In the heart of MIT, four students launched a code editor called Cursor in 2022, not imagining that within just a year, their project would become a phenomenon transforming enterprise software. By integrating advanced artificial intelligence into developers' workflows, Cursor experienced viral adoption that skyrocketed its annual recurring revenue from one to one hundred million dollars in just twelve months. According to Sacra Research, Cursor reached $100 million in ARR three times faster than any previous record, surpassing benchmarks like Wiz and Deel. This case illustrates how generative AI has accelerated the growth of tech companies, enabling small teams to create highly complex products in record time. The emergence of models like GPT-4 has been key, but so has the shift in business mindset. The old approach of "grow at all costs" has given way to organic growth driven by products that sell on their own merit. A notable example is Midjourney, the AI image generation platform, which operates with just 40 employees and generates over $5 million in revenue per employee, according to TechCrunch. David Holz, founder of Midjourney, has built a $300 million annual business without resorting to external investors, hosting his platform on Discord and achieving profitability within months. This independence has allowed him to focus on the product, whose distinctive visual style has become its best calling card. Midjourney demonstrates that in the age of AI, community and product excellence can be stronger competitive advantages than any marketing budget. A similar approach is followed by ElevenLabs, a leader in generative voice, whose founders claim to retain 75% of every dollar as profit, an unusual figure in the tech sector. The AI revolution is not limited to creativity or development. In traditional sectors like law, tools like Harvey are automating complex tasks such as legal research and contract drafting, being adopted by elite firms like Allen & Overy and consultancies like PwC. Harvey shows that AI does not replace professionals but empowers those who adopt it, consolidating the value of vertical specialization. Companies like Perplexity AI challenge Google's dominance in online search, offering ad-free answers with verified sources, for which over 200,000 users pay $20 a month. Character.AI, on the other hand, explores new forms of social interaction, allowing millions of people to converse with artificial intelligences, indicating a profound cultural shift in digital entertainment and companionship. These companies, born in the era of generative AI, have internalized speed, scale, and autonomy as fundamental principles, demonstrating that it is possible to build global empires in less time and with fewer resources than ever before. The big question now is whether this pace of innovation is sustainable or if we are witnessing the beginning of an accelerated economy where the rules have changed forever. (Source: lavanguardia.com)