Lunch: Steve Weinstein/Bliss/Dustin

Attendees: Dustin J Ross, Bliss Perry, Steve Weinstein Date: March 5, 2026 Type: Partner Session

Summary

Strategic Product Direction

• Current state: Solution in search of problem after extensive AI research
• Core focus: Supply chain risk management and semiconductor volatility
  • Automotive industry lost $150-200B due to semiconductor unavailability
  • 5-8 year cycles in semiconductor disruption (extended now due to AI demand)
• Four potential verticals identified but need to narrow focus
  • Insurance/parametric policies for supply chains
  • Compliance automation (export controls, sanctions)
  • Supply chain sourcing decisions
  • Risk hedging mechanisms

Key Strategic Insights from Steve

• Product design principles:
  • Build tools used daily vs. occasional “get off the bus” solutions
  • Focus on revenue-generating capabilities over cost-saving
  • Design for future AI-automated workflows (1+ year to market)
• Customer discovery approach:
  1. Talk to people who live the problem (sourcing heads, compliance officers)
  2. Find biggest recent failures/mistakes in target industries
  3. Avoid confirmation bias - don’t ask if they like your solution
• Competitive advantage requirements:
  • Need unique insight/approach vs. climbing same mountain
  • Examples: Better tech, exclusive data access, different business model
  • Must identify what you know that competitors don’t

Next Steps & Recommendations

• Pick one vertical and dive deep rather than staying broad
• Focus on compliance automation as daily-use case:
  • Export approval workflows currently manual/spreadsheet-based
  • Saves time + reduces major financial penalty risk
  • Clear value proposition for daily users
• Customer research priorities:
  1. Interview sourcing/compliance professionals at semiconductor buyers
  2. Identify recent major supply chain failures/mistakes
  3. Validate problem size before solving data acquisition challenges
• Follow up with Steve Blank on progress and focus decision

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Co-founder Signal Debrief

Sourced from Signal chat, 2026-02-18 and 2026-03-05

Feb 18: Bliss sent follow-up to Weinstein immediately after Blank meeting, using Blank’s name as credibility signal: “Per Steve Blank’s recommendation, would love to chat for 15 min to advance our thinking (both within and outside the confines of H4D).”

Feb–Mar: Weinstein’s perspective noted as diverging from Ann Miura-Ko’s: Weinstein emphasized customer discovery first; Miura-Ko emphasized rapid parallel building. Founders synthesizing both.

Mar 5: Dustin pushing for follow-up meeting “right after spring break” — Bliss confirmed she’d send the calendar request.