> here we have a handful of _startups_ that confess there's isn't enough work to keep everyone in the nimble team up on toes for even forty hours a week

I don't think they said anything of the sort. There's no claim they don't have enough work for 40 hours; I'm sure like most of us there is no end to the work, and it can and will consume all the time we're willing to give it.

They're just not willing to give it as much. It's possible that will put them at a disadvantage to their competitors. It's also possible that they may be sufficiently more creative to overcome that disadvantage.