There are a lot of reasons to not do a startup, maybe it creates a lot of value but you don't see a good way to capture that value. Maybe it's just outside of your area of expertise.
So what ideas do you have that you'll never act on?
Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
1–10 of 69 posts
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#2Packet switched pneumatic tubes. Back when pneumatic tubes were a big thing we didn't have a lot of the technology we have now. I think a lot of the inefficiency in pneumatic tube networks could be made up for by modern computing and robotics.
Obviously a lot of challenged but if you could get the downtown core of a high density city on board as a trial project you could be delivering everything from packages to fast food. It's an expensive piece of infrastructure to invest in, and I know big companies like Amazon are expecting drones to solve all their problems, but I can't help but think the answer is to just lay out some pipe and build the network.
I think once you have a network like that it changes the economics of a lot of stuff. Maybe you can even use return packets for garbage collection. I think if you can get the per packet price low enough it opens the doors for a lot of new business ideas.
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#3Bulk laundry service using RFIDs. The economics of scale are different when you can just throw all the fabric into one giant washer/dryer, like the type they use in hospitals, and let robots sort out who owns what. My province has one central laundry facility that services basically all government buildings (hospitals, prisons, etc) using giant washing machines. RFIDs let us turn something like that into something that can service an entire community.
Of course last mile transportation remains a problem.
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#4Serial cereals. It's a breakfast cereal, but each month the box comes with the next installment of the next Dickens.
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#5Packet switched pneumatic tubes. Back when pneumatic tubes were a big thing we didn't have a lot of the technology we have now. I think a lot of the inefficiency in pneumatic tube networks could be made up for by modern computing and robotics. Obviously a lot of challenged but if you could get the downtown core of a high density city on board as a trial project you could be delivering everything from packages to fast…
Yes! But packet fragmentation?
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#6Packet switched pneumatic tubes. Back when pneumatic tubes were a big thing we didn't have a lot of the technology we have now. I think a lot of the inefficiency in pneumatic tube networks could be made up for by modern computing and robotics. Obviously a lot of challenged but if you could get the downtown core of a high density city on board as a trial project you could be delivering everything from packages to fast…
Yes! But packet fragmentation?
Depends on what you've ordered I guess. A piano, probably not. 30 Books? Sure, ship them one at a time. Finding the sweet spot for pneumatic tube size would be challenging for sure.
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#7Here're 999 you might find interesting: `Hamster Burial Kits & 998 Other Business Ideas`
https://web.archive.org/web/20090213131053/http://www.sixmon...
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#8Bulk laundry service using RFIDs. The economics of scale are different when you can just throw all the fabric into one giant washer/dryer, like the type they use in hospitals, and let robots sort out who owns what. My province has one central laundry facility that services basically all government buildings (hospitals, prisons, etc) using giant washing machines. RFIDs let us turn something like that into something th…
minus the RFID ... sounds mildly similar to cloth diaper services: you subscribe to X many per week, and they're delivered with the soiled ones picked up in exchange
Of course ... you're not guaranteed to get the same cloth diapers back on the next delivery :)
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#9Bulk laundry service using RFIDs. The economics of scale are different when you can just throw all the fabric into one giant washer/dryer, like the type they use in hospitals, and let robots sort out who owns what. My province has one central laundry facility that services basically all government buildings (hospitals, prisons, etc) using giant washing machines. RFIDs let us turn something like that into something th…
minus the RFID ... sounds mildly similar to cloth diaper services: you subscribe to X many per week, and they're delivered with the soiled ones picked up in exchange Of course ... you're not guaranteed to get the same cloth diapers back on the next delivery :)
That is one inspiration of course. My town is too small for something like that but if it can work for something as specific as diapers I think it would work for all kinds of other stuff.
Re: Ask HN: Startup ideas that you'll never do?
#10Whale farming - building the containment nets is probably tricky, but if you had a big enough area to cordon off in the ocean, you could raise them for meat etc