Every business is successful exactly to the extent that it does something others cannot.

In the U.S., we fundamentally need to do new things, which I think is harder for the government to do. And moreover, it is not something our government actually is inclined to particularly do.

All failed companies are the same: they failed to escape competition.

Competition is overrated. In practice it is quite destructive and should be avoided wherever possible. Much better than fighting for scraps in existing markets is to create and own new ones.

You want to be the last company in a category. Those are the ones that are really valuable.

Had the people who started Facebook decided to stay at Harvard, they would not have been able to build the company, and by the time they graduated in 2006, that window probably would have come and gone.

If you think your initial market might be too big, it almost certainly is.