Young tech founders increasingly treat social media as a core part of building a startup, turning themselves into quasi-influencers to win users, funding, and attention in an overloaded digital landscape. Twenty‑three‑year‑old Myles Slayton, CEO of the dating app Cerca, posts multiple TikToks and Reels a day, sharing dating advice while rarely naming his product, yet he is now recognized as the “Cerca guy” and credits the content with bringing in many new users, even though being on camera feels like “homework.”
Sisters Claire and Chloe Lee of the shopping‑receipt app Selleb can spend up to 70% of the day making content such as Substack posts and TikToks about what different purchases “say about you,” reflecting a broader scramble to “grab as many eyeballs as possible.” Venture capitalists like Andreessen Horowitz partner Lester Chen insist that “you’re dead if you don’t market yourself,” arguing that products no longer sell themselves and that virality at least gets “a foot in the door.”
A whole “building in public” genre has emerged in which founders broadcast the behind‑the‑scenes of startups, while firms like a16z New Media coach them on brand and narrative so they can “go direct” via podcasts and friendly outlets, treating attention as “the only moat” in software. Founders such as Corner’s Eliza Wu meticulously study viral reels and invest hours scripting, filming, and editing each video, calling marketing “blood, sweat, and tears,” and others like BiteSight’s Lucious McDaniel IV post so often they feel silly yet still leverage spikes in downloads and app‑store rankings to raise capital and attract acquirers.
However, investors and consultants warn that virality is “sugar water”: metrics like retention and sustainable monetization matter far more, and extreme self‑promotion can mask weak fundamentals, as seen in cautionary examples from Cluely’s hype‑driven missteps to notorious cases like Theranos. Constant content production can also fuel burnout, pushing some founders to step back from being the face of their startups and to remember that they are supposed to build enduring businesses, not just chase algorithms.
Reference
Bradley, S. (2026, April 27). Selfie sticks for Series A: The rise of the young founder-influencer. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/young-startup-founders-selfie-sticks-venture-funding-influencers-2026-4