# The problem market

> Source: <https://herbertlui.net/the-problem-market/>
> Published: 2026-07-30 03:11:00+00:00

When I was in university, my friends and I competed to get good summer jobs.

One of my friends stood out though. He successfully applied for a grant from the local government, bought power washing equipment, and washed driveways around the neighborhood. There was so much business that he even got to hire a few of our other friends.

This friend didn’t look for a job, [he looked for a problem](https://herbertlui.net/the-night-i-became-an-entrepreneur/).

The job market has generally always been competitive. AI has made things more so. Even top talent will need to compete harder for a good job, and they’re subject to market forces.

On the other hand, the problem market is wide open, and [always growing and changing](https://herbertlui.net/the-future-of-work-is-made-up/). Instead of competing with AI, finding a problem means you can hire it to build a solution.