Very strange notions of "success," if you ask me. To me, if you're in a "startup" only to be acquired, then you're not in business, you're in speculation, and you've already started to undermine your longevity. Why go through all the pain and sweat of starting up a company if you don't want to be driving that company 20 years from now? What you're describing strikes me as a "flash in the pan" mindset. If all you want to do is start and then cash in, well, that's not starting up, it's just starting out.