Is “US-first” still the right default for AI products?

With today’s tools, translation (UI, copy, even video) is no longer the hard part.

What slows us down instead are things like tax, legal compliance, hiring, support, payments — sometimes even geopolitics. The moment users show up from a new country, a “product” problem turns into an operating one.

That also makes me wonder: Is “US-first” still the right default for AI products?
Or do some products actually benefit from starting in smaller, simpler markets?

No strong conclusion yet — just a tension I keep running into. Curious how others are thinking about this.