I actually don’t invest in anything that is social, mobile, deals or ad networks simply because those are areas where there are so many players and so many other smart people in the space, I feel like I don’t have a competitive advantage. So I tend to go after things that are e-commerce, like healthcare. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
Mint’s business model became, ‘We’ll go for free, and then we’ll find these savings opportunities for you.’ You know, better interest rate on your credit cards, when should you consolidate your student loans, when does it mathematically make sense to refinance your mortgage, and Mint figures all that stuff out for you. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
I’ve actually started a number of businesses in my career. So I’m 28 currently, but when I was about 16, I started building Websites, and that’s how I put myself through school. I went to Duke with a degree in electrical engineering, computer science, computer engineering, and then to Princeton. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
At 16, I started a web development business and had clients from the Netherlands, Caribbean, and across the country – none of whom knew my age because I could conduct all my business with a phone, scanner, and the Internet. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
I consider myself an inventor first and an entrepreneur second. In real life, my hero is Thomas Edison. He was a great inventor, but also an outstanding entrepreneur who was able to sell his inventions to the masses. He didn’t just develop the light bulb; he invented the entire electric grid and power distribution system. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
Tell your idea to whomever will listen, and you’ll get valuable market feedback before writing a single line of code. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
I have always thought of myself as an inventor first and foremost. An engineer. An entrepreneur. In that order. I never thought of myself as an employee. But my first jobs as an adult were as an employee: at IBM, and then at my first start-up. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
Kevin Systrom of Instagram used to work for us as a consultant in the early days of Mint. I knew him a long time ago. Maybe I could have gotten in there. But with photo sharing, I don’t know if there’s an obvious business model. I don’t think there’s a competitive, sustainable advantage. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
I wanted to build a tool for my generation: people 20 to 40 who don’t want to spend time balancing a checkbook or checking multiple financial institutions’ websites. Mint does just that, giving comprehensive, quick insights into a user’s finances from their computer, mobile phone and/or tablet. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
The start-up life kept me busy and surfaced the problem of not being able to stay on top of my personal finances, which led me to invent Mint.com. I was working 80-hour weeks, and had done enough preliminary work and research to know I had a big idea: To make money management effortless and automated. Aaron Patzer Read Quote
