Note that all the companies he mentions are B2C.<p>I see a strong connection between the importance of "timing" mentioned in this talk with the importance of riding a consumer "wave" mentioned by Justin Kan in his article "Why I Love B2B over B2C". In short, it's difficult to succeed without riding a huge wave. It's difficult to pinpoint waves in the first place because waves are only obvious in retrospect (i.e. when another company has had substantial success already).
Ray Kurzweil has written extensively on the timing aspect. He attempts to identify the necessary prerequisites. I think it's an important question to ask when thinking of a potential startup: "Is the market ready for this?". Then equally important is not squandering that first mover advantage.<p><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/s/402705/kurzweils-rules-of-invention/" rel="nofollow">https://www.technologyreview.com/s/402705/kurzweils-rules-of...</a>