I think many founders would disagree that company success matters more than product success.  A lot of companies are started purely to develop and promote an idea.  This is obviously so for companies spun off from academia or from internal projects at other companies, only a bit less obviously for those created around preexisting open-source projects, and not uncommonly for others.<p>Maybe <i>you</i> care more about the company.  You certainly shouldn&#x27;t project your personal beliefs onto others.  Many founders would love to see their pet idea continue without the tedium of running a company.  Many founders <i>and employees</i> would be similarly happy to trade in the company letterhead for a bigger paycheck.  It&#x27;s only &quot;selling out&quot; if one was more in love with the idea of the company than with the idea of the product, and frankly I can see few reasons other than ego for that to be the case.