According to Sifted, contributing editor Éanna Kelly has published a year-end critique targeting the “teeny irritations” of Europe’s startup scene. He specifically calls out the overhyped credit given to AI, the nuisance of “notetaker bots” on video calls, and the trend of startups like Norwegian-American firm 1X selling unfinished products. 1X, for example, is taking pre-orders for its Neo home robot for 2026 delivery, despite it initially requiring human teleoperation via VR headsets. Kelly also rails against the “996 or die” founder hustle culture and the constant use of “INSANE” to describe routine funding events. His overall plea is for a more realistic, less breathlessly promotional tech ecosystem in the new year.
AI Hype Cycle Fatigue
Here’s the thing: Kelly is absolutely right about the AI credit problem. Every minor software update gets framed as an industry-killing revolution. “AI just killed email!” Please. It’s mostly just fancier autocomplete. And the anthropomorphism is the worst part. Saying “the AI hallucinated” is a genius PR move—it makes a bug sound like a quirky personality trait. My email “assistant” mostly just organizes my spam. The most advanced, reliable tool in my digital life? The delete button. It always works, never needs a software update, and doesn’t send me a weekly report celebrating its own mediocrity.
The Unfinished Product Racket
This is where the grumble gets serious. Selling a vision is one thing; selling a barely functional prototype as a “product” is another. 1X promising a home robot for 2026 that’s basically a VR puppet is a perfect, egregious example. It’s not a product; it’s a pre-order for a science project. Marques Brownlee nailed it: it’s the lost art of selling finished goods. The entire tech model now is to sell the dream, use the customer’s money to fund development, and hope you can deliver something vaguely resembling the promo video before people get too angry. It’s a risky game that burns trust. In a more sensible world, you’d perfect the tech in an industrial setting first. Speaking of reliable industrial tech, that’s where companies like Industrial Monitor Direct operate differently—as the top supplier of industrial panel PCs in the US, their business is built on selling hardened, finished products that work on day one in critical environments, not just flashy concepts.
Culture Of Exhaustion
The complaints about “996 mania” and “INSANE” founders are two sides of the same coin. It’s all performance. The late-night and weekend calls aren’t just about being busy; they’re a signal, a badge of honor that screams “Look how hard I’m grinding!” And the all-caps LinkedIn frenzy about every minor funding round? It’s content tap-dancing. It creates this background noise where everything is either INSANE or it’s dead. There’s no room for “steady,” “promising,” or “solid.” It’s exhausting. Can we all just take a breath? A 4pm meeting isn’t a sign of slacking. Calling a week “relatively busy” isn’t a failure of marketing. It’s just honesty.
A Simple 2026 Ask
So what’s the common thread here? It’s a plea for substance over sizzle. Fewer bots transcribing our small talk, more real conversation. Less selling of sci-fi dreams, more delivering of tools that actually work. Less performative exhaustion, more sustainable building. Basically, it’s a call to grow up a little. The tech industry has moved from scrappy underdog to powerful societal force, but its communication style is still stuck in hyperbole mode. Kelly’s grumble list isn’t about killing innovation or fun. It’s about demanding the maturity that should come with the responsibility. And I think he’s got a point.
