cold-start-problem

The Cold Start Problem A framework for starting and scaling products that live or die by network effects — marketplaces, social apps, messaging, and collaboration tools — distilled from Andrew Chen's The Cold Start Problem . Use it to launch products that are worthless until other users show up, to sequence growth network by network, and to navigate the five stages: the cold start, the tipping point, escape velocity, hitting the ceiling, and the moat. Core Principle Network effects start as a liability, not an asset. Value lives in connections between users, and on day one there are none — the same force that makes a dense network unstoppable makes an empty one useless. You don't escape by launching to a market; you escape by building one tiny, complete, self-sustaining network at a time, solving its hard side first, then tipping adjacent networks with a repeatable playbook until the market follows. Scoring Goal: 10/10. Rate launch plans and growth strategies for networked products 0-10 against the principles below. Report the current score and the specific changes needed to reach 10/10. 9-10: Named atomic network with an instrumented magic moment, hard side solved first, repeatable tipping playbook, density/liquidity metrics, explicit ceiling and moat plan 7-8: Clear atomic network and hard-side focus, but tipping tactics are ad hoc or metrics still track totals over density 5-6: Network effects acknowledged, but the launch targets a broad market and both sides are treated equally 3-4: Generic user-acquisition plan; network thinking limited to "add invites and hope it spreads" 0-2: Big-bang launch to everyone at once, vanity signups, no hard-side strategy, no liquidity measures Framework Show more Installs 730 Repository wondelai/skills GitHub Stars 1.6K First Seen Jun 11, 2026 Security Audits Gen Agent Trust Hub Pass Socket Pass Snyk Pass