---
title: "Do You Know What Problem(s) Your Product Solves?"
section: "Product"
sectionId: "product"
date: "2026-06"
---

*From the Jason Calacanis startup checklist.*

The answer to this question can guide your entire product roadmap. Another way to phrase it: **Why does your product exist?**

Examples:
- Superhuman exists to make email faster
- Uber exists to connect riders with drivers for faster and cheaper rides
- Shopify exists to make entrepreneurship easy on the internet

Ask yourself:
- How important is that problem to your customers?
- How are they currently solving it? (Gmail? Yellow cabs? Excel?)
- How is your solution better than the current solution?

When building a technology company, the answer should always be some combination of **faster, cheaper, and better**:
- Uber helps people get rides faster and cheaper (which is better!)
- Superhuman makes email faster and better (but not cheaper)

Remember: winning founders know this is a race for credibility — do you deliver what you say you will?