Arman Kassym
@armankassym.com
Startup Investor | Exploring venture insights with a fresh, casual twist. From AI to economics, sociology to tech — real conversations, bold ideas, endless curiosity.✌️
💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/arkassym/
🌐 https://armankassym.com/
💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/arkassym/
🌐 https://armankassym.com/
Really curious to see how U.S. regulation handles this shift. Other jurisdictions have been more cautious. Let’s see if this turns into a model - or a cautionary tale.
August 12, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Really curious to see how U.S. regulation handles this shift. Other jurisdictions have been more cautious. Let’s see if this turns into a model - or a cautionary tale.
GPT-5 feels like a kid coming back home from college. Smarter in some ways, better at a few things… but somehow forgot half the stuff you taught him before he left.
August 8, 2025 at 11:10 AM
GPT-5 feels like a kid coming back home from college. Smarter in some ways, better at a few things… but somehow forgot half the stuff you taught him before he left.
Who’s your Peter in investing?
I don’t want weather reports from someone who just watched the forecast.
I want data from the one standing in the storm.
In startups, too, signal degrades with each retelling.
Find your Peter. Or become one.
I don’t want weather reports from someone who just watched the forecast.
I want data from the one standing in the storm.
In startups, too, signal degrades with each retelling.
Find your Peter. Or become one.
July 22, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Who’s your Peter in investing?
I don’t want weather reports from someone who just watched the forecast.
I want data from the one standing in the storm.
In startups, too, signal degrades with each retelling.
Find your Peter. Or become one.
I don’t want weather reports from someone who just watched the forecast.
I want data from the one standing in the storm.
In startups, too, signal degrades with each retelling.
Find your Peter. Or become one.
In a world where AI answers anything, your real edge is asking the right question.
“Would you buy this?” sounds smart - until 9 of 10 say yes… and none pay.
Try: “How do you solve this today?”
Clarity doesn’t come from volume. It comes from precision. Ask better, build better.
“Would you buy this?” sounds smart - until 9 of 10 say yes… and none pay.
Try: “How do you solve this today?”
Clarity doesn’t come from volume. It comes from precision. Ask better, build better.
July 18, 2025 at 12:03 PM
In a world where AI answers anything, your real edge is asking the right question.
“Would you buy this?” sounds smart - until 9 of 10 say yes… and none pay.
Try: “How do you solve this today?”
Clarity doesn’t come from volume. It comes from precision. Ask better, build better.
“Would you buy this?” sounds smart - until 9 of 10 say yes… and none pay.
Try: “How do you solve this today?”
Clarity doesn’t come from volume. It comes from precision. Ask better, build better.
MIT says heavy AI use dulls the brain.
But a Vienna meta-analysis shows we're not losing focus—we're adapting. Our attention is becoming faster, more selective, more strategic.
It’s not decline, it’s evolution. That too is intelligence.
But a Vienna meta-analysis shows we're not losing focus—we're adapting. Our attention is becoming faster, more selective, more strategic.
It’s not decline, it’s evolution. That too is intelligence.
July 5, 2025 at 3:02 PM
MIT says heavy AI use dulls the brain.
But a Vienna meta-analysis shows we're not losing focus—we're adapting. Our attention is becoming faster, more selective, more strategic.
It’s not decline, it’s evolution. That too is intelligence.
But a Vienna meta-analysis shows we're not losing focus—we're adapting. Our attention is becoming faster, more selective, more strategic.
It’s not decline, it’s evolution. That too is intelligence.
🎲 Some games aren't rigged. They're just not yours.
You can train harder, network wider, hustle smarter—but if the game's rules reward something you don't play for, you're just leveling up in the wrong arena.
Know the game. Or find a better table.
You can train harder, network wider, hustle smarter—but if the game's rules reward something you don't play for, you're just leveling up in the wrong arena.
Know the game. Or find a better table.
July 4, 2025 at 12:03 PM
🎲 Some games aren't rigged. They're just not yours.
You can train harder, network wider, hustle smarter—but if the game's rules reward something you don't play for, you're just leveling up in the wrong arena.
Know the game. Or find a better table.
You can train harder, network wider, hustle smarter—but if the game's rules reward something you don't play for, you're just leveling up in the wrong arena.
Know the game. Or find a better table.
Discipline dies without tiny rewards
Build a “marshmallow loop”: task → 2-min treat → motivation spike.
One small ‘marshmallow’ a day keeps burnout away—what’s yours?
Curious — what little treat keeps your discipline alive?
Build a “marshmallow loop”: task → 2-min treat → motivation spike.
One small ‘marshmallow’ a day keeps burnout away—what’s yours?
Curious — what little treat keeps your discipline alive?
June 17, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Discipline dies without tiny rewards
Build a “marshmallow loop”: task → 2-min treat → motivation spike.
One small ‘marshmallow’ a day keeps burnout away—what’s yours?
Curious — what little treat keeps your discipline alive?
Build a “marshmallow loop”: task → 2-min treat → motivation spike.
One small ‘marshmallow’ a day keeps burnout away—what’s yours?
Curious — what little treat keeps your discipline alive?
Your first hire isn’t a developer. It’s someone who gives a damn.
At the earliest stage, it’s not about roles — it’s about shared urgency, curiosity, and care.
Skills matter. But startups grow with people who stay after midnight because they want to.
At the earliest stage, it’s not about roles — it’s about shared urgency, curiosity, and care.
Skills matter. But startups grow with people who stay after midnight because they want to.
May 28, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Your first hire isn’t a developer. It’s someone who gives a damn.
At the earliest stage, it’s not about roles — it’s about shared urgency, curiosity, and care.
Skills matter. But startups grow with people who stay after midnight because they want to.
At the earliest stage, it’s not about roles — it’s about shared urgency, curiosity, and care.
Skills matter. But startups grow with people who stay after midnight because they want to.
An idea always has a chance — as long as you keep working on it. The market won’t respond to what’s in your head. It reacts to what it can see and try. Even in rough form.
May 27, 2025 at 12:02 PM
An idea always has a chance — as long as you keep working on it. The market won’t respond to what’s in your head. It reacts to what it can see and try. Even in rough form.
AI is powerful - no doubt.
But when 7 of 10 VC dollars chase the same trend, we should ask: what’s getting starved in the process?
But when 7 of 10 VC dollars chase the same trend, we should ask: what’s getting starved in the process?
May 22, 2025 at 12:01 AM
AI is powerful - no doubt.
But when 7 of 10 VC dollars chase the same trend, we should ask: what’s getting starved in the process?
But when 7 of 10 VC dollars chase the same trend, we should ask: what’s getting starved in the process?
Using AI in VC is smart.
Let it crunch numbers, compare rounds, draft memos.
Just don’t let it say “yes” on your behalf.
That’s still a job for someone with scars.
Let it crunch numbers, compare rounds, draft memos.
Just don’t let it say “yes” on your behalf.
That’s still a job for someone with scars.
May 21, 2025 at 12:01 AM
Using AI in VC is smart.
Let it crunch numbers, compare rounds, draft memos.
Just don’t let it say “yes” on your behalf.
That’s still a job for someone with scars.
Let it crunch numbers, compare rounds, draft memos.
Just don’t let it say “yes” on your behalf.
That’s still a job for someone with scars.
It’s a good sign when a startup knows its weak spots — where it traded quality for speed, and when “we’ll fix it later” turns into “we did it right.” Things don’t need to be perfect early on. But if every answer is “we’ll get to it,” investors know: “later” comes fast — and hard.
May 20, 2025 at 12:01 AM
It’s a good sign when a startup knows its weak spots — where it traded quality for speed, and when “we’ll fix it later” turns into “we did it right.” Things don’t need to be perfect early on. But if every answer is “we’ll get to it,” investors know: “later” comes fast — and hard.
Pitch like a pro with STAR:
S – Problem
T – Goal
A – What you did
R – What happened.
“AI for AgTech” sounds nice.
But:
“S: Farmers lost 15% of crops
T: Cut losses
A: Deployed photo detection
R: Losses dropped to 3%” — way clearer.
Structure saves time.
S – Problem
T – Goal
A – What you did
R – What happened.
“AI for AgTech” sounds nice.
But:
“S: Farmers lost 15% of crops
T: Cut losses
A: Deployed photo detection
R: Losses dropped to 3%” — way clearer.
Structure saves time.
May 13, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Pitch like a pro with STAR:
S – Problem
T – Goal
A – What you did
R – What happened.
“AI for AgTech” sounds nice.
But:
“S: Farmers lost 15% of crops
T: Cut losses
A: Deployed photo detection
R: Losses dropped to 3%” — way clearer.
Structure saves time.
S – Problem
T – Goal
A – What you did
R – What happened.
“AI for AgTech” sounds nice.
But:
“S: Farmers lost 15% of crops
T: Cut losses
A: Deployed photo detection
R: Losses dropped to 3%” — way clearer.
Structure saves time.
Had some mandarins today.
One slice - satisfying.
Three at once - feels like nothing.
The brain reads signals one piece at a time.
So does the user.
Feature by feature - like slices.
Not some MVP fruit salad.
One slice - satisfying.
Three at once - feels like nothing.
The brain reads signals one piece at a time.
So does the user.
Feature by feature - like slices.
Not some MVP fruit salad.
May 9, 2025 at 11:30 AM
Had some mandarins today.
One slice - satisfying.
Three at once - feels like nothing.
The brain reads signals one piece at a time.
So does the user.
Feature by feature - like slices.
Not some MVP fruit salad.
One slice - satisfying.
Three at once - feels like nothing.
The brain reads signals one piece at a time.
So does the user.
Feature by feature - like slices.
Not some MVP fruit salad.
AI feels magical when you're a junior analyst. Disappointing in mid-level roles. Useful again at the partner level - for entirely different reasons. It's not about the model. It's about where you are on the curve.
May 6, 2025 at 11:30 PM
AI feels magical when you're a junior analyst. Disappointing in mid-level roles. Useful again at the partner level - for entirely different reasons. It's not about the model. It's about where you are on the curve.
If you want to understand marketing basics, go back to Ogilvy.
Clear offer. Real customer benefit. No clever fluff.
What worked in 1963 still works in 2025—because humans haven’t changed as much as adtech wants you to think.
Clear offer. Real customer benefit. No clever fluff.
What worked in 1963 still works in 2025—because humans haven’t changed as much as adtech wants you to think.
May 5, 2025 at 11:30 AM
If you want to understand marketing basics, go back to Ogilvy.
Clear offer. Real customer benefit. No clever fluff.
What worked in 1963 still works in 2025—because humans haven’t changed as much as adtech wants you to think.
Clear offer. Real customer benefit. No clever fluff.
What worked in 1963 still works in 2025—because humans haven’t changed as much as adtech wants you to think.
Focusing on yourself is great - until it turns into a one-man reality show. The coolest people I know are busy chasing ideas way bigger than their own reflection.
May 4, 2025 at 12:01 AM
Focusing on yourself is great - until it turns into a one-man reality show. The coolest people I know are busy chasing ideas way bigger than their own reflection.
Some advice is so perfect it’s useless — totally unachievable for a regular human.
Unless you’re a six-armed, multi-eyed creature who doesn’t need sleep.
Unless you’re a six-armed, multi-eyed creature who doesn’t need sleep.
May 1, 2025 at 12:02 AM
Some advice is so perfect it’s useless — totally unachievable for a regular human.
Unless you’re a six-armed, multi-eyed creature who doesn’t need sleep.
Unless you’re a six-armed, multi-eyed creature who doesn’t need sleep.
Big VC logo ≠ real support.
When your startup is 1 of 50 in the portfolio, "value-add" often means a quarterly check-in and recycled intros.
Sometimes, a smaller check from someone who actually shows up is worth more.
When your startup is 1 of 50 in the portfolio, "value-add" often means a quarterly check-in and recycled intros.
Sometimes, a smaller check from someone who actually shows up is worth more.
April 29, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Big VC logo ≠ real support.
When your startup is 1 of 50 in the portfolio, "value-add" often means a quarterly check-in and recycled intros.
Sometimes, a smaller check from someone who actually shows up is worth more.
When your startup is 1 of 50 in the portfolio, "value-add" often means a quarterly check-in and recycled intros.
Sometimes, a smaller check from someone who actually shows up is worth more.
You can spend months chasing insight.
Or you can get an email from your investor:
“Looking forward to traction by Friday.”
And boom — you find it.
Insight. Urgency. Purpose.
Maybe even the meaning of life.
Or you can get an email from your investor:
“Looking forward to traction by Friday.”
And boom — you find it.
Insight. Urgency. Purpose.
Maybe even the meaning of life.
April 28, 2025 at 4:00 AM
You can spend months chasing insight.
Or you can get an email from your investor:
“Looking forward to traction by Friday.”
And boom — you find it.
Insight. Urgency. Purpose.
Maybe even the meaning of life.
Or you can get an email from your investor:
“Looking forward to traction by Friday.”
And boom — you find it.
Insight. Urgency. Purpose.
Maybe even the meaning of life.
The Corleone Test for AI Ethics:
If you told Don Vito how you're using AI…
would he nod with respect —
or say:
"This will destroy us in the eyes of our friends in government"?
If it’s the second — you’re not innovating.
You’re pushing digital dope.
If you told Don Vito how you're using AI…
would he nod with respect —
or say:
"This will destroy us in the eyes of our friends in government"?
If it’s the second — you’re not innovating.
You’re pushing digital dope.
April 15, 2025 at 12:02 PM
The Corleone Test for AI Ethics:
If you told Don Vito how you're using AI…
would he nod with respect —
or say:
"This will destroy us in the eyes of our friends in government"?
If it’s the second — you’re not innovating.
You’re pushing digital dope.
If you told Don Vito how you're using AI…
would he nod with respect —
or say:
"This will destroy us in the eyes of our friends in government"?
If it’s the second — you’re not innovating.
You’re pushing digital dope.
I used to love alcohol.
A glass of whiskey at night, something stronger on Fridays — that was my way to unwind.
Until I realized alcohol takes more than it gives.
Energy. Clarity. Momentum.
I’m not against a good drink — just not often, not alone, and never without intention.
buff.ly/7efDDCK
A glass of whiskey at night, something stronger on Fridays — that was my way to unwind.
Until I realized alcohol takes more than it gives.
Energy. Clarity. Momentum.
I’m not against a good drink — just not often, not alone, and never without intention.
buff.ly/7efDDCK
April 12, 2025 at 12:01 AM
I used to love alcohol.
A glass of whiskey at night, something stronger on Fridays — that was my way to unwind.
Until I realized alcohol takes more than it gives.
Energy. Clarity. Momentum.
I’m not against a good drink — just not often, not alone, and never without intention.
buff.ly/7efDDCK
A glass of whiskey at night, something stronger on Fridays — that was my way to unwind.
Until I realized alcohol takes more than it gives.
Energy. Clarity. Momentum.
I’m not against a good drink — just not often, not alone, and never without intention.
buff.ly/7efDDCK
"We’re building a multifunctional platform for small businesses and online shoppers aged 18-65." Sounds impressive? Nah, just sounds sad. Multi-super-combo projects like these ignore Gall’s Law — and that’s their biggest flaw. Big things start small.
April 3, 2025 at 12:00 PM
"We’re building a multifunctional platform for small businesses and online shoppers aged 18-65." Sounds impressive? Nah, just sounds sad. Multi-super-combo projects like these ignore Gall’s Law — and that’s their biggest flaw. Big things start small.
"Trust, but verify" isn’t just a saying—it’s a survival skill. Blind trust leads to blind spots, and in business, investing, or life, that’s costly. Critical thinking isn’t cynicism; it’s knowing when to ask, “Who benefits?” Smart decisions come from questioning, not assuming. Stay sharp. 🚀
February 18, 2025 at 1:00 AM
"Trust, but verify" isn’t just a saying—it’s a survival skill. Blind trust leads to blind spots, and in business, investing, or life, that’s costly. Critical thinking isn’t cynicism; it’s knowing when to ask, “Who benefits?” Smart decisions come from questioning, not assuming. Stay sharp. 🚀
Took me a while to realize: real strength isn’t about knowing everything—it’s about recognizing what you don’t know and having the guts to learn and grow from it.
January 6, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Took me a while to realize: real strength isn’t about knowing everything—it’s about recognizing what you don’t know and having the guts to learn and grow from it.