An Edge In The Node

Why I ended up writing this mini essay is a future topic of discussion. These are my observations after tracing through the path led by the Fairchildren of the yesteryears. I want to share a bit about the Startup Mafias.

It's what you get when a single company produces a high concentration of people who later go on to found, lead, or invest in the next generation of important companies. Assume a big graph, where the original company becomes a node, and the alumni form a network around it. Funds get recycled, talent and trust flows like liquid gold within the network, and you have the same set of people creating a resonating effect. Oh I got too poetic in there, but that's how I see it. "Mafia" because it captures the loyalty and in-group dynamics + the bonding that lets it happen.

PayPal Mafia is what led to the creation of this phrase. I believe that three things have to be right at the same time for a mafia to flourish: a new technological wave is starting, so the alumni can leave with cash, credibility and the timing to start the next big thing. Now, one can not join the PayPal or Google mafia anymore. They are long gone, and have branched away heavily.

What's currently happening, right now, as you read this in 2026, is the OpenAI Mafia. It's actively forming right now. Anthropic, SSI, Thinking Machines Lab, Perplexity and the list goes on. This time it's not just capital but also political and policies which are intermingled together, and that makes it something really pivotal for the future techno-socio landscape of our world.

Based on my observations, mafias are how outliers happen. The fastest way to something big is to attach oneself to a forming mafia at the right time. The world inside these is based on the glue of loyalty, for relationships can last 30 years or more. The window closes in 2-3 years, as the founder generation stabilizes. Inside a mafia, there's a hierarchy. Not everyone can be the golden or silver node. But, the credential IS the network, not the company. The latter might not be successful, and it simply acts as a vehicle which creates the relationships in the first place. I can't be someone like Dario or Thiel, but I don't need to be.

This is not the same as working for BigTech, which itself is a respectable path, but not for everyone -- not everyone, by that I mean people like me. Working within a grueling standardized process is perhaps not everyone's cup of tea although it can create impact over time. Some people just need a different way to perform.

This world is different, not something a commoner like me can imagine if they don't get to experience it first hand. Whether I'll be able to change the "can" to "could" is to be decided later, but being a part of something new is in itself something excitingly-scary.

This summer was the best one so far.