The Startup Ideas Podcast

Greg Isenberg
  • 4.7 (217)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Get your creative juices flowing with The Startup Ideas Podcast. Published twice a week, we bring you free startup ideas to inspire your next venture. Hosted by Greg Isenberg, CEO of Late Checkout and former advisor to Reddit and TikTok. Subscribe so you don't miss out. For more startup ideas, we created a database of 30+ startup ideas you can take at https://gregisenberg.com/30startupideas

  1. 9h ago ·  Video

    You are using Claude Fable 5 wrong

    Get my Fable 5 prompt pack: https://startup-ideas-pod.link/fable5-prompt-pack In this episode I break down how to get the most out of Fable 5, the most powerful model I've ever used. I move past the benchmarks and go straight into tactical use cases, copy-and-paste prompts, and startup ideas you can build today. I walk through tournaments for copy and landing pages, an interview-before-build workflow that hunts for product-market fit, and ways to point Fable at contracts, churn data, and years of your own notes. I close with three of my favorite startup ideas — a synthetic focus group firm, 48-hour custom software, and a contract refund firm — plus the exact prompts behind each. My goal here stays simple: leave you ready to build and earn with Fable 5 while it remains included in your plan. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro 02:22 – Anthropic Employee Edits a Launch Video With Fable 05:50 – Building an AI Content Engine 07:30 – Best way to configure Fable 5 08:42 – Prompt 1: Copywriting Tournament for Landing Pages 13:18 – Prompt 2: The Interview-Before-Build Prompt 18:34 – Prompt 3: Hire Fable to Kill Your Company 20:18 – Prompt 4: Your One-Page Operating Manual 21:20 – Prompt 5: Find the Gaps Worth Filling 22:06 – Prompt 6: Negotiation Simulator 23:11 – Prompt 7: The 80-Page Second Opinion on Contracts 24:56 – Prompt 8: Make Fable Build Its Own Tools 25:47 – Startup Ideas 31:23 – Closing Thoughts Key Points I show why low effort is the alpha, since Fable Low beats Opus High on routine work. I run tournaments — landing pages and ad copy scored by AI judge panels — to ship far stronger output. I use an interview-before-build prompt so Fable pushes back and writes specs with real product-market-fit odds. I point Fable at big datasets — contracts, churn data, support tickets, years of notes — to surface money and patterns. I share startup ideas Fable 5 makes viable today, including a synthetic focus group firm and a contract refund firm. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

    33 min

  2. 2d ago ·  Video

    What are Agentic Loops?

    S/o Coderabbit for sponsoring today’s vid: https://startup-ideas-pod.link/code-rabbit On this episode I sit down with Professor Ras Mic to break down agentic loops. We define what a loop is, explain why well-known builders like Boris and Peter swear by them, and stay honest about who they truly serve. Mic argues that human-in-the-loop remains the strongest setup today, and he walks through the one loop he runs every day for code review using Cursor, GitHub, and Greptile. By the end you will know when a loop earns its place and when your own hand belongs on the wheel. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro 01:23 – What is a Loop 07:59 – /goal Explained 11:32 – The Slop Machine 12:42 – Code Review as a use case for Agentic Loop 18:19 – Honest Take for Builders 20:42 – The Future of Loops 21:50 – Closing Thoughts Key Points A loop fires once from a human, then the agent generates, reviews its own result, and feeds it back to keep building. Human-in-the-loop keeps you directing, governing, and approving each step while the agent builds. Wide-open loops make heavy assumptions and burn serious tokens; Michael cites Peter's tweet about $1.3 million worth of tokens in one month. Reserve slash goal and similar loops for the $200/month plan, since the $20 and $100 tiers burn through fast. Loops shine in confined, fixed-feedback work: code review, SEO pages, and other binary tasks. Mic’s daily win is a closed code-review loop with Cursor, GitHub, and Greptile that chases a 5/5 score. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/ FIND MIC ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://x.com/Rasmic Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rasmic

    23 min

  3. 3d ago ·  Video

    Become AI Native in less than 60 mins

    Become an AI Native Organization: https://startup-ideas-pod.link/ai-native-org In this episode I sit down with Theo to unpack what becoming AI native truly means. We define an AI native org as people managing agents, agents reading and writing to the company, and the company growing smarter over time. Theo opens his actual workflows, walking through a working prototype, an auto-generated client proposal microsite, and a live usability test that synthesizes feedback into a V2 in one session. We close with service-business startup ideas built on this same system, plus a free consultation offer for larger companies. For founders and operators, the value lands as a concrete playbook for turning speed into customer signal and a durable moat. Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro 04:09 – The Demis Hassabis origin story 06:53 – Defining AI Native Organization 08:19 – Mapping the system: people, agents, context 09:18 – Why people lead: strategy, taste, trust 13:23 – Agents: models using tools in a loop 16:12 – Evals and defining "good" 17:34 – Skill chains explained 20:06 – Proposal skill-chain demo setup 25:48 – Proposal microsite walkthrough 30:46 – Building the Daily Blitz feature demo 32:50 – Context as the foundational layer 41:07 – Daily Blitz ships and the labs page 43:47 – Bootstrapping context with a small team 46:21 – Usability test and live feedback 51:18 – Startup ideas: productize the system 54:28 – Closing Thoughts Key Points An AI native org runs on three layers: people for judgment, agents for execution, and context as the shared brain. Everyone becomes a manager, so I set each agent up with a clear goal, the right skills, tools, and context. Skill chains fire playbooks back to back, lifting quality and keeping outputs grounded in real data. A living context layer gives agents 2020 vision, letting a personalized proposal ship in minutes. Live prototypes plus built-in usability tests turn raw ideas into customer signal the same day. The fastest service play right now: niche down by industry, function, and company size, then sell this system. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/ FIND THEO ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://x.com/TheoTabah LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theotabah/ LCA: https://www.latecheckout.agency/

    57 min

  4. 5d ago ·  Video

    Hermes Agent App Clearly Explained (and how to use it)

    In this episode, I sit down with Alex Finn for a full, screen-shared walkthrough of Hermes Desktop, the new desktop home for the Hermes AI agent. I open with a clear challenge: by the end, sell me on installing Hermes Desktop, show me real ways to make money and stay productive, and explain his move from OpenClaw. Alex tours every major surface — sessions, profiles, artifacts, skills, cron jobs, and sub-agents — and shares money-saving tactics at each step. We close on the idea that matters most to me: aiming these agents at other people's challenges as the clearest path to real value. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro 04:04 – Sessions and Context Management 06:10 – Profiles Explained 08:49 – Model-Based vs Role-Based Profiles 12:58 – Artifacts as a Second Brain 14:32 – Why Alex Switched From OpenClaw 17:32 – Skills, Tools, and Tool Sets 19:19 – Messaging and Cron Setup 21:44 – Reverse Prompting and the Brain Dump 28:09 – Sub-Agents vs Profiles 32:12 – Putting It Together: Solving Challenges 32:38 – The Daily Business Opportunity Scan 37:05 – Local Models: Mac Studio vs DGX Spark 39:03 – Reframing Cost as Investment 41:59 – The Real Way to Make Money With Hermes 42:51 – Closing Thoughts Key Points Hermes Desktop pulls sessions, profiles, artifacts, skills, and cron jobs into one polished, Apple-style interface. Smart session and context management keeps each message slim and keeps monthly costs low. Profiles map to different models — Opus 4.8 for strategy, ChatGPT 5.5 for coding, a local Qwen model for free research — so each task runs on its best fit. Reverse prompting plus a personal brain dump produces far stronger prompts, cron jobs, and outputs. Sub-agents handle one skill across many parallel tasks; profiles handle work where each step needs a distinct skill set. The biggest opportunity: aim your agent at Reddit and X to surface real problems you are positioned to solve. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/ FIND ALEX ON SOCIAL Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AlexFinnOfficial/videos X/Twitter: https://x.com/AlexFinnX Creator Buddy: https://www.creatorbuddy.io/

    44 min

  5. Jun 4 ·  Video

    Codex Sites Clearly Explained (and how to use it)

    In this solo episode I walk through Codex Sites end to end, building a real internal tool live so you can copy the exact workflow. I open by comparing Codex Sites with one-prompt tools like Replit and Lovable, then construct a Startup Ideas OS board in six prompts. Along the way I cover memory and persistent storage, safe actions, Codex skills, save-gates, and proving the loop so the app updates autonomously. The core promise: by the end you know how to ship a Codex Site that an agent keeps operating for you. This one suits builders who already live in Codex and want self-updating products. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro and Episode Agenda 01:17 – Codex Sites vs Replit and Lovable 04:33 – The Build Plan: Startup Ideas OS 05:08 – Prompt 1: Build the Shell with Sites 07:02 – Plugins Worth Using and Game Studio 08:54 – First Board Review 09:21 – Prompt 2: Add Memory and Show the Data Model 10:56 – Prompt 3: Create Safe Actions 13:25 – Prompt 4: Create the Startup Ideas Admin Skill 14:51 – Prompt 5: Save-Gate and Checkpoints 16:29 – Prompt 6: Prove the Loop from a New Chat 18:10 – Publish, Auth, and Live Updates 20:28 – TLDR: Memory, Safe Actions, Skills 22:40 – The Real Unlock and Closing Thoughts Key Points Codex Sites rewards builders who already live in Codex by updating apps autonomously after launch. Replit, Lovable, and Bolt stay the simpler one-prompt choice; Codex Sites trades that for autonomy and self-updating products. Out of the box you prompt in auth, databases, payments, email, analytics, and a secrets vault yourself. I build a Startup Ideas OS board in six prompts: shell, memory, safe actions, a skill, a save-gate, and a proof loop. Safe actions let an agent call approved buttons and named mutations, so edits flow from any chat. The real payoff is autonomous products that Codex keeps operating and improving on a live URL. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

    25 min

  6. Jun 2 ·  Video

    The Next $100B Market: Selling To AI Agents

    In this solo episode, I break down the shift from a human-first internet to an agent-first one, where AI agents become the customers that discover, evaluate, pay, and recommend. I map the agent buying journey and the new infrastructure agents need: identity, tools, an inbox, memory, a wallet, and receipts. I ground it with concrete examples like AgentMail and Stripe's agent wallet, then show how to make your website agent-readable through structured docs, schemas, MCP tools, and executable actions. I close with rapid-fire startup ideas and my big prediction for the next ten years: build startups for agents. Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro 00:49 – The tweet: build startups for agents 01:47 – Old web vs. agent web 02:24 – The agent buying journey 04:38 – What agents need: identity, tools, inbox, memory, wallet, receipts 05:30 – Examples: AgentMail, Stripe agent wallet, support, procurement, MCP, travel agent 08:24 – Building an agent-readable website 09:31 – What does this change for Startups 11:55 – Rapid-fire startup ideas for agents 13:07 – Closing Thoughts Key Points I explain that AI agents are becoming the primary customers online, with agent traffic set to outnumber human traffic. I lay out the agent buying journey: finding, evaluating, transacting, using tools, and recommending to other agents. I list what agents need beyond what humans need: identity, tools, an inbox, memory, a wallet, and receipts. I walk through real examples like AgentMail, Stripe's agent wallet, support, procurement, MCP servers, and a travel agent. I show how to make a site agent-readable with structured docs, schemas, MCP tools, SDKs, OAuth, checkout, sandboxes, and receipts. I share rapid-fire startup ideas for the agentic era and frame my big prediction: build startups for agents. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

    14 min

  7. May 22 ·  Video

    Google's Biggest AI Announcements (I Was There)

    Live from Google I/O, I sit down with Logan Kilpatrick from the Google DeepMind team to unpack everything Google just announced and what it means for founders, developers, and anyone trying to build with AI right now. We dig into Gemini 3.5 Flash, the new Gemini Omni world model, the expanded Antigravity ecosystem, managed agents in the Gemini API, and the native Android app builder inside AI Studio. Logan breaks down how distillation is pushing Pro-level intelligence into Flash, where the biggest opportunities are for solo founders, and why the agentic era has finally moved from impressive demos to genuinely useful products. Thanks to Google for flying me out to Google I/O and making this conversation possible. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro 00:53 – Gemini 3.5 Flash: The New Workhorse Model 01:49 – How Flash 3.5 Stacks Up Against Sonnet 02:38 – Gemini Omni: A World Model for Any Input and Output 06:18 – Building a Content and Creator Layer on Omni 08:21 – What to look forward to 10:53 – Google Spark and Managed Agents 14:00 – The Agentic Era and Requests for Startups 17:17 – The Antigravity Ecosystem Overhaul 18:51 – AI Studio vs. Antigravity: Vibe Coding vs. Agentic Engineering 21:31 – Native Android Apps Built Inside AI Studio 23:44 – Closing Thoughts Key Points Gemini 3.5 Flash ships as a Sonnet-level workhorse model tuned for long-running agentic tasks, coding, and tool use, available on day one to 900M+ Gemini app users. Gemini Omni is a single model that takes any input and produces any output across video, image, audio, and music, fusing Veo, Nano Banana, Lyria, and TTS into one system. Managed agents in the Gemini API let builders ship agentic products with a single API call, using skills and markdown instead of writing orchestration code. The Antigravity suite now spans an IDE, agent manager, CLI, SDK, and API surface, all sharing the same agent harness that powers Gemini Spark. AI Studio targets vibe coding and now builds native Android apps for free, while Antigravity targets production-quality, million-line-codebase engineering. The cost of intelligence keeps dropping thanks to distillation, opening up smaller markets that previously needed a 40-person team and venture funding to address. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/ FIND LOGAN ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://x.com/OfficialLoganK Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LoganKilpatrickYT LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/logankilpatrick/

    26 min

  8. May 18 ·  Video

    9 Huge Startup Opportunities in the AI Boom

    I sit down with my friend Jonathan Courtney, a.k.a. Jicecream, to dig into the 9 biggest startup opportunities I see right now across B2C, AI, mobile, and IRL. We each pick ideas, trade reactions, and pressure-test them live. The conversation ranges from agent-first "action apps" to elder tech, third spaces, hobby retreats, pet health, AI-native media, and the case for selling AI "junior employees" to small businesses. Listeners walk away with a concrete map of where to build in 2026, plus the framing I use to decide which niche is worth marrying. Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro 01:14 – Idea 1: Unscripted Creator Shows (Twitch model for tech) 07:50 – Idea 2: Action Apps: AI Agent Native Apps 16:39 – Idea 3: Loneliness and IRL Communities 26:47 – Idea 4: Elder Tech: Building for 65+ 33:21 – Idea 5: Adult Hobbies 38:17 – Idea 6: AI Employee and AI Agents 45:33 – Idea 7: Personalized Nutrition/Health 53:08 – Idea 8: Pet Health and AI for Animals 57:34 – Idea 9: AI-Native Media Companies Done Right 01:03:18 – Stacking Ideas: Live + Retreats + Entrepreneurs 01:07:22 – Final Thoughts The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/ FIND JONATHAN ON SOCIAL Unscheduled CEO Podcast: https://www.unscheduledceo.com/ X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jicecream LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-courtney-4510644b/

    1h 8m
See All (349)

Hosts & Guests

4.7
out of 5
217 Ratings

About

Get your creative juices flowing with The Startup Ideas Podcast. Published twice a week, we bring you free startup ideas to inspire your next venture. Hosted by Greg Isenberg, CEO of Late Checkout and former advisor to Reddit and TikTok. Subscribe so you don't miss out. For more startup ideas, we created a database of 30+ startup ideas you can take at https://gregisenberg.com/30startupideas

Information

  • Creator
    Greg Isenberg
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    349
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © The Startup Ideas Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Startup Ideas Podcast

You Might Also Like