GTM strategy is increasingly central to competitive advantage, especially as AI transforms traditional sales functions. The rise of the go-to-market engineer enables automation of repetitive tasks like prospecting and follow-up, allowing human teams to focus on high-value engagement. Companies should hire GTM engineers around the time they have 10 salespeople to codify scalable processes. AI agents are now performing at levels comparable to human SDRs, reducing staffing needs and increasing efficiency. Viewing GTM as a product helps align sales with product development, while segmentation based on technical and behavioral data—not just company size—improves targeting. Sales success often hinges on addressing customer risk avoidance rather than promising upside. Finally, building a sales org that engineers respect requires deep product understanding, feedback integration, and collaboration across teams. Product-led growth has limits, and long-term scale typically demands a hybrid approach including sales.