GenAI and Early-Stage Venture Creation

Abstract

Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is increasingly being integrated into entrepreneurial practice, yet limited research has examined how founders engage with these technologies during the process of early-stage venture creation. This study explores the role of GenAI in early-stage venture creation from the perspective of founders. Drawing on literature on entrepreneurship under uncertainty, entrepreneurial cognition, sensemaking, iterative learning, and cognition beyond the individual, the study adopts a qualitative and exploratory research design. Empirical data were collected through twenty semi-structured interviews with founders and entrepreneurial ecosystem experts conducted in Silicon Valley and analysed using thematic analysis. The findings show that founders use GenAI across a wide range of entrepreneurial activities, extending beyond productivity-oriented applications. Rather than functioning solely as a tool, GenAI was frequently described as becoming integrated into founders’ cognitive processes, supporting idea development, problem-solving, learning, decision-making, and the organisation of venture-related knowledge. The findings further suggest that GenAI helps founders navigate uncertainty by accelerating sensemaking and reducing barriers to learning and experimentation. Alongside these opportunities, participants identified important limitations and tensions related to originality and judgement, particularly when it came to verifying AI-generated outputs and avoiding overreliance on the technology, highlighting the continued importance of human oversight and critical reflection. The study suggests that GenAI may be understood as an embedded support system in early-stage venture creation that augments, rather than replaces, entrepreneurial cognition. In doing so, it contributes to the emerging literature on GenAI and entrepreneurship by providing empirical insight into how founders integrate GenAI into entrepreneurial practice and how these technologies may be reshaping the conditions under which new ventures are created.