The next big thing – what is it?

Long post ahead! Just letting you know…

Coming up with the next big thing has to be the fastest way to make a million bucks. Not easy by any means, but if you do, there is money to be had, that’s for sure. Today on CNNMoney there is an article about venture capitalists and what they consider to be good start-up ideas. Now, in case anyone isn’t sure what a venture capitalist is, let me break it down for you: a venture capitalist is someone who has, or works for a firm that has, a boatload of money that they use to invest in start-up companies. These guys make HUGE bank.

Anyhow, what the article was about was the start-up company ideas of 20 venture capitalists and the amount they were willing to give to the person who made those ideas a reality…the total amount being $100mm! And that is only 20 of the hundreds of venture capitalists out there telling you what they would invest in ONE idea. That should give you a sense of how much money is out there, and, if you have the right idea or concept in mind, you could help yourself to a few million bucks to make it happen.

Here are some of the ideas that these guys had that I thought were the most interesting (the following is taken from the CNNMoney website, the italicized text being my commentary):

The Ultimate iDrive
A driver’s tech fantasy fully realized: an in-dash computer with a keyboard built into the steering wheel and a full-screen heads-up display projected on the windshield. (Neat idea…apparently this technology is already present in jet fighters, but the automakers are scared to put it in cars since it would be a distraction…I’m sure Eddie Griffin would enjoy this, given his recent incident…maybe he wouldn’t have crashed then…)

They’ll invest: $5 million for a deeply qualified 20-person team to deliver a prototype and a plan for pitching a commercial version to automakers within three years.

GPS-Guided Coupons

GPS-enabled ads and coupons piped to your mobile phone at just the right time and place. (That would get really annoying if they kept coming to your phone every time you go somewhere, but if you could tailor the ads to suit your shopping preferences, then it might be quite cool…)

They’ll invest: $3 million for a demo application and retail partners ready to test

Trip Planning 2.0
Concierge-grade trip planning over the Web. Imagine getting a message on your BlackBerry alerting you that your villa is booked, dinner reservations are confirmed, and a driver will pick you up in an hour for the flight to Belize. It’s not live agents making that happen, but software that taps into the growing number of travel-industry databases – of hotel chains, restaurants, limo services, amusement parks – to assemble smarter, more personalized itineraries than can be found on major travel hubs like Orbitz and Travelocity. (I think some travel agents would have a problem with this…and I don’t know how a machine will be able to replicate the personal touch of a human making suggestions based on experience…)They’ll invest: $5 million to create a working prototype within two years

So those are some of the ideas that venture capitalists had…not too shabby, but at the same time, not revolutionary. You look at ideas like the Internet, cell phones, computers, television…these are things that have revolutionized the way we live our lives…to make it really big, you are going to have to come up with something similar. It is interesting to think about…I have spent many a night with my friends sitting around our the room trying to come up with the next big idea, discussing where it will come from. The tech boom has come and slowly started tapering off…what will the next big industry be? Biotechnology? Automated services? Something we haven’t even seen before? In my opinion, I think that in order for something to be successful, it has to make life easier for people. Look at the Hand Steady, a drink holder that people with tremors can use and not be worried about spilling their drink. This is something that will really help people, and the creator is bound to make a significant amount of money for it.

So what will the next big thing be? A new state-of-the-art backpack that adjusts it’s tension depending upon what is in it, thus saving the backs of the thousands of students across the world that take their stuff to school? A state-of-the-art gaming system that allows you to play basketball but with Kobe’s skills? Or, if we are thinking really badass, a machine that lets you travel through time?

What will the next big thing be? If I knew the answer, I sure wouldn’t be writing this blog from my cubicle at work…;)  

If you have any ideas, post them as a comment. Maybe we can work together and split the profit, 50-50? Sound good?

Cheers,
Taps

Apple blog #1: iChat Mobile – I sure freakin’ hope so…

So, it is now 4 days before Apple’s WWDC, and with all the rumors about what they are going to release flying around cyberspace faster than Britney is popping out babies, I thought it would be about time to write my own Apple related blog. Being a complete Apple guy myself (ask anyone…not the Apple Campus Rep for nothing you know…), I love all things Apple, even the stock (which I told my dad to invest in because with the Keynote coming up on Monday that baby is bound to rise…mark my words, $80/share here we come). It is about time to write about it right?

So, with all these rumors flying around, you don’t know what is fact, what is a rumor based on fact, and what is utter b.s. Now, as Apple has the tendency to keep ALL their new products locked down tighter than Alcatraz (most of the time people working within Apple don’t even know what is going on), tech hounds have to rely on rumor pages, blogs and the like to get some idea of what might be going on inside 1 Infinite Loop. And so here we are, unsure of what Apple will unveil at the WWDC (except a new OS, which is an almost certainty…but even then, with Apple you never know!) and so anything and everything is being thrown out there: An upgrade of the Power Mac, now called the Mac Pro…a 13″ Macbook Pro…new iPod Nano that will replace the shuffle…iPod Nano with more capacity…and a slew of others…but my personal favorite rumor has been all the talk about a possible Apple phone.

Now, as my girlfriend will attest, I am a phone junkie. I am always looking to buy the cool new phone (A.Go: Was considering buying a new one today! Hehe), and if my bank account would allow it, I would probably own 3 or 4. Being both a phone junkie and an Apple junkie, an Apple phone would be perfect (and cost efficient) for me. So I have been reading the blogs, checking the sites, and basically eagerly awaiting Monday’s Keynote (1pm EST) while praying for an Apple phone, because there is something you have to understand – in this day and age, if it is made by Apple, it will be awesome. It will be sleek, classy, user friendly and sync with everything else Mac. So when I am going about my regular routine and checking out CNNMoney.com like always and I see Apple’s new phone: iChat Mobile on the front page, that, coupled with all the talk of the phone, gets me really excited. Mind you, the article is essentially a blog, but come on, it is a CNN freaking blog! According to the article, another website, Engadget (which is displaying the following pic on their site), says this is what the “iPhone” (a name that cannot be used since it is already taken by a VOIP company, so people say it will be called iChat Mobile) will look like:

Now, this phone doesn’t necessarily have what it takes to be an Apple phone, and a few things don’t make sense (like why would you have the camera on the back…how would you video conference? Also, why would you put a iPod shuffle controls on the thing? It would have to be a lot smoother than this…the pic looks like a pretty solid 3D rendering, but not Apple enough in my opinion). But irrespective of all that stuff, this is the closest thing that I have seen to a pretty decent rendering of what the phone could look really look like. That, and the one that Such has on his blog. There is this fake ad that is on YouTube which is also pretty amazing, and I think that this would be far cooler than the above, as unlikely as it seems. As far as I’m concerned, I just want them to release it. They have to at some point…and you know they are working on it. This was proven by an AppleInsider guy (who incidentally has way to much freakin’ time on his hands) that found some interesting code in the latest iPod software:

While Apple has been relatively mum on any plans for iPod-branded cell phone, the latest iPod software includes references to an “t_feature_app_PHONE_APP” application and variables such as “kPhoneSignalStrength,” “clPhoneCallHistoryModel,” prPhoneSettingsMenu,” “prPhoneSettingsMenuView,” prPhoneEnableSetting” and “prPhoneMenuItem.”

The phone references within the iPod software are unlikely in relation to Motorola’s iTunes Music phones because those phones do not run the iPod operating system, the member pointed out in his analysis. The references also appear to be unrelated Apple’s address book syncing.

So, take everything into account and it seems that an Apple phone is coming. Or so we hope. Apple has taken some great strides recently (also announced today: 70% of all new GM, Ford and Mazda cars will have iPod integration built in so you can connect your iPod to the car stereo system…already present in BMW and Mercs), it’s products are becoming something of a status symbol. Should they release a phone, it will fit right in (it better be GSM though…I would be so pissed if it was a CDMA phone). And if they do, talk about the Apple stock going way past $80.

Maybe my dad will buy me the phone with the money he makes off of it… 

Cheers,
Taps

This picture courtesy of CNNMoney…and is one of the coolest renderings I have seen…if it looks like this, well, wow! Big screen and iPod control on one side, phone presumably on the other…done and done.