3 Niche Business Ideas: AI Psychics, Creator-Owned VPNs & Guns w…
About This Episode
Sam and Shaan interview John Coogan, the co-founder of Soylent and Lucy and an EIR at Founders Fund. They discuss the mechanics of viral food startups, the debate between building venture-backed 'impact' companies versus lifestyle businesses, and brainstorm several niche opportunities in software and traditional industries.
Episode Description
Show Notes
- 0:00Intro
- 3:15Soylent origin story
- 14:50Lucy background
- 17:00Business Idea 1: Creator-owned VPN
- 23:20Business Idea 2: Ammunition Rollup
- 28:45How often does Sam think of the Roman Empire?
- 32:20Thoughts on Keith Rabois
- 34:40Best Twitter follows
- 36:15Debate: Lifestyle businesses vs. VC-backed
- 48:15Who John’s voting for
- 51:00Why AI wrappers are great businesses
- 53:30Business Idea 3: Lensa for ChatGPT
- 57:40Scam artist telemarketing
- 1:04:05Closing thoughts
Links
- John Coogan Twitter
- John Coogan Youtube
- Soylent
- Lucy Gum
- Sam's Soylent article
- Linus Tech Tips
- Anduril
- Founders Fund
- Keith Rabois
- Sean Parker
- Ligma Johnson
- Peter Thiel
- Will Hurd
- Lensa
- Power Law with John Coogan
- Do you love MFM and want to see Sam and Shaan's smiling faces? Subscribe to our Youtube channel.
Check Out our store here. — Check Out Sam's Stuff
Check Out Shaan's Stuff
Key Takeaways
High-reach creators should pivot from selling low-margin physical merchandise to high-margin, recurring software products like VPNs that leverage their international distribution.
The 'Barnum Effect' (where people believe vague, general descriptions are specifically tailored to them) is a major opportunity for AI developers to create viral personality and astrology apps using LLMs.
Founders are often most 'dangerous' and effective when they have achieved a baseline of wealth (10-30 million) because it allows them to pursue moonshots without the pressure of personal financial survival.
Business Ideas Mentioned
Creator-Owned VPN (BeastVPN)
SaaS
Ammunition Manufacturer Roll-up
Acquisitions
AI Barnum Effect Personality Apps
AI & Automation