Greg Isenberg

CEO of Late Checkout, a holding company for community-based businesses

I'm the CEO/Co-Founder of Late Checkout, a holding company with a portfolio of internet businesses. 

Previously, I was the Head of Product Strategy at WeWork, an Advisor at TikTok and an Advisor at Reddit. I was the Founder/CEO of Islands, a messaging/community app that was acquired by WeWork.  I was the Founder/CEO of 5by, a leading video discovery app which got acquired by StumbleUpon.  I helped build one of the internet's most popular financial education communities Wall Street Survivor (acquired). 

I've helped build communities and technology products for brands like Microsoft, FedEX, NASCAR, TechCrunch and Wordpress. 

I've been featured on places like Vanity Fair, Forbes, Mashable, Fortune Magazine, L.A Times and have won Webby Awards.

LINKS to a few of my companies in my holdco 🔗

gregisenberg.com (my guides, podcast, sign up to my weekly newsletter for updates)
latecheckout.agency (product design agency that works with executives from Dropbox to Nike to Shopify)
thevibemarketer.com (community for people into marketing with AI)
ideabrowser.com (the #1 place to find startup ideas and trends on the internet)

CEO & Co-Founder 

Late Checkout is a holding company that builds, acquires and incubates cash-flowing businesses that are powered by internet audiences and communities.

Learn more about our businesses at https://latecheckout.studio and work with us.

i found a github repo that lets you spin up an ai agency with ai employees

engineers, designers, growth marketers, product managers

each role runs as its own agent and they coordinate to ship ideas

10k+ stars in under 7 days

1. engineering (7 agents)
frontend, backend, mobile, ai, devops, prototyping, senior development

2. design (7)
ui/ux, research, architecture, branding, visual storytelling, image generation

3. marketing (8)
growth hacking, content, twitter, tiktok, instagram, reddit, app store

4. product (3)
sprint prioritization, trend research, feedback synthesis

5. project management (5)
production, coordination, operations, experimentation

6. testing (7)
qa, performance analysis, api testing, quality verification

7. support (6)
customer service, analytics, finance, legal, executive reporting

8. spatial computing (6)
xr, visionos, webxr, metal, vision pro

9. specialized (6)
multi agent orchestration, data analytics, sales, distribution

what i like about this approach is the framing

instead of one big ai agent trying to do everything, you structure it more like a company. specialized agents, clear responsibilities, workflows between them

im curious to see what this actually feels like in practice and if its any good (do your own research)

but as always will share what i learn in public on LI, X, IG and my pod the startup ideas podcast

one thing is for certain and it reminds me

the future belongs to those who tinker with software like this

CEO of Late Checkout, a portfolio of internet companies

WELCOME TO THE SKILL ERA OF THE INTERNET...for the last 15 years, if you wanted to build a serious software company, you built a product and exposed an api.

that was the move.

you created functionality… payments, messaging, email, search, analytics… and then you let developers plug into it.

the companies that won owned the pipes.
stripe owned payments.
twilio owned messaging.
sendgrid owned email.

the api was the distribution layer.

once you were integrated, you were embedded.

that model made sense in a world where execution was scarce.

llms compress execution into a prompt.

so the center of gravity shifts.

in this cycle, you build expertise and package it as a skill.

an api is a doorway into a function.

here’s how to send an email.
here’s how to process a payment.
here’s how to fetch this data.

it’s precise. mechanical. bounded.

a skill is a doorway into judgment.

here’s how to audit a landing page like a serious growth operator.
here’s how to structure a legal intake so you catch the real risk.
here’s how to clean and enrich messy directory data so it actually turns into revenue.

you’re encoding a way of thinking.

and that changes how companies are built and how they scale.

in the api era, distribution meant convincing developers to integrate you.
you needed docs. sdk’s. developer evangelism.
you fought for a place inside someone else’s codebase.

in the skill era, distribution means becoming part of someone’s agent workflow.

a founder opens claude code.
they type /seo-audit.

your skill runs.
it frames the output.
it structures the analysis.
it guides the decisions.

your expertise lives inside the execution layer itself.

you aren’t pulling users into your interface.
you’re embedding your thinking into theirs.

that changes company design.

the old playbook looked like this:

build saas
design ui
onboard users
drive retention
expand seats

the new playbook looks more like this:

encode a high-leverage playbook
package it as a skill
let agents call it thousands of times per day

one installation can mean your methodology is invoked across hundreds of companies automatically.

the scaling curve looks less like seats and more like invocations.

what’s happening underneath all of this is simple:

software used to be the executor.
now software is the orchestrator.
next, expertise becomes infrastructure.

in the api era, the winners owned the pipes.

in the skill era, the winners own the patterns.

patterns for closing deals.
patterns for pricing.
patterns for positioning.
patterns for enrichment.
patterns for research.

many new companies will look surprisingly small on the surface.

a tight repo. a handful of powerful skill files.
maybe 2–5 people maintaining and improving them.

and it’s creating a new class of companies built less around dashboards and more around encoded judgment.

THIS IS THE SKILL ERA OF THE INTERNET.

welcome.

note: more startup ideas for this AI age on ideabrowser.com

4000 people laid off today at Block (almost half the company) and the reason is AI

“we're already seeing that the intelligence tools we’re creating and using, paired with smaller and flatter teams, are enabling a new way of working which fundamentally changes what it means to build and run a company. and that's accelerating rapidly” - jack dorsey

this is unfortunate yet just the beginning. hundreds of thousands if not millions will lose their jobs.

New jobs will be created and many will become entrepreneurs and build ai native businesses

send this to a friend

note: i've noticed in uptick on http://ideabrowser.com of people looking for startup, ideas trends who've been recently laid off

"Things I wish someone told me before I almost gave up on OpenClaw"

the future of building saas

1/ start with a sub-niche inside a big market
2/ map their daily workflow end-to-end
3/ identify where money changes hands
4/ spot the repetitive mechanical steps
5/ quantify the cost of those steps
6/ create scroll-stopping content around that workflow
7/ study which posts get saves, replies, and dms
8/ double down on the organic angles that convert
9/ run paid ads on proven organic winners
10/ capture emails from day one
11/ manually perform the workflow yourself
12/ document every step precisely
13/ separate judgment tasks from mechanical tasks
14/ turn mechanical tasks into structured agent workflows
15/ design agents to complete full tasks, not suggestions
16/ connect to real tools: email, slack, notion, crm, stripe
17/ add orchestration, retries, and verification checks
18/ store user preferences + long-term memory
19/ launch narrow with high-touch onboarding
20/ publish measurable proof: revenue, hours saved, errors reduced
21/ move pricing from per-seat → per-task
22/ shift to outcome pricing tied to revenue created
23/ increase pricing as value compounds
24/ expand into adjacent workflows within the same niche
25/ orchestrate multiple agents across the full lifecycle
26/ build switching costs through data + memory
27/ turn power users into public case studies
28/ hire operators from inside the niche
29/ reinvest profits into distribution + product depth
30/ become the default execution layer for that sub-niche

this is how 3 person teams build 100m companies

what a time to be building

note: find startup ideas on ideabrowser.com

how to build an ai native vertical saas in the claude cowork era:

1. pick a sub-niche inside a large, profitable market
2. map one recurring workflow that drives revenue or saves time
3. write the workflow step-by-step like you’re training an intern
4. separate mechanical steps from judgment calls
5. connect claude to the actual stack: crm, sheets, inbox, slides, contracts
6. remove exports and copy-paste from the process
7. collapse raw data → reasoning → finished output into one session
8. store every output so context compounds over time
9. turn your best prompts into named, reusable commands
10. build memory around the niche (not generic instructions)
11. package the result as a finished outcome
12. price per report, per memo, per meeting, per deliverable
13. publish the workflow collapsing in real time for distribution
14. use organic traction as signal before running paid ads
15. expand into adjacent workflows inside the same vertical
16. layer governance and approvals where required
17. become the default operating layer for that sub niche
18. repeat the model in the next vertical once memory and distribution compound
19. good times

claude can now sit inside real enterprise tools:

– google workspace
– excel + powerpoint
– crm systems
– prospecting tools like apollo + clay
– traffic data like similarweb
– contracts via docusign
- etc etc

that means the model sees the full workflow

the opportunity for you

find a niche.
collapse a workflow.
package the outcome.
own the memory.
expand from there.

that’s how ai native saas gets built now

it's a wonderful time to be building

KARISMA

Karisma is a Barcelona-based private members club and community for entrepreneurs and creatives. 

Our mission is to create real, long lasting connections to accelerate your business and personal growth.

Kreator & CEO

Kreator

Nomio - Coliving & Coworking Spaces

Nomio is the world's first paradise for modern nomads and remote entrepreneurs.

Co-Founder

Barcelona Global

Barcelona Global's mission is to make Barcelona one of the most attractive cities in the world for business and talent. BG is a private, independent and non-for-profit civil society platform made up of over 1000 members committed to Barcelona and its future.

Member

Nova Talent

Nova is the global top-talent community that connects high-potentials with each other and with the best professional opportunities. Nova's mission is to become the agents of the top 3% of the world's most talented people.

FordeBaker

FordeBaker is one of the world's leading full-service Amazon marketing and operations agencies.

Our team of Amazon consultants delivers results for B2C and B2B clients across North America, Europe, Oceania and Africa. We specialise in launching brands on to Amazon, optimising existing stores and ultimately making Amazon a profitable venture for all clients.

Our wide range of services are tailored to the individual needs of each client. Through our holistic approach, Forde Baker covers everything from strategy, fulfilment, and operations to advertising, SEO, conversion rate optimisation, pricing, promotions, and customer analytics.

FordeBaker has a proven track record of achieving rapid growth for a wide range of clients in sectors including beauty, skincare, medical devices, nutrition, clothing, DIY, pet supplies, books, office supplies and homeware.

Business Development Manager - UK, Spain, Germany, Italy, USA, Brazil

Oracle

In Oracle’s Retail Global Business Unit division, our solution portfolio allows retailers to drive performance, deliver critical insights, fuel growth across all channels, and deliver what customers want most, empowered commerce.
- Identify customer's needs and build relationships.
- Create and maintain a consistent sales pipeline.
- Build account intelligence through industry research.
- Coordinate sales strategies with field sales representatives.
- Manage customer meetings and presentations.

Retail Business Development Consultant - DACH, Benelux, Nordics, Central Eastern Europe

HelloFresh

HelloFresh is on a mission to change the way people eat, forever! HelloFresh supplies everything you need to prepare quality, delicious, home-cooked meals that require no planning, no shopping and no hassle.
- Pioneered new direct-sales marketing campaign for HelloFresh, focusing on B2C events and kiosk-based location.
- Attained most sales in HelloFresh Australia on our 4th week, securing, 5 in the team, $220k in customer acquisitions.
- Qualified leads with inbound/outbound calls and tracked customer engagement on CRM software to create new opportunities.
- Developed best sales practices for new members to double productivity and foster a collaborative environment.

Business Development Representative 

Mirow & Co.

Mirow & Co is one of the fastest growing strategic consulting firms worldwide based in Rio de Janeiro. Despite being relatively new in the game, Mirow & Co has already won multiple awards for being an excellent place to work for 100% of its employees and for being one of the 7 most promising consulting firms in the “Seven to Watch” ranking.
- Succeeded to efficiently deliver results in projects within diverse industries using digital tools, such as Python or Excel Macros.
- Redesigned the firm's expense policy report, promoting controlled spending habits and facilitating tracking of expenses.
- Ensured consultant reports are designed for successful deployment through cross-functional collaboration as well as quantitative and qualitative findings.

Business Analyst Intern

Heyhoods

Heyhoods is an innovative, pre-seed stage start-up based in Barcelona. Heyhoods is a collaborative community created to help each other in case of emergency, by proximity and altruism.
- Managed hardware prototype builds and negotiated terms with local external partners in China and Eastern Europe.
- Conducted extensive market research to better track key initiatives of competitors within the industry.
- Mitigated time-to-market (TTM) for the product development by coordinating the different departments.

Operations Assistant

NYX Party

Started a mobile app with the goal of helping college student find events according to their preferences in a very efficient and simple way. Students tend to struggle with finding events that they are looking for, which this app intends to solve.

Despite recruiting a strong team of ambassadors in 8 different universities and a simple MVP using Snapchat that amassed an outstanding 3,500+ followers, the project failed due to development issues and bugs in the app.

Learnings:
- Define roles and set expectations early on.
- Hire people who are intrinsically motivated and aligned with the mission.
- Don't scale until all operations are in place.
- Don't create a dependance on an outsourced developer.
- Don't waste time on things that don't matter or add value.

There's nothing I love more than:

Helping others grow
Meeting new people
Building cool stuff

All of this led to me starting Karisma, a social club for entrepreneurs & creatives. 

Our mission is to help people unlock their full potential through the power of community.

I firmly believe that your environment is everything.

Aside from building Barcelona's most epic entrepreneur community (according to our members), I love:

• traveling the world
• improving myself
• optimizing my life and business
• going to electronic music festivals
• doing lots of sports
• spending time in nature.

Other fun facts: I was born and raised in Barcelona, I'm half Spanish half German and speak 5 languages.

I document the entire journey of building Karisma on YouTube: youtube.com/@marcforsteralgas

You can also learn more about Karisma here: karismaliving.com and instagram.com/karismaliving

Life is good!

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The Battle

Greg Isenberg

Marc Förster Algás

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The Battle

Greg Isenberg

Marc Förster Algás

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Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Greg Isenberg's LinkedIn Performance

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