Hey Reader,

I have been experimenting with a virtual board of advisors lately. I also joined a startup accelerator last week !

Virtual board of advisors

Over the last 9-12 months, I've had many questions about ideas to pursue, strategies suitable for my situation, and experiments I should conduct to decide on winning options. I rely heavily on books and podcasts for guidance.

I'm a listener ofDavid Senra's Founders podcast. In one particular episode, he mentioned that asking yourself what someone like Sam Walton or Elon Musk (using first principles) would do is an interesting thought experiment.

I took this advice and decided to twist it with AI. For every idea or challenging business choice, I ask the same question to a few entrepreneurs and business leaders whose practices and advice are well documented.

I created a Claude project where I can ask a question, pose a problem, or describe a choice and have AI analyze it through the lens of these 7 individuals. It's a great thinking exercise each time. My list:

• Steve Jobs
• James Dyson
• Charlie Munger
• Warren Buffet
• Elon Musk
• Sam Walton
• Thimothy Keller

You could create your own version.Try it (Let me know if you want the prompt) !

Building update

I left Google with 3 projects in mind. One is coming live. I have started sovrnti.io to help businesses that consider using sovereign technology. It's part research, part advisory.

My thesis is that chasing control at all costs without considering innovation is a lost battle. I've explored ways to combine both at scale. You'll see more from me on LinkedIn if you're interested in digital sovereignty.

For this project, I decided to join Dent Accelerator startup program to help me focus and progress.

After 2 weeks :

• I refined the startup concept
• I listed initial prospects (need more!)

Next month, I plan to cover the launch process and hopefully share some early results.

What I'm reading / watching

Links:

• ​Ethan Smith ultimate guide to AEO (Answer Engine Optimization): How can you show up in ChatGPT, Claude and co --> Best value episode on Lenny's podcast

Books:

• ​How to Measure Anything in Cybersecurity Risk​