(Talia Herman for The New York Times)

(Talia Herman for The New York Times)

Startups often begin around a pain point. For Jake Anderson (MBA 2010), that point was a painful one: Due to a preexisting medical condition, he and his wife Deborah Bialis had trouble conceiving. After several unsuccessful fertility treatments and thousands of dollars, the couple realized how difficult it was to find and compare information about clinics, doctors, and other care providers. “It attacks you emotionally in a way that’s hard to fathom,” Anderson told the New York Times. “When you think you’ll be a parent someday and then realize it may not happen, it’s a crisis. It can drive a wedge between partners, and emotionally it is pure hell.” As seen in a recent Alumni Bulletin story, the couple’s experience led them to leave their jobs and start FertilityIQ, a website that uses a database of verified, anonymous user reviews to make information more accessible in a small, specialized, personal corner of the medical world. Despite offers of investment, Anderson and Bialis have continued to self-fund the site. “Communities and networks are the most valuable businesses in the world,” said Anderson, a former partner at Sequoia Capital. “In the early years, they all build an audience, not revenue. The good ones are rewarded for patience and not trying to monetize early.”

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