Build or subscribe
Thinking of building your own idea finder?
You can build a tool that reads posts online and pulls out problems worth solving. Before you do, here is what it takes to get the same result Unthinkable already gives you.
What building it involves
Step 1
Collect
Pull thousands of posts a week from many sites, each with its own access rules, fees and limits, and store them without duplicates.
Step 2
Filter
Have an AI model read every post and keep the few that describe a real problem someone would pay to fix. This is where most of the running cost goes.
Step 3
Group and score
Merge posts about the same problem into one idea, then score how strong and how common the demand is.
Step 4
Research
For each idea, look up search demand and its growth, find who already makes money in the space, and estimate what it costs to start.
Step 5
Repeat
Run it all again every week, and fix whatever broke since the last run.
Building it yourself and Unthinkable, side by side
| Step | Build it yourself | Unthinkable |
|---|---|---|
| Getting the posts | API fees, rate limits, blocked scrapers and terms of service to work around on every site | Already collected and kept up to date |
| Finding the signal | Most posts are noise; you pay an AI model to read all of them | Only posts that point to a business, summarized in plain words |
| Turning it into ideas | Grouping, scoring and removing duplicates is a project of its own | Over 3,000 scored opportunities ready to browse |
| Research per idea | Search demand, competitors and startup costs are separate jobs | Included with every opportunity |
| Upkeep | Scrapers break when sites change; runs cost money every time | Maintained for you |
| Use it from your AI | Paste results into a chat | Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor through MCP on Premium |
| Cost | Your time, plus API and AI model usage on every run | From $19.99 a month, or $179.99 a year |
Which one fits you
Build your own if
- You need to study one narrow community or topic in depth, beyond what a general feed covers.
- Building the data pipeline is itself the product you want to sell.
Choose Unthinkable if
- You want ideas to act on this week, not a scraper to maintain.
- You want search demand, growth, competitors and startup costs next to every idea.
- You want your own AI assistant to search researched opportunities instead of raw posts.
Questions
Can I ask ChatGPT or Claude to find business ideas from online discussions?
An assistant can read a handful of pages in one chat, but it cannot collect thousands of posts, follow them over time, or attach search demand, competitors and startup costs to each idea, and its answers change every time you ask. On Unthinkable Premium you can connect the assistant itself through MCP, so it searches researched opportunities instead.
Is it cheaper to build my own pain point scraper?
Rarely. Access to large sites is increasingly paid or blocked, an AI model has to read every post to find the few worth keeping, and each run costs money again. Add the time to build and maintain it, and a subscription that starts at $19.99 a month is usually the cheaper way to get the same result.
What does Unthinkable give me that a scraper does not?
Finished opportunities instead of raw posts: each one comes with the real demand signals behind it, search demand and whether it is growing, the companies already making money in the space, and an estimate of startup costs. There is also a finder for gaps in any city and an AI advisor that knows the full context of each idea.
Does Unthinkable check my own idea?
No. Unthinkable is a discovery tool: it finds opportunities for you. It does not rate or validate ideas you bring to it.
How much does Unthinkable cost?
Basic is $19.99 a month or $179.99 a year. Premium is $39.99 a month or $289.99 a year and adds a smarter AI advisor, more usage and MCP access for your own AI assistant. It works on the web and on iPhone.