AI: How To Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Business Ideas

Steven Boykey Sidley posed a thought-provoking question recently: AI - What happens when there is nothing left to learn?

He shares his estimates positing that AI '..will have slurped up every bit of human text by about 2027, with the world’s photographs, graphics, video and audio not too far behind.'

Welcome to Issue 71 of 1idea

Sidley's concern is that '..only a few huge companies will be left in charge of the repositories of humanity’s entire intellectual and creative output.'

Personally, I don't share such concern.

I mean, who has all of humanity's intellectual and creative output stored somewhere right now?

Probably no one!

So, to me, it is a good thing that they are being gathered into repositories storing all of civilization's progress.

Obviously, the more such repositories the better.

Especially before some crazy doomsday sect of zealots decide that any such information that they do not agree with needs to be destroyed.

What Sidley's article does stimulate in my mind is the memory of spending many hours in my teens and twenties (+-50 years ago) visiting magnificent libraries and museums in some of the great cities and towns of the world - especially those located in universities, research centres, business chambers and historic sites.

It always struck me how so few people were ever using those facilities (mostly free to access) when there was so much information in them to learn from.

And further, I am stimulated to comment that I see no limit to the abundance of information that will flow from +8 billion unique individuals.

Imagine the collective creativity that will be unleashed by AI in combination with smartphone and social media technologies (plus new technologies that will arise) to develop new ideas & innovative twists on old ideas.

Of course, despite all the information that is and will be available, I fully expect that there will still only be a relatively small percentage of the +8 billion global population (maybe 1% to 3% - I hope for more) who will access the information they want/need and actually apply it.

Which brings me to the point of this article.

A thought struck me recently that there must surely be enough information available in the world for us to be able to determine some simple guidelines or common lessons as to what it took for billion-dollar company founders to build their companies.

A process of looking back from where they are today to the beginning of their enterprise (hindsight being a perfect science) or, as I like to see it, rewinding the movie from the last frame to the beginning frame.

Being a proponent of the view that good questions lead to good ideas and being that I am an overwhelmingly optimistic AI enthusiast, I decided to pose the following prompt/question/task of some AI platforms that I like:

'Please produce an article with reference links: How To Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Business Ideas.'

I am reminded that I wrote in Issue 70 - AI: Everybody Must Ask Questions! - that '..today, YOU can ask any question you want of AI and get an answer almost immediately - within seconds!'

And, in Issue 67 - Are YOU using AI as YOUR personal Ideas-Generating Machine? - I shared with readers the importance of doing your own research.

So, I'll do a similar exercise here and provide you with the platforms and prompts I used but only key extracts from the bountiful information provided - with the encouragement for you to do the exercise yourself.

Go to Gemini: Prompt it with - Hi Gemini.. please produce an article with reference links: How To Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Business Ideas

Gemini provides a pretty good general intro to the concept of reverse-engineering and some pointers to the amount of information one can glean:

How To Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Business Ideas

The allure of a billion-dollar business idea is undeniable. But how do you get there? While there's no guaranteed recipe for such success, you can leverage a technique called "reverse engineering" to learn from established players and identify opportunities in your own endeavors.

What is Reverse Engineering?

In the context of business, reverse engineering involves deconstructing a successful company's strategy to understand the key components that drive its growth. This can be applied to industry giants or even rising startups. By dissecting their approach, you can glean valuable insights into:

• Customer Needs: What problems are they solving for their target audience?
• Value Proposition: What makes their product or service unique and desirable?
• Business Model: How do they generate revenue and scale their operations?
• Marketing and Growth Strategies: How do they reach and acquire customers?

How to Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Ideas

Here's a step-by-step approach to reverse-engineer successful businesses:

1. Identify Target Companies: Choose companies you admire, ideally those operating in an industry that interests you. Look for businesses that have achieved significant growth or disrupted their markets.
2. Deep Dive Research: Immerse yourself in the company's ecosystem. Read annual reports, news articles, and industry analysis to understand their market position and competitive landscape. https://www.growthink.com/content/how-be-successful-entrepreneur-reverse-engineering-success
3. Deconstruct the Business Model: Analyze how the company generates revenue. Is it through product sales, subscriptions, advertising, or a combination? How do they acquire customers and what are their key marketing channels?
4. Customer Focus: Understand how the company addresses customer pain points. What value proposition sets them apart? Analyze customer reviews and social media sentiment to gauge customer satisfaction.
5. Identify Opportunities: Based on your research, brainstorm how you could adapt the company's strategies to a new market or a different customer segment. Can you offer a similar product or service with a unique twist or cater to underserved needs within the same industry?

Beyond Copying: Innovation is Key

Remember, reverse engineering isn't about copying existing ideas. It's about using successful models as a springboard for innovation. Here are some additional tips:

• Focus on Trends: Identify emerging trends within your chosen industry and leverage them to develop a differentiated offering.
• Combine Existing Ideas: Sometimes, the best ideas come from combining elements of different successful businesses.
• Solve Real Problems: Don't just chase trends. Find a genuine problem that people face and develop a solution that truly adds value.

By following these steps and fostering a creative mindset, you can use reverse engineering to transform billion-dollar business ideas into a springboard for your own entrepreneurial journey.

Go to Phind.com: Prompt it with - Hi phind.. please produce an article with reference links: How To Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Business Ideas

Phind provides case study snippets of Uber; Apple; Google; Amazon; and Tesla; with the conclusion: 'Reverse-engineering billion-dollar business ideas involves a deep understanding of the market, continuous innovation, and the creation of a strong brand. By learning from the successes and failures of established companies, entrepreneurs can identify opportunities, develop innovative solutions, and build brands that resonate with consumers. Whether you're starting a new venture or looking to grow an existing one, applying these principles can significantly increase your chances of achieving remarkable success.'

Phind recommends 3 further prompts/questions which provide useful input:

• Are there any specific tools or resources that entrepreneurs can use to reverse-engineer successful business ideas?
• Can you provide more examples of successful businesses that entrepreneurs can study to reverse-engineer their ideas?
• Can you identify the founding entrepreneurs behind the billion-dollar companies mentioned and list the top 3 lessons each would share that they learnt in hindsight that would help start-up entrepreneurs to reverse-engineer their experiences?

Go to Perplexity.ai: Prompt it with - Hi perplexity.. please produce an article with reference links: How To Reverse-Engineer Billion Dollar Business Ideas

Perplexity produced a neat, short, sharp article with these key points (extracts):

1. Identify successful companies to study - Look for businesses that have achieved significant scale and revenue, ideally in the billions.

2. Analyze their business model - Break down how the company generates revenue and profits. Look at their pricing, distribution channels, customer acquisition strategies, and key monetization levers.

3. Understand their competitive advantages - Identify what makes the company unique and hard to replicate. This could be network effects, economies of scale, brand power, or proprietary technology. Understand how they maintain their edge over competitors.

4. Identify underserved customer needs - Look for areas where the company is not fully meeting customer demand. What pain points or desires are not being addressed? This represents an opportunity to innovate and potentially disrupt the market.

5. Adapt and apply to your own context - Take the insights from your analysis and brainstorm how you could apply similar principles to your own business idea. How can you deliver a better solution to customers? What unique advantages can you build? Don't just copy, but creatively adapt the model to your own context.

I was particularly impressed by their recommended questions, e.g. - 'what are some examples of successful businesses that have been reverse-engineered' - which takes one on an informative journey. Again, do the exercise for yourself.

Extra resources:

The following search list was stimulated by Linas Beliunas newsletter - Top resources for building and scaling billion-dollar startups ?? (substack.com)

1. A brilliant guide on how to properly do seed fundraising - Google Search
2. The ultimate guide to fundraising for first-time founders - Google Search
3. The best pitch deck template from the backers of Apple, Airbnb, Nubank, Stripe, etc. - Google Search
4. Pitch Deck Examples From The Most Successful Companies Ever. Build Yours for 2024 | by Daniel Charron - Founder & CEO at EasyUser | Medium
5. The step-by-step founder’s guide to financial modeling so you can raise more money from VCs - Google Search
6. 200+ page deck of vital venture and startup insights invaluable for all startup and VC ecosystem builders (valuations, fundraising, exits, etc.) - Google Search
7. A guide to venture capital term sheets that teach you how investments can be structured, the typical terms and terminology used in a term sheet, and the broader investment process - Google Search
8. A 64-page study to master how venture capitalists make decisions (so you could better understand what VCs do and why they have been successful) - Google Search
9. 10 more top resources for startup founders, CEOs, investors & VCs - Google Search

Previous issues that focus on AI that you should deep dive into:

• Issue 70: AI: Everybody Must Ask Questions!
• Issue 69: AI & First Principles: Generate New Ideas. Refresh Old Ideas.
• Issue 68: AI: Let The Good Times Roll!
• Issue 67: Are YOU using AI as YOUR personal Ideas-Generating Machine?
• Issue 66: AI: Holds More Information & Knowledge Than Any Human
• Issue 65: AI: Open 'University Of Success'
• Issue 63: AI: Does 'Smarter' Technology Make Us 'Dumber'?
• Issue 61: AI: Explore POSITIVE Ideas To Put An End To The Horrors Of War
• Issue 60: AI: A Blessing or A Curse? YOU Decide!
• Issue 59: AI: We Have Seen The FUTURE.. and We LIKE It!
• Issue 58: AI: Show Me The Money!
• Issue 57: Creative AI Thinking - for new ideas, novel ideas & to improve raw ideas
• Issue 54: Why A.I. is too important to ignore. Do not wait until it is too late.
• Issue 52: A.I. vs. Old-Fashion Book Summary
• Issue 48: A.I. - an ABUNDANCE of IDEAS ..don't let A.I. pass YOU by (part 2)
• Issue 41: CORRUPTION is killing our world. Let's put AI to the task of stopping it.
• Issue 40. AI just became very real. Don't let this breakthrough idea pass YOU by.

If you're new to us it is recommended that you read issue 1: One Idea is All it Takes

About:?Trevor Nel is an 'ideas-generating machine' and co-founder of WISDOMS?. You can connect with WISDOMS? and become: 1. a PATRON and/or; 2. a PLAYER , and/or; 3. a PARTNER - follow each link for more info.

Next week:

Trevor Nel?is author of One Idea Is All It Takes and numerous publications & articles, including:

1. Another GREAT Day in Africa!
2. Confessions of a SERIAL Entrepreneur
3. Here's How To Be Well-Prepared For YOUR Cycles Of Success
4. Here's How YOU Can Make A Meaningful Difference In Other People's Lives
5. COMRADES Marathon: Metaphor For The Marathon Of Life
6. Riding the wild, wild River Of Life
7. Life Lessons Learnt as a Dusi Rat
8. Some simple life lessons learnt from 50 Midmar Miles

This post is brought to you by Trevor Nel co- developer of WISDOMS? DifferenceMakers? In Every City - https://lnkd.in/dABaNAcv - in collaboration with 1idea? - https://lnkd.in/dUytHMTj - the digital newsletter that explores the simple idea that just one idea can be all it takes to change YOUR entire life & business.

Coming soon.. to WISDOMS? DifferenceMakers? In Every City of the world: Preview the "Milliondollarize? Your Business Ideas"? masterclass - https://lnkd.in/d9Fkt72t - and learn how to turn YOUR ideas into profitable ventures. Discover the secrets to creating and executing million-dollar ideas in this exclusive masterclass, designed for aspiring entrepreneurs and business leaders seeking a transformative experience.