The Experimentation Machine Book, Standing

Build Smarter, Scale Faster

A Proven Playbook for Building Valuable Startups, Accelerated with AI

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A perfect guide for AI-era founders.

Eric Ries, author, The Lean Startup

A valuable, empowering read for entrepreneurs everywhere.

Reid Hoffman, Co-Founder of LinkedIn and Inflection AI, author of Superagency

A round flywheel graphic featuring the three main aspects of finding your business model in the age of ai: customer value proposition, go-to-market, business model

Leverage AI to be a 10x Founder

Today’s most successful founders know that the startups that learn the fastest will win. In The Experimentation Machine, HBS professor, entrepreneur, and venture capitalist Jeffrey J. Bussgang reveals how AI is transforming the way startups find product-market fit and scale.

Applying timeless methods and cutting-edge tools, Bussgang shows you how to turn your startup into an AI-powered experimentation machine—learning faster and building smarter with leaner teams. Join the new class of ‘10x Founders’ who are building valuable companies faster than ever.

Why founders who use AI will replace those who don’t
How to design, sequence, and rigorously run startup experiments
Tools 10x Founders use to create superpowers and leverage
How to scale your startup without growing headcount
Redefining ‘Product-Market Fit’ for the AI Age

Professor, Investor, Founder: Meet Jeffrey J. Bussgang

Jeffrey J. Bussgang has spent his career at the intersection of startup experimentation and transformative technology. For over a decade, he has taught one of Harvard Business School’s most popular entrepreneurship courses, Launching Tech Ventures, where he's helped thousands of founders build and scale successful companies.

As co-founder of Flybridge Capital Partners (a leading seed VC fund with over $1 billion under management), he and his partners were early to recognize AI’s potential to transform startups, evolving the firm’s investment thesis to focus exclusively on AI-forward companies and founders.

Before his time as an educator and investor, Bussgang experienced the startup journey firsthand—joining Open Market’s early team and helping lead it through an IPO in 1996, and then co-founding Upromise in 2000, which was successfully acquired.

This unique vantage point—as professor, investor, and startup executive—has given him an unmatched perspective on how AI is revolutionizing the startup landscape.

Now, he’s sharing the frameworks and insights to help a new generation of founders build faster and smarter than ever before.

To read more from Jeffrey Bussgang, pick up his other books, Mastering the VC Game and Entering Startupland. You can also follow him on LinkedIn and read his blog (also called The Experimentation Machine).

Praise for The Experimentation Machine

Lean Startup and AI are an ideal pairing for leveling up on speed, efficiency, and learning in every phase of company building. Full of instructive examples and detailed processes, The Experimentation Machine is a perfect guide for AI-era founders in pursuit of product market fit and the continuous innovation that spurs growth.

Eric Ries, author, The Lean Startup

Jeff Bussgang expertly captures how founders can become '10x founders' by combining timeless start-up principles with the transformative power of AI. A valuable, empowering read for entrepreneurs everywhere.

Reid Hoffman, Co-Founder of LinkedIn and Inflection AI, author of Superagency

"As AI completely refactors traditional constraints like skills and resources, we enter an era where we are constrained more by our imaginations than anything else. Bussgang's The Experimentation Machine is an indispensable guide for taking the reigns on these new tools to reimagine what we build and how we build it."

Scott Belsky, Founder of Behance; Chief Strategy Officer & EVP Emerging Products, Adobe

There is no question that AI is going to dramatically change how businesses are built, but exactly how it plays out is hotly debated. Bussgang has been thinking about these issues for a long time, and his book offers a pragmatic and engaging exploration of how to think about aligning AI innovations with what the market actually needs, moving beyond hype and hyperbole. This book is a must read for anyone seeking a roadmap to navigate AI’s impact.

Sam Lessin, general partner, Slow Ventures

AI is reshaping business, and founders must adapt or be left behind. Bussgang masterfully reveals a proven methodology for finding product-market fit faster than ever, showing how founders can leverage AI as a “superpower” to scale expertise, efficiency, and creativity in today’s competitive landscape.

Karim R. Lakhani, Chair, Digital, Data & Design (D^3) Institute at Harvard

In the age of AI, product leadership requires a new playbook. The Experimentation Machine delivers it with clarity and depth. Bussgang offers actionable strategies and forward-thinking advice to be smarter and more effective in the product-market fit journey.

Yasi Baiani, former head of product, Teladoc, Cleo, Fitbit

An early-stage startup is an experimentation machine: to succeed, founders must formulate and rigorously test business model hypotheses. Bussgang shows entrepreneurs how to master this scientific approach to startup growth, leveraging AI to find product-market fit faster than ever. His book is essential reading for founders aiming to launch—and sustain—a winning venture.

Thomas Eisenmann, professor, Harvard Business School, author of Why Startups Fail

In an era where AI is transforming every facet of business, The Experimentation Machine is a crucial guide for founders. Jeff Bussgang cuts through the noise to offer actionable strategies on integrating AI into the core of startup experimentation. Targeted at entrepreneurs, this book is a must-read for all operators who aim to build companies that not only survive but thrive in the AI-driven future.

Qasar Younis, CEO Applied Intuition, ex-COO Y Combinator