Lenny's Podcast · December 18, 2025

The new AI growth playbook for 2026: How Lovable hit $200M ARR in one year | Elena Verna (Head of Growth)

with Elena Verna

Elena Verna reveals why traditional growth strategies are failing AI companies and shares the unconventional playbook behind Lovable's $200M ARR achievement in just one year. Learn why the MVP approach is dead, how product-market fit has become a quarterly treadmill, and why AI companies must give away their product extensively as a core growth strategy. Discover the new hiring framework for AI-native teams, why growth teams now build core product features instead of optimizing funnels, and how building in public creates addictive user engagement loops. Essential listening for anyone scaling AI products in 2025-2026's hyper-competitive landscape.

Featured insight

The era of minimal viable products is over - now you need to build 'minimal lovable products' that create emotional connections and delight, not just utility, because software development costs have dropped so much that humanity and experience are now the key differentiators. — Elena Verna

Best for: AI startup founders scaling from seed to Series A, Growth leaders at AI-first companies, Product executives transitioning to AI business models

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