EP 88 - Fundraising Is Broken in 2026: Doug Landis on AI Hype, Revenue Reality, and the New Moats

About this episode

Fundraising in January 2026 feels upside down - and Doug Landis (sales productivity + GTM legend, former Emergence Capital investor) breaks down why founders are feeling whiplash right now.In this episode of #StartupsUnedited, we get into:Why the “AI revolution” narrative is overhyped - and what’s actually newThe stat that surprised me: “85% of the tech stack is still SaaS”Why investors aren’t “making money” right now (and how that changes fundraising behavior)The new traction expectations: what it takes to raise seed vs. Series A in 2026Why “LLM wrappers” don’t hold up (and what happened to Jasper as the cautionary tale)What becomes the real moat: brand, trust, and a provocative POVCommunity-led growth reality check: dinners over Slack groupsThe underrated growth lever: partner-led distribution (including individuals with clout)Why “outbound is advertising” now - and what to send when you’re not begging for meetingsDoug also shares tactical advice for founders and GTM teams building in 2026: define your anchors, speak your buyer’s language, and show up more prepared than your prospects expect - because they’re researching you harder than ever.Follow Doug + check out StoryPath: StoryPathChapters (rough):0:00 Fundraising + the AI reality check3:00 “85% of the stack is still SaaS”4:40 The new seed / Series A bar10:00 Moats: brand, trust, distribution13:30 Community that actually drives pipeline19:30 Partners as a GTM engine (individuals + rev share)27:20 Modern B2B marketing mix in 202630:40 Outbound as advertising + the new buyer behavior#StartupsUnedited #B2B #Fundraising #GTM #Sales #Marketing #AI #Startups #Founder #RevenueFollow me on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/startupjorge/Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/startupjorge