Posting a collection of tweets I come across that can make good solo, independent, or venture-backed businesses. If you've run out of ideas or are about to give up, here are a few more options to consider, each with at least a single customer you can sign up.
Hit them up after you have put in some effort and can show proof of work, i.e built a prototype, made some mockups or signed up your first 5 customers even if you don't have a product. Reaching out to founders turned investors just to fundraise via cold DMs or picking their brains is overrated, not to mention lazy.
Build a self-serve platform that allows people to show interest in upcoming products while validating their need via a small payment in the $1-4 range. This can be modified for purchase power parity but its necessary so you don't land up with people who think they will like it vs those who actually have an immediate use case to apply this towards.
In return, plans can provide early perks such as discounts, early backers badges, feedback on roadmaps or IRL and virtual meetups with founder.
This is akin to early crowdfunding platforms in terms of benefits but purely focused on B2CE (business to creator economy) SaaS where the users are often individuals that run businesses but the recurring amounts are smaller and sold on value vs seats. Justin Jackson goes at length into the new expanded consumer market. And given the recent mass layoffs, Polar.sh is making a pretty solid shift in this direction.
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I received a cold DM from some claiming to be a high schooler interested in web3, tech and startups asking for 20 mins of my time told him I didn’t have the time but would answer 3 questions I was impressed with the questions and there are a lot of people on here who could give better answers then me so I’m publicly sharing them in the hopes of getting answers for him I appreciate any contributions
would be appreciate if someone could post this in /founders
Was about to but someone beat me to it https://warpcast.com/androidsixteen.eth/0xe05f0176
tyty
would love to hear your answers :)
Was busy packing and how on a plane so will give it a think on this flight and drop it here when I can.
is he taking angel checks yet?
I’m exploring this space rn. Excited and love the philosophy of blockchain but i’m still skeptical about the practicality of it. (Specifically how web3 will face web2 giants like twitter and meta)
re 3 I don’t think he needs to work in AI to leverage the boom, if he’s interested in crypto he should go into crypto and learn to use AI tools for eg coding and such - best way to get value of both imo
damn the idea anyone can take advantage of the AI boom by using AI to better do whatever they wanted to is a powerful and beautiful one
the ai part basically can be comingled with the crypto part for example @brianknows
@six what i meant by that is should I start an ai company or a crypto company? AI first, then crypto or crypto directly
https://paulgraham.com/before.html
@jhoang thanks I’ll definitely check this out. I’ve read most of pg’s essays. Hopefully, i haven’t read this one.
Btw These questions are better than the ones I get from my college students
@nounishprof thanks for the compliment. Would love to hear your thoughts about the questions.
“usurp the incumbents” from a high schooler ??
thus the phrase claiming to be
@greg idk i was feeling verbose when i was texting that. I think i just woke up from a nap
holy shit i thought i was in your comment section for this cast and read this from @dwr.eth, which also happens to have a part 1, 2 and 3 i was like this is the most unhinged reply to this high schooler's questions ever wtf analogies is he making https://warpcast.com/dwr.eth/0xf22e110c
lol incredible and since you responded I now expect your answers
Lmao please @deodad reply these three answers to the poor kid
good news: the founder of Farcaster responded bad news: they seem to be hot takes on tomatoes instead of answers to your questions
lmaooo
😂😂😂
@ted would appreciate your answers. Thank you for your time
1. I have a gut feeling that the giants will either adapt to the web3 changes or die. Equity in the form of tokens for early users is a common crypto VC thesis and is worth exploring and criticizing. Crypto is still thriving but traction is questionable. 2. Only skills (I was a tech recruiter for a few years). Education only matters if you can get into an Ivy League - not because of the education, but because of the network. And contribute to OSS ;) 3. Do what you're good at, what you like, and what you'll be paid for. That could be AI, Crypto, or neither.
1. I should've articulated what I was trying to say earlier. Here it is: when is there a tipping point from the transition between web2 to web3? What features or things does web3 offer that web2 doesn't that would create that massive growth for web3? 2. came to the same conclusion and i'm glad we came to the same conclusion. 3. musk started Zip2 and x .com (not twitter, the financial company I think) that merged with PayPal and later went into SpaceX and Telsa. Should I do the same thing except start with AI, get the network and skills, and then go into crypto?
cc @ro
my advice would be to build things you need. sure it might be small but you'll learn to sell or design or code or all of the above and learning comes from building, not joining a sf startup. here are some ideas: https://writing.artivilla.com/pivot-list more ideas in /someone-build (would favor these as you can do them in a weekend). here's another one I posted yesterday and you can get paid customer. https://warpcast.com/artivilla.eth/0x5607a16c idk how ppl last if they don't need their own things.
1. I don't think there's much evidence of demand for crypto maxims beyond speculation right now. Tokens and equity are a nice lever but a) web2 has versions of these (youtube ad rev) and b) status and distribution born from network effects are more powerful. Incumbents can and will be disrupted though: Instagram disrupted Facebook with Photos. TikTok disrupted Meta with short video. The list is long. 2. The indicators you listed are very important, I've screened for those primarily. For bay area style tech companies credentials can help get an interview but otherwise not critical. The best credential is a working url to something you built, or open source contributions and an active github. 3. If you want to go into crypto, go direct into crypto. Lots of green field work and you can apply or use AI at the same time.
1. I should've articulated what I was trying to say earlier. Here it is: when is there a tipping point from the transition between web2 to web3? What features or things does web3 offer that web2 doesn't that would create that massive growth for web3? 2. came to the same conclusion and i'm glad we came to the same conclusion. 3. musk started Zip2 and x .com (not twitter, the financial company I think) that merged with PayPal and later went into SpaceX and Telsa. Should I do the same thing except start with AI, get the network and skills, and then go into crypto?
1. Ownership is a powerful driving force. We’re on the opposite end of the spectrum right now - you don’t own the software you use, the media you consume, and even the home you live in. I think it’s natural that the pendulum will swing back towards ownership and crypto gives us tools to do this at all scales. 2. The 2 qualities that have always worked in hiring for me: genuinely interested in what we are building, and a team player. I can teach everything else. 3. Related to the above - go into the thing you actually care about.
I think his answers lie here. On a serious point, I do think if he thinks deeply about what I mean here, he'll be able to come to his own answers on where to start, why, how, etc. I believe both of these to be true in 'opinion' but there are reasons behind that, if he can come up with his own reasoning on why these would be true, he'll see for himself where he'd like to start. But lowest hanging fruit rn is get really good at using AI tools. https://warpcast.com/les/0xd149f1fc https://warpcast.com/les/0x6ddc8bee
@les what's the source for the first cast mentioned? what does the second one mean?
1. Users will prefer to make money rather than give it to middle men if it’s possible. There’s no doubt about that. Whether crypto succeeds is a bet on a complex matrix of things, including culture, politics, and geopolitics. And the bet is not only whether this can happen but how long it takes. I’d say 50% chance this is a major force within 10 years 2. A super rare credential can help prove competence in a short time. Ie, getting accepted to Harvard means that someone looked at all your accomplishments in school and said “these are 1 out of 10,000 level awesome”. That’s helpful to a hirer. But not at all necessary. The thing you want to show even more is *what you made happen*. What’s something you built that people used? What are some results you got in anything you did? Specifics. 3. There’s no right answer. I do not think it can be a bad decision to do AI. It’s more certain to be a part of our future than crypto. However, if you have more passion for or talent in crypto, do it!
1. probably not. if it works, the incumbents will figure out how to adapt. 2. good advice. creds don’t matter as much as skills. work under someone incredible. 3. yes, focus on ai.
1. the reason why i believe in web3 is because there are structural advantages to it that web2 doesn't have. web2 giants will try and adapt but what i'd like to know is who'll win in the long term (5 years, 10 years, etc)? 2. awesome. learning to code rn. will contribute to OSS and build projects! 3. why do you think so? i know that musk started Zip2 and x .com (not twitter, the financial company I think) that merged with PayPal and later went into SpaceX and Telsa. Should I do the same thing except start with AI, get the network and skills, and then go into crypto?
this is kinda like the basketball coach getting asked by a child reporter
@koisose ik which child reporter you’re talking about 😭 Thanks for calling me a child reporter
@deodad thanks for sharing the questions i asked, I’ll definitely be reading the replies people have suggested. I don’t know why i didn’t see it earlier on my feed but still, thank you!
Sharing knowledge like this is exactly how the space grows. It’s great that you’re encouraging curiosity and thoughtful engagement.
Discover innovative business ideas extracted from notable tweets! This post explores rising market opportunities, from self-hosted GitHub Actions to tech-enabled audit firms and B2CE SaaS strategies. A perfect read if inspiration is running low. Shared by @artivilla.eth.