New Delhi [India], September 16 : One in three new companies in the US now have a single founder, as artificial intelligence (AI) tools are changing how early-stage businesses handle tasks that traditionally required multiple employees, according to a report by AI company MyUser.
Solo-founded startups accounted for 36.3 per cent of new US companies in the first half of 2025, up from 23.7 per cent in 2019, according to data.
The report said the rise reflects a broader change in what a single founder can manage while building a company. Traditionally, founders had to hire employees as the business grew because one person could only handle a limited number of tasks at the same time.
However, AI tools are now helping founders manage several functions, including coding, customer support, sales outreach and marketing.
Ibrahim Hasanov, Founder of MyUser, said the challenge for solo founders was not only about the number of people but also about the amount of work one person could handle.
"One person has a finite number of hours, and a company needs someone doing sales, someone doing support, another writing code, most often at the same time," Hasanov said.
"For most of startup history, that math simply didn't work past a certain size. You hired, or you stalled," he added.
According to the report, AI is changing that equation by taking over some of the operational work that previously required additional employees.
AI is also being used in sales and marketing, areas that can be difficult for a solo founder because they require regular emails, follow-ups and customer engagement.
The report said AI tools can help draft outreach messages, personalise follow-ups and maintain sales pipelines without requiring a dedicated salesperson.
The report also highlights how AI is reducing the time and effort involved in building a startup from the early stages. Solo founders previously spent months on tasks that were not directly linked to testing whether their business idea could work.
With AI tools, several of these activities can now be completed much faster, allowing founders to focus more on product development and business decisions.
The report said, “That math has changed. Not because AI makes founders lazier or smarter; rather because of the number of hats you have to physically wear yourself”.
This allows a founder to handle a wider range of responsibilities without immediately building a larger team.