What is Real Problem AI?

Real Problem AI is a curated directory of 200+ 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 200+ 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.

Is Real Problem AI free?

Yes. Browsing every problem, opening every score breakdown, raising your hand on a co-founder match, and the founder vault are all free. There is no paywall.

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.

Why does an 8-state LLC mean logging into 8 different government websites every spring?

Multi-state LLCs and foreign-qualified entities file annual reports, pay franchise tax, and maintain registered agents across 50 different state portals, each with different fees, formats, due dates, and revocation rules.

Category: LegalTech & Compliance · Trend: Agents · Opportunity score: 8.3 / 10

What is the “Why does an 8-state LLC mean logging into 8 different government websites every spring?” problem in 2026?

Who has this problem?

Solo founder, fractional GC, or small-firm paralegal managing 5 to 50 entities.

Evidence this problem is real

“My e-commerce LLC is registered in Delaware and foreign-qualified in 8 states because of sales tax nexus. Every year I log into 9 SOS portals. California wanted $800 franchise tax I forgot, Texas wanted a Public Information Report by May 15, Tennessee charged $300 in penalties before I noticed. I just want one dashboard and one ACH pull.”

Sourced from r/smallbusiness and r/Entrepreneur threads on annual report filings after entity revocation scares.

Existing players in this space

Northwest Registered Agent, Harbor Compliance — Manual operators with software bolted on, expensive per state.
LegalZoom Compliance Calendar — Reminders only, does not file.
Stripe Atlas — Forms the Delaware entity, hands off compliance.

What existing players are missing

A browser-agent service that holds state portal credentials, files all 50 state annual reports, foreign qualification renewals, and franchise tax forms automatically, predicts the next year's fee changes from state budget bills, and warns about revocation 30 days out.

How Real Problem AI scores this opportunity

Aggregate score: 8.3 / 10. Four-axis rubric:

Problem severity: 7 / 10
AI feasibility today: 9 / 10
Market signal: 9 / 10
Competition gap: 8 / 10

How to build a solution: stack hints

Browser agent for 50 state SOS portals
Franchise tax calculator per state
Registered agent change automation
Entity revocation risk model