Edward Cruz

Summary

THE AI ALCHEMIST In a nondescript office in Tucson Arizona—far from the echo chambers of Silicon Valley—Edward Cruz is quietly reconstructing the venture building playbook through the lens of artificial intelligence. Go For Vertical, once a traditional startup accelerator, has undergone a metamorphosis. After shepherding startups first across Arizona and then globally since 2015, Cruz made a calculated pivot last year: transform entirely into an AI venture studio that doesn't just implement AI—it uses AI to reinvent how ventures themselves are built. "The standard startup playbook is becoming obsolete," Cruz explains. "When your tools move at light speed, your methods need to keep pace." The company's approach strips away conventional venture development cycles, using AI to compress discovery, validation, and go-to-market phases. This isn't just about building AI products—it's about using AI as the architect, the analyst, and the accelerant throughout the entire venture creation process. Their first release under this new paradigm, Mindboard.ai, launches March 2025. It's an AI system that transforms into a conversational second brain that grows smarter with every interaction—a manifestation of Cruz's belief that AI should deliver new human experiences and real value that were impossible before, like functioning as an intuitive extension of the human mind.