Idea First, Company Second
Andreessen: People sometimes say 'I want to start a company' and then work through the process of coming up with an idea. Generally those don't work as well as the case where somebody has the idea first, realizes there's an opportunity, and then just turns out to be the right kind of person to do that.
We had Mosaic before we had Netscape. The Google guys had search working at Stanford. Pierre Omidyar had eBay working before he left his previous job.
We had Mosaic before Netscape. Google guys had search at Stanford. eBay was working before he left his job.
5-10 Years of Chewing
Andreessen: There's a mythology that ideas arrive like magic — like eBay with the Pez dispensers. The reality with the big successes is that the founder has been chewing on the problem for 5 or 10 years before they start the company. They worked on it in school, experimented as a kid. They've been training up to be a true domain expert.
The really smart founders have thought through all the scenarios by the time they raise money. They have detailed answers on every front because they put so much thought into it. The more haphazard founders haven't thought about any of that.
The founder has been chewing on the problem for 5-10 years. They're a true domain expert by the time they start.
The Ideal Pitch
Andreessen: The ideal pitch we receive is — here's the thing that works. Would you like to invest in our company or not? That's so much easier than 30 slides with a dream.
The ideal pitch: here's the thing that works. Would you like to invest? So much easier than 30 slides.