Block reels/shorts but keep apps usable — selective content filter

Executive Summary

Short-form reels and shorts embedded inside otherwise productive apps are a growing source of lost focus for professionals, parents, and knowledge workers who want the utility of an app without the attention-sapping feed; with platforms folding short-form everywhere, users are increasingly forced to either tolerate endless scrolling or remove useful apps. This problem is felt most acutely by “power” smartphone users who care about time management and by institutions (schools, workplaces) that need reliable ways to reduce distraction without heavy-handed blocks. You could build a selective content filter that blocks reels/shorts while leaving the host app fully usable, implemented as an on-device accessibility/ML layer plus browser extensions where applicable; detection would use UI pattern recognition and lightweight on-device models to identify short-form containers, offering per-app rules, schedules, and one-tap overrides. Monetization is straightforward: a consumer subscription (targeting ~$1/month) and enterprise/licensing pathways, yielding a TAM of roughly $3.6B (300M power users × $1/mo × 12 months) if you capture mainstream willingness to pay. Market timing favors this approach because of an attention-economy backlash, platform feature convergence that expands the problem, and practical advances in on-device ML and accessibility APIs that make privacy-preserving detection feasible. To stand out you must deliver high detection accuracy with low battery/CPU cost, simple UX, and partnerships (OEMs, device makers, schools) rather than relying solely on direct consumer acquisition; be honest that platform restrictions (notably iOS sandboxing), constant UI churn, and the need for ongoing ML maintenance are real challenges that will shape implementation and margins.