The Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is the most basic set of features you can produce in order to solve the problem. It isn't an alpha or a beta release. An MVP really answers the following question:

"What product/service are you building in your first instance that is delivered to customers?"

Getting out of the building and testing your assumptions will allow you to then understand your comprehension of the problem and the needs of your customers.

You can then take this and begin building the minimum features in order to get more feedback on the product. An MVP can be a wireframe, a prototype or a presentation.

The more feedback you get, the more you can start to layer additional value and features onto a product that is both needed and wanted.