The 'Conviction' Grift: When the Pitch Deck is the Only Product
AI-generated image · US National Wire
As AI startups flood the seed market, a new trend of 'storytelling' is replacing the MVP—and VCs are still buying it.
OPINION: Let's be clear about what we're seeing in the current AI gold rush. We've entered the era of the 'conviction' grift, where the ability to spin a narrative is officially more valuable than the ability to build a functioning product.
As TechCrunch first reported, the current funding landscape for AI startups is so saturated that it is creating headwinds for founders even at the pre-seed stage. Yet, in a bizarre twist of venture logic, the industry is now actively discussing how to secure funding when there is "nothing concrete to show for it."
TechCrunch has announced a panel for its Disrupt 2026 event in San Francisco titled "Winning Pre-Seed Without a Product." The premise? Helping founders navigate a world where AI has accelerated the development of minimum viable products (MVPs), yet some are still attempting to raise capital based on "conviction storytelling" rather than a working demo. It is a dizzying loop: the tools to build products are faster than ever, but the trend is shifting toward raising money before the building even starts.
To dissect this, TechCrunch has assembled a trio of investors who are effectively the gatekeepers of this 'vibes-based' economy:
* **Sandhya Venkatachalam**, managing partner and founder of the newly launched Axiom Partners—a $52 million venture fund focused on AI. At Khosla Ventures and Social Capital, she served as a general partner and became Groq’s inaugural investor, while also spearheading investments into GalileoAI, ForethoughtAI, and FirefliesAI. * **Puneet Agarwal**, a managing partner at True Ventures. Agarwal has been with the firm since 2008; True Ventures itself manages 12 funds with a portfolio spanning over 500 companies and 1,050 founders, resulting in seven IPOs and more than 60 acquisitions. * **Austin Clements**, managing partner at Slauson & Co. Clements focuses on small business empowerment and economic inclusion, having started an accelerator at the firm and serving as the founding chair of PledgeLA. Slauson & Co. is also an investor in Glīd, the victor of Startup Battlefield 2026.
While these principals will offer their expertise on what VCs want, the underlying reality is stark. When the industry begins hosting workshops on how to win funding without a product, we aren't investing in technology anymore—we're investing in the quality of the slide deck. If the 'conviction' is the only thing being delivered, the P&L is just a hallucination.