← Glossary
Metrics & Unit Economics
Default alive / default dead
Whether your current growth and burn get you to profitability before the cash runs out (alive) or not (dead).
Why it matters
Paul Graham's framing forces an honest answer to one question: on today's trajectory, do you make it without raising again?
Hear it from people who've done it
Get the real-world version of "Default alive / default dead" drawn from hundreds of conversations with founders and investors.
Ask the Network →Go deeper
Episodes on Founder Journey
Perspective X with Pauline Fetaui · 2 July 2026
Taryn Williams: Building and Exiting 6 Companies — and the Cost No One Talks About
Pick My Brain with Alan Jones · 25 June 2026
The Four-Quadrant Framework Every Solo Founder Needs | Neel Bhattacharya from LeadTrackAI
In The Blink Of AI with Georgie Healy · 19 June 2026
"AI Should Bring Us Closer Together, Not Make Us More Lonely" with Akshay Kothari Co-Founder of Notion
Related terms
← Back to the full glossary
Produced by W2D1 Media
Want a show like this for your fund or company?
We're W2D1 Media — the team behind the Day One Network and Blackbird's Wild Hearts. We turn podcasts into trust, authority and pipeline.