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5 Internet Goldmines To Spot The Next $1B Trend | Steph Smith (#529)

Episode 529: Shaan Puri and Sam Parr talk to Steph Smith about the 5 Internet goldmines she uses to spot $1b dollar trends before anyone else.

Shaan PurihostSam ParrhostSteph Smithguest
Dec 11, 20231h 3mWatch on YouTube

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At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Steph Smith's Internet Goldmines for Spotting Business Trends and Opportunities

  1. Steph Smith shares a set of data sources, which she calls internet pipes, including patent expiry trackers, sports industry reports, a sci-fi idea database, Our World in Data, Jungle Scout and Gadget Flow.
  2. Sam Parr describes how Blue Chew bootstrapped a business off Viagra's patent expiry, an example of turning one chart or date into a company.
  3. The hosts and Steph discuss mega trends such as aging populations and air quality, with Shaan arguing that riding a mega trend, even imperfectly, works in your favor.
  4. The conversation covers accessory opportunities around popular devices, such as AirPods, and viral products like FluentPet buttons.
  5. Steph previews internetpipes.com, and Shaan and Sam advise on pricing, with Shaan recommending an ultra-free or ultra-premium approach and using the product to attract valuable people.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Expiring patents can seed whole companies.

Sam Parr says Blue Chew bootstrapped a business of roughly $100-200 million in annual sales after Viagra's patent expired in 2017, and Steph notes Hims did something similar.

Sci-fi ideas often become reality decades later.

Steph points to a database showing credit cards appeared in fiction in 1888 and 24-hour live news in 1889, long before they existed, suggesting today's sci-fi like drug manufacturing in space (Varda) may follow.

Demographic charts reveal durable tailwinds.

Shaan highlights a chart projecting the 65+ population growing from under 1 billion to about 2.5 billion, which he says favors long-term elder care businesses.

Riding a mega trend simplifies decisions.

Shaan says if you identify the big waves you can ignore small ones, and even the fourth best way to surf a mega trend works in your favor. He cites an investor friend who bet early on a GLP-1 obesity drug company and Zuckerberg's video mega trend comment.

Hidden problems like air quality need a marketer to make them visible.

Steph says air quality isn't obvious to people, and Shaan says it will take a marketer and product design to put it in front of people. Steph cites Jungle Scout data showing a smart furnace filter category with over $40 million a month in revenue.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

I have had this theory for a long time that anything mini just works.

— Shaan Puri

And you just figure out, okay, what's the best way to surf this? And even if you don't figure out the best way, even the fourth best way to surf a mega trend is gonna, gonna work in your favor.

— Shaan Puri

every time there's a new device that ends up penetrating, uh, a lot of people's homes or wallets, uh, there's almost always an opportunity for accessories.

— Steph Smith

more of the same keeps me where I am. So, you know, if I keep doing things that kinda keep me in the same level of the game, I'll never have the bandwidth to do whatever it's gonna take to get me to the next level of the game.

— Shaan Puri

I only wanna hire people that make me feel like I'm Michael, I'm the Michael Scott of The Office. That's actually how it should feel when you're doing it, right?

— Shaan Puri

Read the available transcript
Patent filings and expiriesFastest growing sportsSci-fi novels as idea sourceOur World in Data chartsAir quality productsJungle Scout and Gadget FlowPricing and launching internetpipes.com

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SPEAKERS

  • Shaan Puri

    host

    Co-host of the My First Million podcast and entrepreneur/investor.

  • Sam Parr

    host

    Co-host of the My First Million podcast and entrepreneur.

  • Steph Smith

    guest

    Operator and content creator (at a16z per episode), sharing research-driven frameworks for spotting internet trends.

High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.

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