A startup is a company that's focused on something innovative and effectively high growth - something a VC could invest in.
Nobody is referring to the new Taco restaurant down the street as a 'startup' even though their revenues will be more than $1 M this year.
VC only makes sense in high growth businesses with large markets. Otherwise they are just businesses.
And 'an afternoon of coding' isn't really even that either - it takes more effort just to do the proper incorporation.
So these words I think have meaning.
'Project' as the commenter described is apt ... but I wouldn't be surprised if some kind of 'word' emerged that caught all the hype and was overused.
