In the AI gold rush, everyone is selling the same shovels
- Big AI labs are barreling into each other's turf — OpenAI, Anthropic and others are moving from models into coding tools, app builders and personal agents.
- That expansion puts startups at risk of being "Sherlocked" or dependent on rivals' APIs, but also creates opportunities for specialists who solve real product and UX gaps.
- VCs call "super‑apps" mostly noise; expect consolidation and big acquisitions (Google is a favorite suitor) as profitability and IPOs force focus.