How to Build a Business That Runs Without You, with David Hori

The Operating System Show · Jul 21, 2026 · 26m

David Hori is the founder of Top Line Operators. He buys businesses that already work and makes them work better, and along the way he has become obsessed with one question: does this business need its owner to survive? We get into what he looks for before he buys, how he untangles an owner running five companies under one roof, and why AI multiplies whatever is already there instead of fixing what is broken. ## In this episode - The criteria David uses before he will buy a business, and why he never touches turnarounds - Why "you are the business" is the most expensive sentence an owner can…