The Cold Start Problem: How to Start and Scale Network Effects

A practical business guide from venture capitalist and former Uber executive Andrew Chen on how tech giants launch world-changing products.
In an information overload environment, simply entering the market no longer guarantees success.

Drawing on his experience at Andreessen Horowitz and real-life cases from LinkedIn, Twitch, Zoom, Dropbox, Tinder, Airbnb, and Pinterest, venture capitalist and former Uber executive Andrew Chen reveals the secrets of network effects, a powerful force that helps new services scale to millions and billions of users.

What are network effects? How to launch a product correctly? How do products compete in a market where every player has them? And why do some startups fail while others win? “The Cold Start Problem” is a practical guide filled with clear principles, effective tools, and vivid cases that will become an indispensable guide for anyone creating the products of the future.