Rolling out user research at scale is where most plans break.
I'm probably going to get a lot of hate for this, but it needs to be said: your approach to user research ai is fundamentally flawed. We're all chasing shiny AI objects and forgetting the first principles of building great products. Here's the unpopular opinion that might just save your startup.
What I've Learned From 61 Companies
A few patterns in user research come up again and again.
The founders who handle user research well understand that the market doesn't care about your roadmap.
The Reality Nobody Talks About
A lot of the advice on user research rests on assumptions that made sense five years ago. The world has moved on.
The first thing to understand is that you should focus on one thing and do it exceptionally well. I've seen this play out across dozens of companies. The pattern is unmistakable.
Many teams spend months on the wrong path before realizing that simplicity beats complexity every time. Once they make the switch, everything changes.
The Counterintuitive Truth
In user research, the best practitioners often do less, not more.
Trying to do everything at once is one of the most common ways to fail: even a team with strong technology and talent can spread itself too thin.
The lesson: the market doesn't care about your roadmap. It sounds simple. It's incredibly hard to execute.
Real Talk: What Actually Matters
Here is what actually matters in user research.
First, execution speed beats perfection. Every time. Companies rarely fail because they moved too fast on user research. Many fail because they moved too slowly.
Second, measure everything. If you can't measure it, you can't improve it. Set up tracking from day one, even if it's basic.
Third, talk to your users. It sounds obvious, but many founders make decisions about user research in a vacuum. Get out of the building. Talk to real people.
This connects to broader themes around user research ai, customer feedback, ai ethics that I've been thinking about a lot lately.
Final Thoughts
There are no shortcuts in user research, but there are smarter paths.
The strongest teams treat user research as a competitive advantage, not a checkbox. They invest in it early, measure it obsessively, and never stop improving.
If you're just getting started with user research, don't be intimidated. Everyone starts somewhere. The key is to start with the right mindset and the right framework, and then execute like your company depends on it. Because it probably does.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q:Do all experts agree with this view?
No, and that's fine. The best ideas in business are often contrarian. I share my perspective based on my experience and data, but I encourage you to seek out opposing viewpoints and form your own conclusions.
Q:What experience informs this perspective?
This perspective comes from over a decade of building companies in Silicon Valley, two successful exits (RemoteTeam to Gusto, MovieLaLa to Gfycat), and investing in 234 startups including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Scale AI. I write about what I've lived.
Q:How has this view evolved over time?
My thinking on most topics has changed significantly over the years. Early in my career, I held many conventional views that experience proved wrong. I try to update my beliefs when the evidence changes.