Mark Cuban Says Anyone Can Be a Founder—But That Doesn’t Mean They Should
The investor and entrepreneur told Emma Grede that building a company demands a level of sacrifice most aspiring founders aren’t prepared to make.
Emma Grede and Mark Cuban. Illustration: Inc.; Photos:
“Can anyone be a founder?”
That’s the question serial entrepreneur Emma Grede posed to billionaire investor Mark Cuban.
The two business moguls unpacked what it really takes to be a founder and scale a company during a sit-down interview for Grede’s podcast, Aspire.
Known for being direct when it comes to offering business insights, Cuban’s response was a blunt assessment: “Can they? Yes. Should they? No.”
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Everyone’s got ideas—that’s what makes this country different
“Everyone’s got ideas—that’s what makes this country different than every country in the world,” Cuban said, adding, “in this country we think, ‘I have an idea’ and if I have an idea, it could be a business.”
The British businesswoman said it’s an instinct that she views as being “woven into the fabric of society in America.” Grede is best known for her work leading massively successful celebrity-driven brands. She is currently the CEO and co-founder of Good American and the chief product officer and founding partner behind Skims, a 2024 Inc. 5000 honoree.
Cuban noted that the notion that anyone can be a founder appears to be increasingly fueled by the rise of AI. Nowadays, people can input their idea into a chatbot, ask if anyone else has built a business around that concept, and even prompt it to form a business plan, he said.
Source: www.inc.com
