Y Combinator and 30 ideas or markets in which we are ready to invest. Free translation, part 2.

Here is the second part of the material about promising startups ( here you can read the first part ). Recall that the initiator of this article was the material from the most famous venture investor, Paul Graham (Paul Graham), who runs the well-known Y Combinator foundation (which we wrote about, and in Russia funds already appeared, which to some extent copy its business -model). Now he described his vision of the market and pointed out thirty topics or rather outlined the range of interests and markets in which they are ready to invest. However, as a correct and successful investor, he is not limited to them and is ready to consider any interesting idea (which is indicated at the end of the material). Next, I will translate and try to independently analyze these markets, and also allow myself to add my views, pointing out additional interesting and promising areas. This is not a literal translation, so for those who want to learn exactly the original, here is a link to an English-language source .



16. Search, which depends on the project . Of course, we have Google, which has almost no weak points, but they do not take into account the features of the sites and topics (probably, the context was meant). Honestly, we do not know how this can be achieved, but if you know, we will be happy to look at it.
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17. New payment methods. There are many markets that cannot develop or have already reached their ceiling because people cannot conveniently and simply pay for goods and services. Moreover, it is not possible to accurately predict these markets, since it is difficult to take into account the demand that would be if we had a simple and natural payment mechanism. However, keep in mind that this business is tightly regulated by the state (both in the USA and in the CIS countries).

18. WebOS. Most likely this is not just a direct transfer of OS functionality to the web environment. But when a large number of constantly used applications will be moved to the network environment, there will come a series of some centralized services that perform certain functions of the OS. Although we have already financed several projects in this area, but this is a very large market and there is enough space for several winners.

19. Hosting data and applications. This topic is only partially related to the previous ones, but it is also important and promising. And here we have already financed several projects, but the market is large enough for many players. Note that this is a kind of “meta-market” - a lot of the topics we allocate depend directly or indirectly on such infrastructure projects, so the demand for their services will be serious.

20. Assistants to buyers. Usually you are limited to those stores that are near you and you buy those goods that are there (yes, sometimes using chain stores), however, if you know exactly what you want to buy, you may need a system that tells you the best place to buy (for example, with the lowest price). We already have a similar service, http://bountii.com , but this is not the end of the topic (by the way, the translator’s note, that is, me - in this area I have a couple of interesting ideas, one of which is sufficiently thought out for the seed stage ).

21. Software for personal finance and small companies. Yes, this is a rather complicated market, and you need to have connections with many banks in order for such programs to be successful and attractive to a wide market, which is difficult for a small and young startup, but if you can solve this problem, you will have a big market.

22. Hybrid Excel and Database for the Web. We noticed that so many people use Excel tables as small databases. And we think that there is an opportunity in the form of a web application to combine these two entities in one project so that people can work more efficiently. However, do not make it a full-fledged database - ordinary people simply fear them. Think about how you can help people manage as long as possible without the need to clearly describe the data structure? Perhaps it will be some kind of simple language for operating with data in the lists, maybe some of the existing ones, or you will have to create a new one.

23. A more open-ended alternative to Wikipedia . The “Deletionists” (I mean, “lovers of something” in my free translation) rule in Wikipedia, but the irony is that they still think of the era of the printed media. Can someone do with Wikipedia the same thing that she had previously done with the encyclopedia of Britannica? I wonder how it will be in the light of the opening of the Knol project from Google.

24. Services of work with reviews about bad service. Despite the loud statements, there are still a lot of companies that are just awful to their customers, the same goes for public services. Perhaps a service that would serve as a buffer for such reviews helped customers choose the best company (if they are not monopolists), but for those who want to improve their customer service, look at themselves. By the way, in this service you can very well look at the real needs of the market!

25. Competitors for Craiglist ( this service seems to be used as a collective name). This service is a dual business, and combines both weakness and dignity. If you focus on his weaknesses, you can make solving the problem much more efficiently than Craiglist now solves.

26. Best video chat . In this market, Skype and TokBox are only the first signs , a revolution can be in the field of mobile communications, so there is room for fantasy and incarnation.

27. Hybrid software and "iron" development . Although this is quite a complex area (and probably the most difficult, though ... who else thinks, look at the progress of FPGA development), there are many opportunities here. Of course, this can not be compared with another web service (although ... and who prevents to combine a web service and a small device), but only this way you can implement a lot of ideas. Today, devices are often completely software, so in the future these areas will be very intertwined with each other, and working in one of them, you will definitely hook the other. It will not be superfluous to mention a domestic startup in this area - Jami , whose history is excellently set forth here .

28. Assistance in working with e-mail . Many people, including me, think that they get too much mail to work with it effectively. Solve this problem (including the spam problem) and many people will not only thank you. One of the similar ideas is to use the inbox as a to-do list.

29. Simple tools for creating websites . Weebly is an excellent and simple tool for creating websites, but there are still hundreds of narrow markets and needs that require simple website creation tools that look professional and can be created by an ordinary person (for example, a broker or a lawyer). One solution is to write a flexible and extensible site builder, and then on top of it, adjust the layers for specific types of sites. However, the key of the problem is not in the technical part, just make sure that the websites created by the designer are or at least look professional (in terms of design and basic functionality).

30. Startup for other startups . The more startups there are to help such projects, the better for everyone. We (Y Combinator) are TechCrunch , and who else? From the projects of Runet, I can single out except ideablog.ru , b-generator.ru and the community of private investors doli.biz .

On this list is over. However, he in no way claims to be exhaustive - many topics remain unaffected. Next, I will point out those that I consider to be promising:

• Online games , including a new generation of browser games, as well as related services (centralized storage of accounts, exchanges of game items and accounts, specific payment systems, chat rooms and blogs, etc.). I just work in this area, which is very good :)
• New generations of web services that can interact with your PC are meant using universal platforms, for example, Adobe AIR, MS Silverlight, Flex, Mozilla Prism, etc.
• Mobile browsers and applications , especially applications for the iPhone, Google Android platform and others.
• Simplification of the RSS technology - yes, for all its simplicity, flexibility and power, many people still do not use it fully, and often do not even know what it is. It is necessary to provide them with such simple and affordable features as to maximize the application of this technology.
• Thematic search technologies , for example, connected to social networks.
• New types of media , for example, podcasts and slidecasts, video casts. Despite the active promotion, they are still the lot of a very narrow audience.
• Open Source and everything connected with it.

Perhaps, on this I will finish the material, I will be glad to discuss in the comments any questions.

PS Original article written for my blog: Alpha-Beta-Release Blog