Why entrepreneurs have to be technical

With the rise of Bubble and other no-code platforms, it seems like you no longer have to be a technical co-founder

It is true, that with software startups, the barriers to entry are immensely low

However, the top entrepreneurs are those who have entered the field early. Facebook started moving servers and coding out different PHP environments for each school. Similarly, the top AI startups will be those that survive the initial stages without a “democratisation” platform.

If I have an aim, it is to be technical in an area such as synthetic biology.

Some are predicting that the information age is over and that we are transitioning into the knowledge age, fuelled by the rise of artificial intelligence. While computers supercharged our access to information, AI is helping us process and derive insights with a conciseness required by the human brain. ChatGPT helps us collate information, and write new content. 

I would argue that the Bio-Creation Age, or the age where humanity starts to discover novel materials through the use of biotechnology, is not far off. CRISPR came out about ten years ago, with use cases turbocharged post-COVID.

This is an age where humans can create cures for novel diseases easily. Gene editing allows for the enhancement of physical attributes and strengthen the fragile human body, though there are still technical and ethical considerations left. We can tailor agriculture – instead of trying to harness how organisms have evolved for our own benefit, we can prompt the specific characteristics for our purposes. This could dwarf the impact of the Agricultural Revolution powered by nitrogen.

If I regret one thing, it was not leveraging my time at Oxford sufficiently to truly understand the fundamentals of how to build something. I was enamoured with management theory and economic models, neglecting the vast resources available to really understand cutting-edge biotechnology. If I could go back, I would seek out student communities, sit in on lectures and beg for the chance to modify DNA with a professor.

It is not sufficient to aim to just be someone who understands business or management anymore. You need to gamble on a subject matter, and develop deep expertise on it. Only then can you have the independence to truly build something worthwhile.