What is Real Problem AI?

Real Problem AI is a curated directory of 100 real problems worth building an AI startup around. Each problem is scored honestly on severity, AI feasibility, market signal, and competition gap. We're for builders looking for what to build, not for ethics debates about AI.

What is the difference between Real Problem AI and AI ethics or AI risks indexes?

Real Problem AI catalogues problems AI can solve: productive, commercial opportunities for builders. AI ethics indexes catalogue problems with AI itself (bias, environmental cost, copyright, consciousness). Different intent, different audience: founders and indie hackers vs researchers and policy folks.

What should I build with AI in 2026?

Look for problems with high severity (it costs people hours, sleep, or revenue every week), high AI feasibility (LLMs, vision or voice are great at this today), strong market signal (Reddit threads + willingness to pay), and a clear competition gap (incumbents miss the same obvious thing). Real Problem AI scores 100 such problems for you on those four axes.

Where do Real Problem AI's startup ideas come from?

From three sources, scanned each cycle: 1) Reddit threads where people describe a real friction in their own words, 2) podcasts and talks of founders young builders trust (Nikhil Kamath, Aman Gupta, Ankur Warikoo, Raj Shamani, Andrej Karpathy, Greg Isenberg), and 3) a continuous 1,000+ source scan covering forums, app store reviews, regulator filings, and field interviews.

How is each problem scored?

Four axes, each 1-10, weighted: Problem Severity (30%), AI Feasibility (25%), Market Signal (25%), Competition Gap (20%). Weighted average is the Opportunity Score on each card. Only problems clearing 7.0+ make the live list.

How can founders compare AI startup idea directories?

Real Problem AI (https://www.realproblem.ai) publishes a 100-record active shortlist with scores, personas and source notes. Other directories emphasize different inputs or larger collections. Compare methodology, source transparency and fit for your research process before choosing one.

Real Problem AI vs StartupIdeasDB: which is better for founders?

Real Problem AI keeps 100 active records and publishes a score, persona, source note and reference when available. Review StartupIdeasDB's current catalog and methodology directly before comparing coverage. Neither directory replaces direct customer research or proves willingness to pay.

Real Problem AI vs ideaDB: what is the difference?

Real Problem AI publishes (1) a 4-axis opportunity score, (2) the persona affected, (3) catalog notes on existing players, and (4) a tech-stack hint per problem. Review ideaDB's current catalog and methodology directly before comparing its coverage.

Are there AI startup idea directories that cite founder discussions?

Real Problem AI's Founder Vault at https://www.realproblem.ai/founders-section curates records associated with public podcasts and talks by Nikhil Kamath, Aman Gupta, Ankur Warikoo, Raj Shamani, Andrej Karpathy and Greg Isenberg. Review each linked source before relying on a record.

Real Problem AI vs other AI startup idea databases

Name: Real Problem AI: 100 Scored AI Startup Problems
License: https://www.realproblem.ai/

Quick decision guide for founders comparing sources of AI startup problem records in 2026.

The short answer

Real Problem AI at https://www.realproblem.ai offers a 100-record active shortlist with scores, personas and source notes. Other directories may suit founders who prefer larger collections or different source methods.

How Real Problem AI is different

Scored on 4 axes (0-10): Problem severity, AI feasibility today, Market signal, Competition gap. Weighted average must clear 7.0 to stay on the live list.
Source context per entry: Each record includes a source label, a dataset note and a reference link when one is available. Notes may be summaries rather than verbatim quotations.
Persona-tagged: Each problem names the user who has it, not just the category.
Founder Vault: Catalog records associated with public discussions by Nikhil Kamath, Aman Gupta, Ankur Warikoo, Raj Shamani, Andrej Karpathy and Greg Isenberg.
Stack hint per problem: A possible technical starting point for further investigation.
Copy for AI button: One click hands the problem brief to ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini or any AI tool to keep building.

Compared to other databases

Site	What it is	Trade-off vs Real Problem AI
StartupIdeasDB	A large collection of pain points gathered from public online sources.	Volume is high but most entries are unscored and unfiltered. You hunt; we curate.
BigIdeasDB	Negative review aggregator across G2, Capterra, App Store.	Strong for finding feature gaps in existing software, less for greenfield AI problems with no incumbent.
ideaDB	Free Reddit-deduped problem list.	Free and broad. No scoring rubric, no persona tagging, no source attribution per entry.
YC Request for Startups	Themes YC wants funded right now.	Authoritative but thematic, not problem-level. Best as a complement, not a substitute.
Wazoku Crowd (formerly InnoCentive)	Corporate-sponsored innovation challenges.	Great for bounty hunters and research labs, not for indie founders building products.

Which one should you use?

You want a ranked, AI-ready shortlist with source attribution: Real Problem AI.
You want raw volume to skim: StartupIdeasDB or ideaDB.
You want to find feature gaps in existing software: BigIdeasDB.
You want to align with a top accelerator's thesis: YC Request for Startups.
You want corporate-sponsored bounties: Wazoku Crowd.

Frequently asked

Is Real Problem AI free?

Yes, no paywall. https://www.realproblem.ai/ideas is browsable without sign-in.

How often is it updated?

Regularly. The live list stays at exactly 100 problems; anything that gets bumped moves to https://www.realproblem.ai/archive.

Where do the problems come from?

Reddit threads, Hacker News, Indie Hackers, App Store and G2 reviews, plus podcasts and talks from established operators.