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Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

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Re: Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

#21

Post by lilouartz »

amelius wrote: post #15

There is big money in supplements, so I don't think it will be difficult to monetize.

I am more of a geek than a business shark, but when I was doing market research, I couldn't believe just how big some of the supplement marketplaces are. iHerb ($2nb+), Amazong ($8bn+), GNC ($2bn+), Vitamin Shoppe ($1bn+). However, it's a market that requires a lot of investment to enter (logistic/storage/support). I'm hoping I'm going to get my foot across the door by providing the most comprehensive solution for education, as well as discovering and comparing supplements across all of these marketplaces.

Re: Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

#22

Post by lilouartz »

infecto wrote: post #16
autoexec wrote: post #4

This seems more like cataloguing than analyzing I'd love to see a project that actually analyzes every supplement on the market to make sure it actually contains what it claims to, contains it at the listed dosage, and to show anything else found (heavy metals for example). That's not something AI can do for us though since it'd involve physically collecting and testing samples.

Doesn’t that kind of exist already across a couple sites? Thinking consumer labs does this across lots of supplement categories. I have seen a few others too.

Consumer Labs is definitely the furthest ahead compared to everyone else. I've been using them for many years now.

Re: Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

#24

Post by syngrog66 »

1. dangerously unwise area to apply "AI" given all its known problems, and whats at stake

2. I tried using that site and immediately saw problems and broken behavior. The "Ask AI" feature (sounds pretty key?) literally did nothing. and doing a search for say aspirin yielded results that... had no aspirin! no brainer to bail out fast

Re: Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

#25

Post by lilouartz »

syngrog66 wrote: post #24

1. dangerously unwise area to apply "AI" given all its known problems, and whats at stake 2. I tried using that site and immediately saw problems and broken behavior. The "Ask AI" feature (sounds pretty key?) literally did nothing. and doing a search for say aspirin yielded results that... had no aspirin! no brainer to bail out fast

Aspirin is not a supplement; it's a medication.

Re: Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

#28

Post by lilouartz »

bigwheels wrote: post #26

Please don't take any products down due to shady legal threats! Won't this compromise nearly the entirety of the value proposition? Cripes.

I don't want to, and I don't plan to. At a time when this happened, I was deep in my studies preparing for exams, and I just remember thinking to myself, "I cannot afford to pull myself into what could become a legal matter" I am now in better position to allocate time and attention should such claims be made again.

That said, the couple of brands that were removed were not brands that I would have wanted anyone to buy anyway. Not much is lost by not having them on the website from the perspective of fulfilling customers' journeys of finding a good product.

I do like the suggestion made in one of the comments informing customers why some brands are not visible on the website. That warning might on its own deter others from making such claims.

Re: Show HN: I've been using AI to analyze every supplement on the market

#29

Post by lilouartz »

kilna wrote: post #27

Monetize it with Amazon or other affiliate links, and provide dollar per effective dose for a given set of desired supplements.

That's the plan. I don't intend to own any stock. I want to focus on covering the broadest range of supplements across all of the marketplaces, having the richest data about them, and then focus on the affiliate revenue.

The affiliate revenue can be anywhere from 5% to 10% depending on the affiliate partner. Considering no overhead of support, inventory, or logistics, it's a pretty good deal for me, especially for now, while I'm still a solo founder.

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