority & get a Million Labs Giveaway. 👉 Join our Free Masterclass on how to go from idea to paying customers in the age of AI.--- What we cover in this episode: Verena and Simon dig into the uncomfortable question every founder faces the moment they hit deploy: 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘃𝗶𝗯𝗲-𝗰𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗩𝗣?They open with a cautionary tale - an AI-built social app that launched in 𝟯 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 with zero lines of hand-written code. It demoed beautifully and users signed up. Then, three days later, security researchers pulled 𝟱𝟬𝟬,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗔𝗣𝗜 𝘁𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻𝘀, 𝟯𝟱,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗮𝗱𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁. The demo worked, but the product didn't.This isn't an anti-AI episode - Verena and Simon use these tools every day. But they walk through the three things the AI builders won't tell you.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let’s talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to find your biggest priority & get a Million Labs Giveaway. 👉 Join our Free Masterclass on how to go from idea to paying customers in the age of AI.--- What we cover in this episode: Verena and Simon tackle one of the biggest shifts happening in software right now: 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺-𝘀𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗮𝗔𝗦.Drawing on recent studies showing that 𝟴𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗮𝗮𝗦 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱, they unpack why companies are hitting a breaking point with bloated monthly bills and rigid software that forces you to change your workflows. They discuss how AI and no-code tools like Bubble have slashed development costs by 𝟲𝟬%, making it cheaper for an enterprise to completely rebuild a custom tool (like their own overnight Slack replacement) than to pay for annual seat licensing. Their takeaway - the era of broad, one-size-fits-all SaaS is fading - if you want to build software today, you have to go aggressively niche.𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Verena sits down with 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘄, 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁.Matthew is a solo coach turned international franchisor who started his business 𝟭𝟰 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗼 with a simple mission: helping young children discover the sports they love through structured rotations. Today, MiniSport operates across 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗞𝗼𝗻𝗴, 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗮𝗶𝘄𝗮𝗻.

Have a startup idea?👉 Let’s talk about how we can help bring it to life. 🚀👉 Take our 2 Min Founder Quiz to find your biggest priority & get a Million Labs Giveaway. 👉 Join our Free Masterclass on how to go from idea to paying customers in the age of AI.--- What we cover in this episode: Verena and Simon tackle one of the biggest reasons non-technical founders waste time and money on AI-built apps: 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴.Drawing on data from over 𝟮,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀, they unpack why a strong scope makes you 𝟱𝟯% 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 to ship a successful app - and why the temptation to dive straight into Lovable or Replit is the fastest path to a product nobody wants. They walk through the 𝟱-𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 every Million Labs build runs through: 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻, 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘀, 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀, 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻. Their takeaway - 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘐 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵.𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Simon sits down with 𝗔𝗶𝗻𝗮, 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗪𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽.Aina is an ex-JP Morgan and SoftBank M&A specialist turned serial entrepreneur, who has built a startup incubator that has 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝟭𝟴 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝟮𝟬 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀 - in 24 months or less, with returns as high as 𝟯𝗫 𝗥𝗢𝗜.Aina shares the 𝟯𝟬-𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 her team built from analysing 150 M&A deals to figure out what makes a Japanese cross-border acquisition succeed, why she models Waveland on 𝗥𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘁'𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 by localising proven foreign services for Japan, and how a small detail like 𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘁 became the difference between a successful exit and a flop.