The Art of Giving Up.

You know the startup world, everyone is always telling you how to build, push on, expand, raise millions, get more users, iterate and grow.

Nobody really tells you when and how to give up.

Nobody really advises you on the art of giving up and actually knowing when to quit.

I want to explore that today.

Remember the guys who founded Instagram?

They went on to build an AI-driven news app called Artifact just barely a year ago.

Now, they are calling it quits.

It is a shut-down story and the hard truths of the tech world.

It’s like watching a rocket launch with a faulty engine — spectacular in ambition but doomed by miscalculations.

Created by Instagram’s co-founders, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, Artifact was supposed to be the next big thing — a ‘TikTok for news’, blending AI curation with user engagement.

But like a drunken sailor lost overboard in the open sea, it struggled to survive.

Artifact was a high-profile venture, riding on the reputation of its creators.

They had the experience, the brains, and, let’s not forget, the deep pockets.

But even with this dream team, Artifact couldn’t escape the gravity of reality.

The app’s downloads tell a story of fleeting interest — peaking at launch with 100,000 downloads but then dwindling to a mere 12,000 by October.

It’s like throwing a party everyone talks about but few turn up to.

The app’s identity crisis didn’t help either.

Was it a news app, a social network, or a Pinterest clone?

Artifact tried to be everything and ended up being nothing in particular.

This lack of focus, coupled with stiff competition from established players like SmartNews, Google News, and Apple News, made Artifact’s climb uphill, with a backpack full of bricks.

But let’s not be too harsh.

The tech world is not for the faint-hearted.

It’s a gladiator arena where only the strongest survive. Artifact’s decision to wind down, as painful as it might be, is a mature one.

It’s better to bow out gracefully than to linger on life support.

Systrom’s reflective tone in the shutdown announcement shows a leader who understands that sometimes, the best step forward is to step back.

He knew the art of giving up.

As a seasoned founder, he knew the signs and understood when it is time to stop riding a dead horse.

It is by no means easy.

To look at your own creation and call it quits.

To walk away from a dream when you spent so much time, effort and sweat building it.

He saw that the market was changing.

Users didn’t bite.

Traction was there.

The numbers weren’t adding up.

Sometimes, we just got to know what to look out for and when to walk away.

Maybe it is for the better.

Artifact’s demise isn’t just about an app failing.

Its a story about knowing when to give up on a dream.

When to stop the engines and close the shop down.

When to recognize that stopping everything now, only leads to more opportunities in the future.

It’s a story of tech Darwinism — where adaptation is key, but not all mutations lead to survival.

The app tried to evolve with features like AI article summaries and Twitter-like posting options.

But in the Darwinian tech jungle, it’s not just the fittest who survive, but the most adaptable to change.

So, what’s the takeaway here?

Not everything has a happy ending, especially in the startup world.

Sometimes, you just got to know when and how to give up.

Don’t think of as giving up per se, think of it as having the opportunity to do something better instead.

Don’t beat yourself up.

Look up, look far and look ahead.

Ever heard of the AI News app Artifact?

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Do you know when to give up?

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