this post was submitted on 04 Aug 2026
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If it's "not strictly defined" and used when it's convenient, then it's meaningless.
If the term is meaningless or counter-intuitive jargon, then it shouldn't be included in a headline.
If openAI has an "unproven business model" they're not a startup they're a failed business living off of borrowed and leveraged assets.
It has a meaning, there just isn’t a strictly defined point at which something is no longer a startup. It’s used when it makes sense, which it does in this case. I’m guessing you’re not a native English speaker which is the source of your frustration. In the English language we have lots of words that are used to describe things which aren’t like enforced by some kind of regulating body. Colloquial uses of all kinds of words are pretty common.
Thats what makes them a startup. “Failing businesses living off borrowed and leveraged assets with a hope and a dream that if they get big enough they won’t be failing anymore” is a pretty accurate assessment of what a startup is.