Foundations have mattered in almost everything I have built. If I want to build generative AI-native startups, I need to understand what sits underneath the tools I will use.

I am not trying to become a researcher or train a foundation model from scratch. But I do want to understand how foundation models are trained, how inference works, and how context limits, retrieval, tool use, evaluation, reliability, and cost shape what can be built. Without that foundation, it would be too easy to mistake a convincing demo for sound product or company design.

The open question is how deep I need to go before building. I do not want study to become an excuse to delay. I want it to help me make better choices once I start getting my hands dirty.