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I agree, but it's very tough to innovate and solve problems that you don't even know exist. That kind of information would be very valuable. Maybe that's the fi

I agree, but it's very tough to innovate and solve problems that you don't even know exist. That kind of information would be very valuable. Maybe that's the first step.

cageface 15y ago
Probably the best way, if you can afford the time, is to go live in one of these emerging market countries for a while. However, after close to a year of living in Vietnam I haven't seen any obvious opportunities. People here will pay for hardware, but the idea of paying for software/music/movies/services etc is pretty foreign. For example, most people jailbreak their iPhone and get apps for free. Maybe the right kind of targeted advertising could work but you'd practically have to be native to be savvy enough to get that right.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  The easy answer is, focus on making products that involve a hardware component. For example, you could pirate the app for that new Jawbone product, but it is meaningless without the hardware.
  - cageface 15y ago
    That might be the answer, but of course it takes a lot more time and capital to start a hardware business than a software business.
- acgourley 15y ago
  Definitely interesting, since I hear many people suggest moving to another country would yield bounties of startup ideas. That said, certainly there must be tech startup opportunities beyond pure content and software plays. Aren't there some other pain-points that could be solved?
  - cageface 15y ago
    I'm sure there are things that have just so far eluded my imagination, but it may also be better to look somewhere a little more developed. There's a huge untapped population here but not much buying power yet. The big players like Facebook and Google and Yahoo are already pretty entrenched here too so it's not like you've got an open field to play with.