As an ML researcher who thinks AGI/HLI is still pretty far away, I don't think there's actually a issue with starting a company that's trying to solve this problem. The thing is that you're going to invent a lot of useful tools along the way. It's going to take you 20-50 years to get HLI, but you're still going to produce a ton of research with a lot of practical uses. The AGI does help build hype and investments too, but the milestones are the important part for the business.