weiss tech house
home contact

Free Ideas


To aid those who do wish to participate, but can’t think of an idea below are some random ideas, which may be useful in stimulating thinking and are not "taken" by anyone. Participants can take ownership of these ideas and flesh them out to be submitted. Participants may optionally contribute to the list by e-mail.

Voicemail greetings
  • Celebrity voice synthesis, licensed
  • Web-based interface...provide access number and password
  • analogy to "ring tones" but for greetings

Cliff notes for key school concepts
  • 1-2 pages each
  • Really clear, accompanying Excel file, etc.

Best Lectures
  • 15 minute google video on top-100 business concepts
  • Available as podcast too
  • Accompanying slide deck

"Chinatown Bus" as van service for other point-to-point destinations
  • Higher frequency, smaller vehicles
  • Leverage existing drivers, carpools?

"chinatown bus" for air charters
  • under-served point-to-point routes
  • Go when full
  • Web-based flight status
  • Priced at about regular commercial fares?
  • Underutilized NetJet capacity?

DIY Space
  • MySpace for DIY projects
  • Materials list, dos/don'ts, photos
  • e.g., painting floors, laying patio, etc.

LifeStage Information
  • Information driven from birth date of member
  • Target BMI, fitness, cholesterol level
  • Life expectancy calculations
  • Retirement calculations
  • Information on peers (net worth, health, family status, other survey results)

One-Choice Retailer
  • Web-based retailer of limited number of product categories
  • Provide profile on your preferences just once
  • Eliminate selection problem by knowing customer really well based on data
  • Provide "one choice" for major products like cell phones, cameras, TV, etc.

Specialty Retailer narrowly focused on a segment (e.g., environmentalists)
  • low variety, minimize search costs
  • everything in store is something you actually want/need and are highly likely to buy

Custom Shed Company
  • On-line design tools
  • Ship anywhere
  • Transparent cost calculator
  • Production system in cost-optimal region (labor, materials, freight)
  • Gardensheds.com with serious technology

Pre-paid dinner reservations
  • Discount meals at restaurants if prepaid at last minute
  • At 7pm each night, restaurants auction reservations for rest of evening

Netbooks
  • Netflix for books
  • Bookrate shipping
  • Direct peer-to-peer mailing (standard cardboard mailer?)
  • Can this be done somehow with no physical operations.

Rent-a-student

Patent-it-Yourself
  • forms/templates
  • outsourcing patent drafting (India?)

Buy with Conscience
  • customer provides political/philosophical profile and zip code
  • service provides profiles of businesses (e.g., environmentalist ==> recommend BP vs. Exxon/Mobil)

Home energy services -- pays your utility bill, invests in energy
  • efficiency technology

Blog Master
  • Recommends/organizes blogs according to interests

Monster.com for Start Ups
  • matchmaker/dating-service for entrepreneurs

Payment clearing house for small international consumer transactions
  • paypal for on-line customers in India, China buying services from West.

Prototypes Quick and Cheap
  • eastern-european model makers

Industrial Design Cheap
  • Rent-a-coder for Chinese industrial designers?

Flyer Design/Printing
  • Source through psprint.com
  • Focus on a subsegment that is profitable and under served
  • Value add is marketing/photography/design
  • One stop

Biodiesel Retailer / Retail Aggregator/Locator

Answering Service / personal secretary service for professionals without "secretaries"

Web-based magazine for new professional school grads -- the first 10 years
  • continuing education
  • career info
  • book reviews

Best Professors
  • best faculty from top 50 schools (nominated by students)

Employer Dirt
  • insider reviews of top 200 employers
  • recruit witty bloggers from within companies

Paid-to-Study.com
  • post actual class assignments from syllabus.
  • Companies bid on having teams use their real problem in the assignment.

Website that can simulate interactive "brainstorming" session for individuals.

Product to stop nail bitting
  • the bad tasting liquid doesn't work

Verifiable online lab notebook
  • patent litigation require bound written lab notebooks as submissible in court
  • arrange something with USPTO to sponsor online, datestamped,verified lab notebook invention documentation.

 

 

University of Pennsylvania
3330 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
weiss tech house
info@tech-house.upenn.edu