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You can attempt things that don't scale, fail, learn and apply to things that do scale. It's a process, not always an outcome.

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I barely remember a comment (made, or at least quoted, by some geek of renown?) along the lines of: it is faster to first build a 3" telescope, then a 6", than it is to just build a 6".

Thompson's Rule for First-Time Telescope Makers: "It is faster to make a four-inch mirror then a six-inch mirror than to make a six-inch mirror."

I've seen that one example repeated often. If you bring it to IT, it's often faster to learn Python and then C than to learn C. (But this one is not as clearly a winner as the telescope example.)

I guess every area has things like this.

Anyway, I do disagree that the VC's one is about learning. It seems much more connected to marketing and ensuring a business viability.

100% agree, not everything you try should be a success, and most failures bring lessons with them.

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