Interview with Howie Liu

From spreadsheets to a multi-billion dollar platform powering workflows worldwide, the story of Airtable is one of vision, grit, and defying conventional wisdom. In a recent conversation with a16z Speedrun, Airtable's co-founder and CEO, Howie Liu, unpacked the journey of building a horizontal product in a world that tells you to niche down, scaling through brutal market cycles, and the transformative power of AI in the no-code space. His insights offer a masterclass in startup strategy, product vision, and the relentless pursuit of product-market fit.

Defying Conventional Wisdom: Building Horizontal When Everyone Said No

Early on, Airtable faced a barrage of advice telling them to specialize, to target a specific workflow or industry. Investors, in particular, were skeptical of their horizontal approach. But Liu and his team saw something others didn't: the untapped potential of reimagining spreadsheets as a powerful, user-friendly app platform. Their secret, as Liu explained, lay in defying conventional wisdom for a good reason. They believed that spreadsheets, despite their limitations, were the world's most popular app platform, used by billions to build makeshift CRMs, manage inventory, and streamline creative workflows.

The decision to remain horizontal wasn't just a contrarian stance; it was a bet on the inherent versatility of data and the power of empowering users to build their own solutions. Liu recognized that "the vast majority of value in these apps is getting that data layer right." This focus on the data layer, combined with a beautiful and intuitive interface, became Airtable's core differentiator, allowing them to capture a broad spectrum of use cases and users.

Key Insights:

• Defy conventional wisdom with conviction: Don't blindly follow advice; understand why you're choosing a different path.
• Focus on the core problem: Prioritize the fundamental layer (in Airtable's case, the data) to unlock broader applicability.
• See the potential in existing solutions: Recognize the power of tools like spreadsheets, even if they're not ideal.

Grit and Grace: Navigating the Startup Rollercoaster

The path to success wasn't a straight line, and Liu candidly discussed the rollercoaster ride that is startup life. From navigating rapid growth to making tough decisions during economic downturns, Airtable faced its share of challenges. There were moments of immense excitement followed by troughs of sorrow. Crucially, Liu emphasized the importance of grit, stating that "having grit is probably the single most important skill in making it in startup land."

Airtable even had to undergo two rounds of layoffs after experiencing exponential growth during the peak boom years. The ability to navigate these cycles, to cut back when necessary while still maintaining a creative and innovative spirit, proved crucial to the company's long-term survival. This experience underscores the need to not only endure pain but also to find tranquility amidst the chaos, allowing for creative pivots and strategic shifts.

Key Learnings:

• Grit is paramount: Be prepared for setbacks and develop the resilience to push through them.
• Embrace the rollercoaster: Understand that ups and downs are inevitable; don't let temporary setbacks derail you.
• Find tranquility in chaos: Prioritize mental well-being and create space for creative problem-solving.

The AI-Native Rebirth: Burning the Boats for the Future

In a move that demonstrated a bold vision and a willingness to disrupt their own success, Airtable embraced the transformative power of AI, essentially relaunching as an AI-native platform. Liu saw the potential of agentic app building to revolutionize the no-code space and believed that a fundamental shift was needed to stay ahead. Instead of treating AI as an add-on feature, they integrated it deeply into the product, even absorbing inference costs into all plans. This decision, while potentially impacting short-term profitability, underscored their commitment to a future where app building is intuitive, accessible, and powered by AI.

This shift wasn't just about adding AI to the website; it was about reimagining the entire product experience. Seeing the potential of "vibe coding" products like Cursor and Windsurf, Liu realized the user experience of Airtable should feel akin to communicating with an app-building agent. Even being an incumbent, Airtable needs to consider the best new form factor for the product of its category. Being willing to "burn the boat" on the current product would make the leap necessary.

Key Changes:

• Boldly embrace disruptive technology: Don't just add AI; integrate it deeply into your core product.
• Reimagine the user experience: Explore new paradigms and challenge existing assumptions.
• Be willing to sacrifice short-term gains for long-term vision: Prioritize strategic bets over immediate profits.

"Life is about making like sometimes hard choices where like I mean at the time there was no like perfect evidence that like I could be successful doing a startup. I just like in that moment I like kind of had to make the leap." - Howie Liu