CHU Recommends: The Experimentation Machine, by Jeff Bussgang

I am fortunate to have known Jeff Bussgang for over 25 years and can honestly say that he is the perfect person to have written this book (and perfect is not a word I use often!).

Jeff studied AI in the late 80’s as a computer science student at Harvard (And before you call BS on that statement, realize that the term Artificial Intelligence was coined by in 1955 by computer pioneer John McCarthy!); was a very early stage “joiner” at Open Markets, an internet commerce infrastructure leader in the early Web 1.0 days; the Co-Founder UPromise; and currently serves as a Co-Founder and Partner at Flybridge Venture Capital and a Senior Lecturer/ Professor at Harvard Business School, where he formerly was an (maybe the first?) Entrepreneur in Residence.  Flybridge is currently investing a fund 100% dedicated to AI start-ups and HBS now requires all students to use AI in most, if not all, classes.   Jeff is also one of the nicest (not a word often associated with VC’s),charitable and by far the most connected person I know.  Despite how incredibly busy he is, Jeff somehow always seems available to take my call!

Leaders far more qualified than I have written glowing reviews of The Experimentation Machine, including:

Eric Ries, author of The Lean Startup: “A Perfect Guide for AI-era founders”

and Reid Hoffman, Co-Founder of LinkedIn and Inflection AI “A valuable, empowering read for entrepreneurs everywhere.”

I would take Hoffman’s praise a step further and recommend The Experimentation Machine as an important read, not only for AI Founders, but also for AI startup joiners/ followers and the general public, as it has become clear to me that everyone will either be affected by AI or benefit from using it.  In addition to learning a lot about AI and how “10X” founders are using AI to create next-generation businesses, you will learn about building a business plan, finding a profitable product market fit, and valuing early-stage enterprises.

If you want to immediately add some “AI Intellectual Capital,”  I recommend first reading Bussgang’s Appendix A “Prompt Tips and Examples,”  which contains a mini-course in prompt engineering, and D “AI Apps Unwrapped,”  which contains a list of dozens of AI tools by usage category (e.g. “General Assistance,” “Get Creative,” and “Have Fun.”).

I have recommended this book to hundreds of friends, followers, clients, and colleagues and am confident that you will benefit from reading (or listening to the audiobook in Jeff’s own – not his AI – voice).  My only suggestion for Jeff is to create a companion PDF for the audiobook, which could easily be done by using the PowerPoint slides he shared at the recent HBS book launch reception for The Experimentation Machine.

CHU