Hard Part First
3x Co-Founder, CEO @ FOMO.ai
Hard Part First is a publication for founders who have worked out that technology is a commodity, so the difficulty lies first in finding the customer and the problem actually worth solving, then in distribution, positioning, and pricing.
Featured
Most recent
growth
+5
Aug 25, 2026
•
6 min read
AI is taking 80% of EACH job, not 80% of ALL jobs
Token spend up, salaries flat, projects shipping faster than ever, and not one line of cost lower. That gap has an explanation, and it changes how you staff a company.
gravity
+8
Jun 4, 2026
•
6 min read
Your job as a founder is to build gravity
The founder’s real work is building pull, the kind that brings deals, hires, and investors to you before you’ve asked for anything.
tariff war
+10
Mar 26, 2026
•
3 min read
Forcing function: If the trade war was an audit, China just passed.
The trade war didn't create China's advantage, it just made it impossible to ignore.
startup
+9
Mar 10, 2026
•
3 min read
Analysts are saying "we are cooked" but human behavior has something to add.
The data shows what AI could theoretically do to your career. It says nothing about what humans will choose to hold onto, and that turns out to be the more interesting question.
