AI-nxiety
Marc warned us that software would swallow it whole,
But now it’s AI that’s taking control.
From law to logistics, it’s changing the game,
YC’s backing the agents that rebuild in its name.
“AI-nxiety” – A cartoon that captures how AI, not software, is now the true force “eating the world.”
When Marc Andreessen declared in 2011 that “software is eating the world,” he foresaw a digital reshaping of every industry. But in 2025, it’s clear that AI has eclipsed software as the dominant disruptor.
According to McKinsey, 78% of global companies now use AI in at least one function, and generative AI adoption alone jumped from 55% to 75% in just one year. Industries from finance to manufacturing are being restructured for speed, safety, and efficiency – fraud detection is reaching 99% accuracy, while predictive maintenance slashes downtime by 30%.
AI’s gravitational pull is strongest in talent. Y Combinator, the iconic startup accelerator, made public its latest “Requests for Startups” available, which states that 2025 is the “year of AI agents.” The accelerator is explicitly calling for full-stack AI companies – startups that don’t just sell AI tools, but use them to rebuild entire industries from the ground up, from legal services to healthcare and education.
As YC partner Jared Friedman puts it, “Instead of selling to the dinosaurs, you could make them extinct.” The list includes over a dozen AI-first startup theses, from autonomous healthcare workflows to personal finance agents and internal LLM toolkits, highlighting how YC is seeding a future where AI touches every aspect of daily and professional life.
