[itmag]

Many tech guys on HN often ask: what use are business co-founders?

Superior domain knowledge would be one thing. If I'm going to team up with a business guy, I want him to be a top notch expert in his field.

There's a tendency for tech guys to discount domain knowledge, believing that it's just a matter of "hacking something out in a weekend, after all it's just a matter of shovelling data" (I used to fall into this trap myself - now I know the value of domain expertise).

[dasil003]

Domain knowledge is money-printing sauce in so many industries.

I think the reason young hackers often dismiss domain experts is because they associate the idea of domain knowledge with old people who don't get tech. It's true that most old business people don't understand technology, but it's also true that most young hackers have no clue how to make money.

Now if you can combine domain knowledge with the ability to recognize the potential, and have a realistic vision for the novel application of technology, then you have gold. It might not be the most grandiose idea, but it's 3 or 4 orders of magnitude more reliable than trying to be the next Google or Facebook.