Both Ripple and Aeron were examples of people finding bigger solutions by trying to solve a harder, more specialized problem—and then stumbling onto something much more universal. So why not start with the hard problem? Design progresses only when it fits meaningful solutions to new problems. Over time, as our own quality of life improves, the problems get harder to find. That’s what it means for the world to be better and better designed—it means the problems become harder and harder to see. You eventually need new, novel frames of reference to see them—whether that’s by seeing how
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