The inventor-to-market pipeline is broken — here's what I'm trying to fix
I've been digging into how independent inventors and product designers actually get their ideas to market, and the options are rough:
Licensing companies take 50%+ and you lose creative control
Kickstarter is a launch pad, not a marketplace — once the campaign ends, where do buyers find you?
Cold-emailing manufacturers is a black hole with a 2% response rate
Patent brokers and invention submission companies charge upfront fees with no guarantees
Networking at trade shows costs thousands before you talk to a single buyer
The core problem: there's no place where a creator can just list their product idea and let interested buyers, manufacturers, or investors come to them — on the creator's terms.
That's what I'm building with LaunchSlate. Free to list, no gatekeepers, creators keep 92.5% of every deal. Buyers browse and make offers directly. You decide whether to accept.
Still early — would love to hear from anyone who's tried licensing or selling a product idea. What was the hardest part? What would've made it easier?