
Ask HN: What opportunities will Covid-19 create? - allanmacgregor
What are the emerging opportunities being created by COVID-19 and the current economic climate?<p>Telehealth or health-related startups are a no brainer and they are seeing a lot more attention and momentum, but I&#x27;m curious to learn HN perspective on less obvious opportunities.
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Scaur
Supermarkets and food delivery

Disinfectant/hygiene products

Sex toys and adult entertainment

Meditation/self development resources (finding purpose)

Webinars and online education

Self organisation tools

Lifestyle/outdoor equipment post quarantine

Chewing gum, lip gloss, deoderant, dental hygiene products post quarantine

Products that quell loneliness or provide comfort, feeling of connection -
chocolate, alcohol, soap operas, music

Online entertainment, especially ones that replicate social connection, like
shared gaming or shared movie watching (check out Whereby.com YouTube video
feature...)

Potentially virtual reality meeting spaces like university campus, conferences

I reckon nearly everyone is struggling with at least one of:

Uncertainty about the future

Feeling of disconnection from others

Disruption in routine, no consistency

Lack of structure, standards, no opportunity to exercise authority or feel as
part of hierarchy

Who can solve these will have a winning product...

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jvdizzle
We're facing massive unemployment that could last an undetermined amount of
time. We have models of previous economic downturns but this one is different
because there is so much uncertainty with this virus.

When UI benefits are exhausted, consumer behavior will change dramatically.
People will come out of this a lot more conscious about what they're spending
money on. The fact that unemployment in the US is expected to peak at 20%
means a lot of the country (and world) will have been affected. How will
consumer demand look for the years to come after the pandemic?

We may not see a quick comeback in terms of employment because companies will
be looking to replace productivity through automation as insurance against
future disruptions. Additionally, small businesses which employed a large
percentage of people will have been devastated by the economic shutdown. Many
will have folded and won't be there when the economy resumes again.

In terms of socialization, bars and restaurants aren't going to magically
reappear. It's going to take time, years in some areas, to rebuild downtown.

I think one thing is for certain: there are a lot of opportunities for tech to
fill the gaps, but it won't be the same consumer world as it was before the
pandemic. It's hard to predict what exactly those opportunities are-- this is
uncharted territory.

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Spooky23
I think the old school office will be dead. Processes that employ thousands
will be automated away.

Cities are screwed.

Banks will be loaded thanks to bailouts and further consolidate.

You may see a leftward political swing and unrest as safe healthcare,
education, insurance, government and corporate jobs get zapped.

Some of these effects will be cascading. Millions of people will be off COBRA
in a couple of months. Those health insurance premiums that keep hospitals,
doctors, pharmacies, and insurance people employed will create a trickle down.

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matheweis
Womply has a ton of data that they’re sharing openly about how covid-19 is
affecting businesses. Spoiler, as you suspect not all are down:

[https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1IUTHX2kTagUUV88HUJCk...](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1IUTHX2kTagUUV88HUJCkp_P6iZgLCXXVHD9UeOwU_1w)

[https://www.womply.com/blog/data-dashboard-how-
coronavirus-c...](https://www.womply.com/blog/data-dashboard-how-coronavirus-
covid-19-is-impacting-local-business-revenue-across-the-u-s/)

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BjoernKW
The somewhat obvious ones are remote work finally becoming a mass phenomenon -
with everything that entails from tools to necessary cultural changes - and a
huge increase in further automation.

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rayhendricks
As there are more people who will not be able to pay their rent in June and
July, I am building a website that will connect people with tax-subsidized
housing via the MTFE exemption because the current website in Seattle is not
entirely functional IMO.

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DeathArrow
Real estate: buy when market will be low.

I'm sure there are some opportunities in stock market, financial sector,
Forex, but I am not knowledgeable about those sectors.

IT: collaboration and automatization processes.

Commerce: online stores.

Services: food delivery, goods delivery

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hackermailman
Opportunity for architects to rid of us of those horrible developer open
office warehouses, and bio-research revolution will officially kick off to
crush the industrial and information revolution.

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scared2
I expect a lot of research fund in areas related to epidemic

