Offshore

The Startup Ideas Podcast (SIP) 🧃
RT @gregisenberg: this is exactly how i’d build wealth with a vertical ai agent startup (without raising VC $$)

step 1: find a boring pain point. something universal, hated, and expensive. think customs paperwork, insurance audits, compliance checklists. the less glamorous, the better.

step 2: map the workflow. don’t brainstorm in a figma file, sit next to the person doing the work. write down every click, every exception, every “this is where it breaks.” the edge cases are the product. gotta be meticulous here.

step 3: do the job as a service. literally run it yourself with a small team. invoice your first customers. this is where you’ll discover what really matters versus what the powerpoint version of the workflow looks like.

step 4: start adding agents to replace the human steps. not all at once obviously, pick one slice of the workflow and automate it. free up hours, prove value, charge more. rinse and repeat until the workflow is mostly agent-driven.

step 5: use the data you collect as the moat. every invoice, form, log, and exception makes your agent sharper. data → better models → stickier product.

and step 0 to be honest, is i'm building an audience along the way. showing my work, sharing the playbook, pulling future customers and talent into my orbit before the product even exists. iterating on 50+ formats and probably doing short-form to start.

the pattern looks the same every time for these types of vertical ai agent startups:

human service → semi-automated service → vertical agent product.

the goal of the agent goes from assisting in the workflow, to owning it.

that’s when you stop being a tool and start being the infrastructure for that industry.

once you own it, you're likely in vc competition territory. but you can compete if your unit economics are solid, audience is cranking and the product is loved.

why build a vertical ai startup now? because the foundation models are good enough (and getting better), the costs are low enough, and the demand for efficiency is high enough.

five years ago the tech wasn’t ready.
five years from now the incumbents will be.

the window is open right now.

it's building season.
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