Enable quick start and disable pirates. Never upgrade capital ships, only if you feel it's absolutely necessary (I never feel this way). This will help you get a much better start as you will be able to do real things right in the first second. Expand like crazy! seriously don't stop expanding, get more planets then your opponent AI really fast. Build long range and swarms of corvettes (40-40 of both can be good). Put starbases on frontline worlds and get a titan after this as soon as possible and build repair platforms to help them. Next task is to build Titan and when it is finished get trade ports everywhere and start building carriers and heavy cruisers, and ships you like and start killing an AI while defending your other front with a strong starbase and a small fleet. Your Titan will level like crazy even if you are only defending, and when it is strong attack back, it can alone kill huge fleets if you use it well, but if it has supporting fleet, even better.
AI is stupid if it's about enemy starbases, if you take out his anti-structure cruisers and manage to lure him into range he is dead as he never focuses on the base, so upgrade weapons hull and trade and you are happily looking to the future.
I would recommend playing teams as FFA always ends up 2AIs VS the player and it is not fun, as both AI can get more resources than you. Don't play with pirates if you can't win on a map, try winning without them first. Quit until you get your AI ally next to you, This is my strategy, maybe it won't work well as not this is my favourite map, I hope I could help.
