Ideabrowser
Daily curated startup ideas backed by trend data, market sizing and AI research agents
Scraping Reddit/search trends and having an LLM draft a business-opportunity writeup per idea is a weekend build. What's genuinely hard to replicate is the editorial curation, the accumulated database of 1,000+ pre-researched ideas, and the trend-signal pipeline built up over time. A DIY version can generate plausible-sounding ideas on demand but starts from zero data and zero curation.
Build verification: not recorded. How we judge buildability
What you give up
- 1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas
- historical trend database and idea archive
- AI Research Agent for arbitrary custom ideas
- community, coaching and Q&A strategist sessions
- data exports and idea-suggest personalization
Why people still pay
Builders pay to skip the research grind: a constantly refreshed, pre-vetted idea backlog plus market sizing is worth more to them than the marginal cost of prompting an LLM themselves, especially since the curation quality is hard to bootstrap solo.
Your build guide
The stack, security requirements, and agent rules for a focused replacement.
Before you start
- A supported Node release, a writable local data directory and a separate backup location. Bind to localhost; remote use requires authentication and HTTPS first. Optional AI generation needs a provider key, a usage budget and approval to send the selected material.
- Implementation components: Node.js, TypeScript and Express with server-rendered HTML and small browser modules. SQLite through better-sqlite3 with migrations, prepared statements and a single background worker. A single provider SDK with a configured supported model, schema-validated responses and revisioned prompt templates.
- Scope boundary: 1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas; historical trend database and idea archive
Use these project rules and optional skill references alongside the prompt. Review each skill before adding it to your agent; the AGENTS.md export includes the same guidance.
Optional external skill: copywriting — Write landing pages and product copy grounded in the intended audience, product value and a clear next action. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Optional external skill: web-design-guidelines — Review web interfaces for accessibility, keyboard focus, forms, navigation and interaction quality. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Optional external skill: sharp-edges — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Project rule — data model: permitted trend observations, discussion excerpts, source dates, idea hypotheses and reviewed briefs
Project rule — preserve this invariant: Discussion volume does not establish market size or willingness to pay; unavailable sources remain missing instead of fabricated.
Project rule — acceptance evidence: A brief with three source excerpts cites all three correctly; removing a source marks dependent demand claims for review.
Implementation plan
Phase 1
Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Import selected public trend data or user-supplied discussions, cluster recurring problems and draft a market-opportunity brief. Link every demand observation to its source and mark proposed solutions as hypotheses. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: 1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas; historical trend database and idea archive
Phase 2
Durable model. Model permitted trend observations, discussion excerpts, source dates, idea hypotheses and reviewed briefs Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: Discussion volume does not establish market size or willingness to pay; unavailable sources remain missing instead of fabricated.
Phase 3
Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
Phase 4
Permissions and integration failure. Reject unexpected origins and unbounded request bodies even on localhost. Keep credentials outside the database export and redact sensitive text from logs. Treat source documents as untrusted data, prevent them from changing tool permissions, and require review of factual claims before publication. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results.
Phase 5
Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README.
Phase 6
Acceptance scenarios. A brief with three source excerpts cites all three correctly; removing a source marks dependent demand claims for review. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder.
WORKING SLICE Import selected public trend data or user-supplied discussions, cluster recurring problems and draft a market-opportunity brief. Link every demand observation to its source and mark proposed solutions as hypotheses. Build this scoped Ideabrowser-inspired workflow with a documented data model and visible failure states. Architecture - Node.js, TypeScript and Express with server-rendered HTML and small browser modules. - SQLite through better-sqlite3 with migrations, prepared statements and a single background worker. - A single provider SDK with a configured supported model, schema-validated responses and revisioned prompt templates. Prerequisites and limits A supported Node release, a writable local data directory and a separate backup location. Bind to localhost; remote use requires authentication and HTTPS first. Optional AI generation needs a provider key, a usage budget and approval to send the selected material. Outside this release: 1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas; historical trend database and idea archive Data model and correctness permitted trend observations, discussion excerpts, source dates, idea hypotheses and reviewed briefs Invariant: Discussion volume does not establish market size or willingness to pay; unavailable sources remain missing instead of fabricated. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them. Security and privacy Reject unexpected origins and unbounded request bodies even on localhost. Keep credentials outside the database export and redact sensitive text from logs. Treat source documents as untrusted data, prevent them from changing tool permissions, and require review of factual claims before publication. Recovery and export Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Implementation order 1. Phase 1 — Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Import selected public trend data or user-supplied discussions, cluster recurring problems and draft a market-opportunity brief. Link every demand observation to its source and mark proposed solutions as hypotheses. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: 1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas; historical trend database and idea archive 2. Phase 2 — Durable model. Model permitted trend observations, discussion excerpts, source dates, idea hypotheses and reviewed briefs Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: Discussion volume does not establish market size or willingness to pay; unavailable sources remain missing instead of fabricated. 3. Phase 3 — Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them. 4. Phase 4 — Permissions and integration failure. Reject unexpected origins and unbounded request bodies even on localhost. Keep credentials outside the database export and redact sensitive text from logs. Treat source documents as untrusted data, prevent them from changing tool permissions, and require review of factual claims before publication. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results. 5. Phase 5 — Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README. 6. Phase 6 — Acceptance scenarios. A brief with three source excerpts cites all three correctly; removing a source marks dependent demand claims for review. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder. Acceptance A brief with three source excerpts cites all three correctly; removing a source marks dependent demand claims for review. Use real source data or clearly labeled fixtures. Explain unsupported input and provider failures; do not fabricate analytics, delivery receipts, accuracy claims or security guarantees. Optional agent guidance Optional external skill: [copywriting](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/skills/copywriting/SKILL.md) — Write landing pages and product copy grounded in the intended audience, product value and a clear next action. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission. Optional external skill: [web-design-guidelines](https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills/blob/main/skills/web-design-guidelines/SKILL.md) — Review web interfaces for accessibility, keyboard focus, forms, navigation and interaction quality. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission. Optional external skill: [sharp-edges](https://github.com/trailofbits/skills/blob/main/plugins/sharp-edges/skills/sharp-edges/SKILL.md) — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission. Project rule — data model: permitted trend observations, discussion excerpts, source dates, idea hypotheses and reviewed briefs Project rule — preserve this invariant: Discussion volume does not establish market size or willingness to pay; unavailable sources remain missing instead of fabricated. Project rule — acceptance evidence: A brief with three source excerpts cites all three correctly; removing a source marks dependent demand claims for review.
$ open in your agent (prompt prefilled, you press enter), copy the prompt or copy or download AGENTS.md
prompt copied. want to know what dies next week?
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Alternatives to building your own
no votes, no pay-to-list · just what's real
Ideabrowser pricing
starter$41.58/mo · annual effective per month · $498.96/yr
free tierFree plan gives one fully-researched Idea of the Day with full market analysis, but no access to the searchable database or AI tools.
pricing source checked 2026-08-10 · pricing source ↗
Questions about Ideabrowser
Can you build your own Ideabrowser with AI?
Partly. Scraping Reddit/search trends and having an LLM draft a business-opportunity writeup per idea is a weekend build. What's genuinely hard to replicate is the editorial curation, the accumulated database of 1,000+ pre-researched ideas, and the trend-signal pipeline built up over time. A DIY version can generate plausible-sounding ideas on demand but starts from zero data and zero curation.
What does the Ideabrowser build prompt cover?
The prompt starts with this scope: Import selected public trend data or user-supplied discussions, cluster recurring problems and draft a market-opportunity brief. Link every demand observation to its source and mark proposed solutions as hypotheses. Full-product capabilities excluded from the comparison include: 1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas; historical trend database and idea archive; AI Research Agent for arbitrary custom ideas. Follow the implementation plan and its prerequisites before expanding the build.
How do I use the prompt, AGENTS.md and agent skills?
Start with the Ideabrowser prerequisites and stack, then copy the prompt into your coding agent. Save the project rules as AGENTS.md in the project root. Linked skills are optional packages or source instructions for specific tasks; review their current contents and install only those matching the chosen stack. A skill does not supply API credentials or verify the finished app.
How long will this Ideabrowser project take?
The catalogue estimate is one sitting for the limited scope. Setup, integration approvals, debugging, deployment and ongoing maintenance can add time. This is an estimate, not a delivery guarantee.
What would I give up by replacing Ideabrowser?
1,000+ already-curated and human-vetted ideas; historical trend database and idea archive; AI Research Agent for arbitrary custom ideas; community, coaching and Q&A strategist sessions; data exports and idea-suggest personalization. Builders pay to skip the research grind: a constantly refreshed, pre-vetted idea backlog plus market sizing is worth more to them than the marginal cost of prompting an LLM themselves, especially since the curation quality is hard to bootstrap solo.
What price is this guide comparing against?
The recorded Starter plan is $41.58/mo (annual effective per month), checked 2026-08-10. Check the linked pricing source before buying. Building your own also has hosting, API and maintenance costs; the recorded amount is not a guaranteed saving.
What can I use instead of building Ideabrowser?
IdeaProof: Free searchable database of startup ideas with market size and viability scores, no subscription. Check each option's license, hosting needs and feature limits.