Camel startups remind us that a different model exists. While they still pursue and achieve rapid growth, these startups balance it with other objectives like managing costs and charging a reasonable price for products or services.

While many of these entrepreneurs harness network effects and enjoy enviable rates of growth, their scaling trajectory may not have the same perfect exponential hockey-stick curve to which Silicon Valley startups aspire. Instead, they focus on sustainable growth from day one. The cash curve does not dip as deeply.