Two former Google employees have made a bold move by shutting down a profitable startup and founding a new AI company that has already achieved a valuation of 100 million dollars. Dhruv Amin and Marcus Lowe co‑founded Create, a marketplace connecting early stage startups with freelance software engineers. The company generated over two million dollars in annual revenue and was profitable from the first day. Despite its success, the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022 prompted the founders to rethink the future of their business.
Recognizing that generative AI could automate much of the work their business relied on, Amin and Lowe decided that the traditional freelance model might soon become obsolete. After careful consideration, they closed the marketplace in October 2023, laid off half of their small team, and began developing a new product. This new venture, named Anything, focuses on using AI to help users build software applications and online businesses without writing code.
Anything quickly gained traction after its launch in April 2025. Within two weeks, the company achieved an annualized revenue run rate of around two million dollars, demonstrating strong market demand for tools that simplify software creation through AI. The firm subsequently raised eleven million dollars in funding, which valued the company at approximately one hundred million dollars.
The decision to pivot from a successful business to a completely new venture highlights the transformative impact of AI technologies on the startup ecosystem. Amin and Lowe embraced the opportunities presented by generative AI, creating a product that leverages automation rather than competing with it. Their journey illustrates how quickly technological advancements can reshape business models and open new avenues for innovation and growth.
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