article
In 2011, the founders of Color Labs raised $41 million before launching their product—a proximity-based photo-sharing app. The team, stacked with experienced tech executives, was convinced they’d cracked the code on mobile social networking. They had data from user studies that “confirmed” people wanted to share photos with nearby strangers. They had advisory board members who praised the concept.
What it is
Why it matters
Diagnosis
Misdiagnosis
Refactored solutions
When it could help
How founders and investors collect evidence that supports what they already believe while dismissing signals that the product or market is wrong.
We are not affiliated with Itamar Novick, Simeon Simeonov, or Recursive Ventures. We just like the series and wanted to make it easier to listen to, so this unofficial audio version is available to everyone for free.
Duration
~6 minutes (5K characters)
Release date
Aug 21, 2026