This image appears on the first page of a google search for “startup” which I find hilarious, especially since it ironically fits the subject matter of this post, which is about incubating startups. From what I gather, The Startup is about some enterprising tenants who pay to run their entrepreneurial efforts out of the depicted hostel. There are some folks doing this right here in Austin such as Tech Ranch which bills itself as a community of vibrant tech start-ups surrounded by the people, processes and materials needed to drive business success, and Startup District which is based on the idea that new ventures benefit greatly from the camaraderie and serendipity that geographical proximity can provide. Both efforts are being led by local serial entrepreneurs. Getting startups under one roof to share resources and build on each other’s strengths is very valuable, but what about aspiring entrepreneurs with just an idea? Those startups don’t need space, but they do need the encouragement, advice and other benefits the offline incubators provide. Meet YouNoodle, Quirky and Launchly. These sites provide a platform for entrepreneurs to virtually vet their ideas and crowdsource their business models. Quirky charges a $99 submission fee while the other two are free. I think this is an interesting approach to the problem that many startups outside of one of the tech hubs have, which is isolation. That being said, who owns the IP created on these sites? It will be interesting to see if anyone claims infringement after one of these crowdsourced businesses takes off.
