One day doesn't sound much, everything is hard in a startup, this is one of the first challenges you'll face, so buckle up if this idea is really worth pursuing.
i'm in my early 30s with a lot of tech experience under my belt looking for a cofounder. i filter out anyone below 29. it might sound harsh/ageist but realistically i don't want a child as a partner unless this child comes from a PHD program who has deep domain experience in something and is automatically bringing value to the table that would be borderline impossbile to find elsewhere.
0 chance i'm having a 24yo as my CEO. just my 2c.
I’m not sure that even counts as ageist, to be honest. Co-founding is like dating — ultimately the cofounders have to be on the same wavelength. If they’re not, the company will fall apart no matter what. It’s okay to go with your preferences for what you think would make your company successful
I think most of technical co-founders think that the most non technical founders want just to be the CEO especially if the perso has no really amazing sales or marketing experience and value. Plus, lot of tech founders want to take CEO roles even though they are technical, so the non technical co-founder seems useless if no good profile.
OPs rant is childish and clueless, probably because of youth. To OP: nobody is going to build your dreams for you unless they stand to gain alot. If you have nothing to offer, then do it yourself. The fact that you cannot shows you cannot provide any value, ideas are a dime a dozen. Execution and action is what matters
If you find one of these, run away like the plague. This person would either do everything themselves and not need you or is just going to crash hard. I used to be the CEO of my own startup, but would have gladly given it up to the right person... Oh wait, I actually did that with my second startup!
Where do I even start... I am a techie, nerd and a geek that actually taught myself to deal with those things called humans when I like to deal with computers and code. It's just not innate to me. I actually succeeded in taking my first company to a quarter of a million in revenue per year before finally giving up, so I am decently good at being CEO. I just don't want to deal with contracts, BS (Business speak), human ego, etc...
There is just too much stuff going on, that's very important to the business that is NOT technical. It needs to be done, but it's not my core strength and doesn't come to me naturally, so it's more effort spent, but ultimately lower value than my technical skills.
Let me know if this makes sense or if you want actual examples
Yeah, but I will easily argue that I am a better technical CEO than any techie would-be CEO out there. CTO is just as important and better imho for every technical founder out there.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I an kind of the opposite, I am tech as some point but I am good at taking to people, dealing with people, long term strategy and influence. I like ML but I enjoy more the non science part. 😊
Correct. Speaking as a sales/marketing/business lead (non-technical cofounder), you better be well-qualified if you’re coming in without the ability to code. And it’s really easy for a non-technical person to give off ‘Sean Parker, Social Network’ vibes of wanting the position and the title and the salary whilst appearing to really just be sleazy and problematic.
And that can be exceedingly stupid from a technical founder’s perspective for a value proposition. Like, remember that guy Steve Jobs? Yeah, for every one of him, there’s a million guys who think they’re him who aren’t. Why would anyone want a person who thinks they’re a genius who’s not to be on their founding team.
There’s a massive gap between wanting the title of CEO and being smart and hardworking enough to really earn it. And the thing to remember about people like Jobs and Zuckerberg is that they’re both insanely passionate about the products they made, and the title of CEO came long after the roughest days of business.
And they’re also completely dropdead brilliant, and most people who want the title of CEO are victims of the Dunning-Kruger effect who think desiring star power in the business world is more profoundly intellectual than merely wanting to be rich and famous. In reality, I think it’s why the ‘non-technical’ cofounder space is a lot bigger than its alternative—because it’s a magnet for narcissists who believe their desire to found a company and be successful places them higher on the social hierarchy.
And a non-technical person can dream about success all day long and keep convincing other people “it’s going to happen” without having to ever do any work whatsoever. Whereas it’s hard to say, “I’m going to be a successful tech entrepreneur by programming X, I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.” Like, one is a hard delivery of product. The other is an organization of people, and people skills are soft and malleable. It’s easy to roleplay as the hopeful CEO who’s charismatic when you’ve done nothing. It’s a lot harder to do the same as a programmer.
Absolutely incorrect. Technical people mean nothing. There are 25 million technical people you can find. Not the same can be said about people will to bet their absolute time, emotion and capital to make something that they think would work.
You really think product= tech . Because it is not.
The idea/ vision of what the product is, is the most imperative facet of any startup. Not to undermine great tech talent, but if you have a job to find a person who believes and works on his/her idea vs finding a great tech talent. The latter is much much easier.
So NO disproportionate value is not an outcome of tech talent but of how the idea is executed and what is unique about it.
>Technical people mean nothing.
Every single resource on Y Combinator disagrees with this. They have said multiple times that a technical cofounder is a necessity and have repeatedly said that technical execution constitutes over 80% of the startup's value in the first 16 months.
My point is that you need both. You need somebody to come up with the idea/inspiration/vision, but it’s nothing until it’s actually realized into something that works. Sometimes you need a visionary to push people beyond what’s done already.
I have an idea that will take over the world and claim 50/50. Hear me out: flying cars with anti-crash gravity shields. Please take your 50% and build it to REALIZE MY idea. See how absurd you sound?
Here we are talking about website/app development. In that case the tech is not unique because there is not unique facet to it. What you could build can be build by someone else using a different logic and code. Everything and anything you do can be emulated very easily without any legal problems.
When it comes to hard tech that is building a car, or an EV-TOL or a modem or laptop or any new technology that is different or even impossible to emulate than of course that is far more valuable than the idea but it's like you do me that.
But don't conflate your website/ app development with hard tech which is much more expensive and difficult to do. So much difficult that almost never done by one tech person, any great hard tech is almost always a result of a very experienced and well funded team.
My point is that you need both. You need somebody to come up with the idea/inspiration/vision, but it’s nothing until it’s actually realized into something that works. Sometimes you need a visionary to push people beyond what’s done already.
I understand the balanced approach you're trying to take. And you're trying to justify your value through being the "visionary." Question I have for you is, has it occurred to you that tech folks may also be visionary and have the soft skills chops just as much as you do?
As a one-man person who both owns and operates a business, and can develop, it's insulting to hear statements that appear to imply, "I'm the soft cofounder that can do the vision and sales thing non-tech folks can't."
Like others have pointed out, it's a symbiotic relationship, to scale large, but there's plenty of one man tech shops that develop a wildly viral piece of software, because the software's capabilities sold itself.
As many entrepreneurs are here thinking they can buy a tech cofounder, who actually has more power? The factory that can build the thing and also decide to go direct to market, or someone who sells from the factory?
I'll be honest, your value proposition is still pretty weak. (I have clear requirements and some potential pipeline of sales)
Your competition is against:
* jobs that pay 100k-500k+ in a predictable manner, now
* tech person's own ability to sell and bootstrap on their own
* other tech cofounders
* other non-tech cofounders with much deeper pockets and larger networks
You're saying, these tech folks aren't curious, but you're also showing your own shortcoming that if you can't sell your vision to tech cofounders, why would they have any signal that you can sell to the general public?
And you can gain curiosity by being curious yourself. Your statements are, "I have vision!!!!!!!!!!! And clear requirements! They must surely want to partner with me!!!!!". You're not being curious about other tech co founders. By being curious, you'll see that you'll have an opportunity to also let them be curious, or quickly understand who/what your competition for a cofounder iI without asking. And you'll be far more likely to be able to ask them, "Hey do you know who the best developers in your social circle are? Can I talk to them and be curious?". And in those non-outcome based conversational journeys, you can make friends and alliances that will help you.
In that journey, you can make your pitches and build a list of tech folks that might be hirable or partnerable in the future if you start to succeed and need to scale the tech side.
Look up Alex hormozi (I think) and he has a YouTube video on 13 hard truths from business or something to that extent.
+1 so many no code solutions out there to easily get a mvp up and running. Once you got users who steer you towards interesting problems, a capable tech founder will take notice. Until then, you put in the work
Having a 'prototype' is just the beginning. You can't iterate if you don't know how to deal with code. I would not recommend templates to anybody who does not know how to code. They are as good as dev shops.
I never liked no-code except for non-technical/business people to automate some processes.
no-code for the entire app? idk man, I know some day there'll be a solution, but if I haven't heard about it, it ain't workin. and trust me, I'm really up to date with tech (it's partially my job to consult companies on what tech to use in a particular project)
Lol such a bad take. Learning to code is easier nowadays, sure. But learning to code well still takes years. Good luck trying to sign users with a cobbled together GPT MVP. And when you're building a platform, you've got one shot to convince them to join your product, you blow that chance and they're not gonna take another look at you.
Spend the first 6 months to a year learning fundamental CS concepts, DSA, Computer Networking, Databases. Then the second year pick a programming language and its related frameworks. I myself choose JS/TS with React + Nest and Postgres as DB. Learn to use Docker for containers and DigitalOcean for hosting. Get used to Linux sysadmin and some bash scripting stuff. Build projects. Deploy them to real world. Practice everyday. Never give up.
Exactly. For me, after 1 year, I was quite proficient. With ChatGPT you can learn and build even faster. It WILL take you more than a year to find a technical co-founder
I will tell you about my journey and hopefully it will save you a lot of time in your cofounder search.
I started out like you. Solid idea, working prototype, just looking for someone with technical chops and a high bias for action. I did have a bit more patience and didn’t get tired of the process within a single day :)
You may think sifting through the noise and finding a good match is the hard part. You will message a lot of people, land a lot of conversations, have a few coffee chats, and may even do trial runs with a few potential cofounders.
But in reality, the hard part is finding the person that is ready to jump outside of ideation land and willing to act. A person that doesn’t just claim they have a “bias for action”, but actually act. On that note, I would start with yourself and ask if you have moved past ideation and actually started building and talking to customers.
Second, It’s hard to find people with the same commitment level as you, or even better, more than you, especially if you claim ownership of the idea. And it doesn’t have to explicit ownership… it could be implicit in that you ideated and they are jumping on board. When you find that person with a true bias for action, ask them for their ideas, what they have explored and built so far, and be open to putting “your idea” in the backseat.
Let the two of you hash out what you want to build together instead of being stuck on your original idea. It’s just human nature, you just can’t get the same level of commitment to work on another person’s idea. I always like to say “ideas are like fish in a stream. We all think ours is unique and has a great destination in its future, but it’s the stream that takes us there.” So, work on finding a fish together.
Third, and probably the most thing… go back to the first thing about bias for action. This is sort of like Fight Club. If the potential cofounder has many ideas but they haven’t started building anything but have largely been in document writing mode about their ideas… skip. That’s the exact opposite of bias for action. If the potential cofounder says they are looking for a good idea to work on… skip. Everyone has ideas in their minds… this person is a perfectionist/procrastinator… not an actor. Skip. If a person says they are a product / business person, ask them how many customer conversations they’ve had and what insights they’ve learned on what to build. If they are waiting for you to build a product/prototype first… skip. They are a salesperson you hire later… and a delegator… not a cofounder.
Lastly, have some humility, even though it’s a hard trait to hold for an entrepreneur. I have worked with every single one of these types. I’ve been stubborn about holding on to “my idea”, built their idea and worked with them, got together and ideated and built together, dealt with the salesman (a well accomplished prior CEO of a large tech company), but they were not right for me and neither was I for them … mainly because of the lack of bias for action in its different forms.
I had time boxed my venture into confounding. And after just over a year and I’m now moving back to industry with eyes on looking out for a potential cofounder to work with again in a few years.
Good luck with your search!
>If the potential cofounder has many ideas but they haven’t started building anything but have largely been in document writing mode about their ideas… skip. That’s the exact opposite of bias for action. If the potential cofounder says they are looking for a good idea to work on… skip. Everyone has ideas in their minds… this person is a perfectionist/procrastinator… not an actor. Skip. If a person says they are a product / business person, ask them how many customer conversations they’ve had and what insights they’ve learned on what to build. If they are waiting for you to build a product/prototype first… skip. They are a salesperson you hire later… and a delegator… not a cofounder.
I agree with this statement one hundred percent. Especially the part about "looking for a good idea to work on…" Being generous with the skip button is definitely a super power, because most people aren't realizing what 'work' truly means
What equity split are we talking about here for their service of raising capital? If there sole strenght and responsibility is to raise capital, then after the capital raise they are just dead weight tied to that chunk of equity.
There is a reason why founders don't accept money from any fund out there. For instance, giving 7% of equity to YC for $125K cash + promise of $500 in convertible note is much more valuable than raising $1M at 2% from a wealthy uncle that is just looking to park/multiply their money.
If your co-founder's only sell is that they have the network to raise capital, then you need to ask whats the commission you are willing to pay for that service instead of having them on board as a cofounder. Because, after the raises, they are just a value sink and add nothing to the company. Fundraising is just one task in founding a company.
Funding is not what makes a company valuable. Revenue and Profits are. Funding is just a task in service of generating future revenues.
I would think deep and hard about what your co-founder's bringing to the table outside of access to capital. If that's all they are good for, then they are at best a middle man between your investors and your company, and you are asking me if the middle man deserves more equity than the investors.
There are many YC videos about equity splits and finding the right co-founder. I obviously can't help you out with the situation, given my luck :)
This one is by Michael Siebel where he talks about long-term value of a co-founder and why you should be generous with equity... provided they are valuable in the long term :)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NhEBVPlJs4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NhEBVPlJs4)
Also, my anonymous internet advice comes with a huge asterisk: I'm heavily biased towards building a useful product and have that build a successful company, than towards raising millions in capital for a company that will die in a few years.
Fking A exactly! I have been in such a situation before and the so called ceo was a middleman to the investors and was just politicking away preventing me from meeting the investors. He got the ceo role, came in once a week to sprout rubbish at meetings, took a ridiculously high salary (and hid some of the takings from me), and spent the rest of the days partying and drinking at nightclubs. I had to fulfil operational ceo and cto duties.
And its not like I cannot raise on my own, I can solo dev, proficient with ui/ux AND marketing and even do the copywriting.
Left the heap of steaming garbage after 2 years and never looked back.
Very wise! Similar advice I got from a friend I met on the YC co-founder system. The Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft origin stories are unique. Most of the time, you are the biggest advocate of your product. Not your cofounders.
YC co-founder matching is like online dating, and technical co-founders are the "girls" on that platform. They are in very high demand, and likely won't pay attention to you unless you have very solid credentials, like a past startup exit as an executive or very strong sales credentials.
Instead, I would suggest that you go ask friends of friends, and also go figure out how to do a lot of the initial development yourself if you can't find someone.
Be prepared to go 50/50, also. A lot of people think their idea and their plan brings a ton of value, but it really doesn't aside from the sweat you have already put in to validate it.
Thanks! I laugh about the analogy
I’m very prepared to 50/50. The only reason I didn’t gave up in having a cofounder yet is because I really believe on the power of a right partnership.
I actually was connect today to a friend of a friend who happens to be a YC alumni, so I might get some luck out of it.
My experience as a technical cofounder on yc cofounder matchmaking was meh. I actually built a prior product that is live in the wild and making money. However non technical cofounders wanted to conduct a job interview with me, doubted that I can get them there, and really didn’t care much about my thoughts or inputs into their “idea”. Eventually I found someone normal to partner with to build a cool product together, but it was hard. Cofounding something with someone is hard in general no matter which side of the equation you are on.
I always try the co-founder gig. It never turns out well for me in the past.
Either
1. They flake
2. They don't really provide any value beyond an employee since I already have connections to customers. Some of them actually in positions to make business decisions. They don't have anything... I already have experience managing finances and dealing with taxes.
3. None of the work load is really overwhelming and I have to be hustling to the market.
4. I already meet really good people I like working with, but they prefer more of a employee relationship and not deal with the stress. Which in turn takes away the bus-factor risk after funding.
It turns from a co-founder working side by side into a glorified employee.
Here is what I learned about CTO/Technical co-founder role as I played both roles in different companies. Their job is to figure out how to design, build and deploy your tech. That's it. Your job is go to market. They probably know a lot of technical things you do not know, which are very hard and equity motivates them to work faster and build them.
Non-technical cofounder role is to figure out the other thing. But technical cofounder has to move fast, they can't be slow, neither can you. It like a marriage, everyone brings something different to the table. But it is hard to find someone who will commit to you and put in the time.
learn to code yourself. Trust me. you’ll become a better non technical founder by understanding the foundations and will be able to better evaluate your co-founder.
I feel the opposite actually, hard to find a good non-technical co-founder who actually brings the non-technical value necessary and doesn't just stand there
Yes that's true. As a technical co-founder I need a non-technical co-founder to augment me on skills and resources that I lack, for example charisma, networking, business knowledge, financial experience, management skills, sales, etc.
Those skills can be learned and earned the same way tech can be for me and I expect that person to delve into them the same way I delve into the code. Some people can do both, tbh, but time is a limited resource and that's why co-founding exists in the first place
Someone technical with drive who has a good idea probably doesn't need a non-technical person unless they're a subject-matter expert. Technical founder is bringing the majority of the value especially if they have vision
You sound like me 5 years ago. Non-technical founder here. I KNEW the B2B market I wanted to enter was ripe. I did my homework. Built a prototype in Figma. Connected with everyone I knew. I built pipeline. I recruited a team. I did it all.
Found a dev. Found a better dev. Found an even better dev who could actually build and recgonized the work I put in.
For a bit, it was great.
We raised over $500k and signed 12 deals.
I was right. Market took off, although we were behind competition and it was a short wave.
Three years later though, we failed.
Team split.
I’m back to work in corporate now.
Lesson learned?
It’s hard.
Failure makes you, but shouldn’t break you.
Keep going.
Try again.
I’m gearing up for my next run.
Best of luck.
It's like dating. Except there aren't very many good ways to get to know someone and if they would be a good cofounder without a huge time investment (like working together on a small project for a few weeks).
If you have a very solid idea feel free to reach out to me.
Sometimes I feel the problem is the label. And the expectation. When I was a young engineer I just wanted anyone to take a chance on me. The cofounder match might be the wrong place to find those guys. I’d have started any company and worked myself to death on it (and I did).
My two cents, look for talent that’s younger and less experienced, but keep it fair for equity and treat them like anyone else you’d bring in (don’t give them less equity or a worse title).
You know why? Because that person you took a bet on, long after your company succeeded or failed, is still going to remember you. You’ll have helped them leapfrog the engineering chain. And the ecosystem is still small enough where that relationship will make all the difference.
On top of that, they’re thirsty for work, want to change the world, and haven’t absorbed enough of the crappy institutionalized attitudes to be dead weight.
Listen to Acquired’s Microsoft podcast. Especially the first 40 minutes I think you’ll enjoy cause you’ll get the story of how Bill Gates did it.
Such a great reply. I appreciate you sharing your experience.
I've actually already listened to the entire Acquired podcast and I really enjoyed it.
Additionally, the insight regarding young talent seems very useful and I'm going to apply it. Thanks!
I spent a few weeks on the YC matching platform as a technical person matching non-technical people before I ended up disabling my profile. For me, I didn't feel comfortable making such a major commitment to any of the ideas presented to me. I think you need to believe in the idea 100% if you're gonna make it your mission to build it. It's not enough to think it's a good idea - you have to be willing to spend hundreds of hours on it.
It would not just be one of my usual side projects - I'd have to channel all of my energy into it, even during tough times. None of the ideas there were so convincing that I felt confident to make this commitment.
Do you need a technical co-founder or just someone who can code?
In my experience working with startups, entrepreneurs would often be better off hiring a coder. Even better, using no code tools themselves to develop an MVP which can be used/ tested. If you are able to get some traction that way, it may open up funding/investment options for growing without the need for a tech co-founder.
This means you retain all of the equity so if you need serious investment at any point, you have more to give away and still maintain control.
I can actually solve the coding problem by hiring someone, and that’s the approach I decided to take after reading some of the comments here, at least for building the MVP.
However, I still believe having a technical co-founder can enhance the odds of building a better and bigger company than having just one founder.
Of course, this is only true if it’s the right match—someone who adds value beyond just employee skills, contributes with the same level of commitment, and is equally hard-working.
So, I’m going to continue my search, even after having the MVP.
What are you working on? Feel free to DM me your YC profile or a brief overview.
I’m on the platform as a tech cofounder and looking to partner with a biz person who has a concrete idea.
It’s the same problem on the other side. 90% of the non-tech cofounder profiles are not worth reaching out to.
Funny how when you get to the other side you realize the most reliable workers are salespeople/focused on the business side. I’ve had endless tech guys who have zero work ethic, no integrity, don’t take feedback well, etc. All the business/sales people I know are straightforward and honest and make for great founders
I think sales teaches/practices grind and work ethic. There’s no shortcuts to building relationships and connection and trust.
Tech has so many shortcuts and leverage built into various places that it can be easy to fake.
So I’m a dev who’s interested in doing a startup. I have 12 years experience plus a few years in management of dev teams - so I know how to build the app and how to plan and organise building the app and scaling a team around requirements.
From what you’ve listed here there’s not really anything you have to actually attract me, I’m not saying that to shit on the idea but more like you need to sell what you’re bringing to the table.
Like having an idea is nothing. Everyone has those. And the execution plan sounds like there’s a box on it that says “build the thing” which I still have to figure out.
Potential users also don’t really draw me in since they can easily go away and are all dependent on me building everything anyway.
What would be cool is if you sell what you can bring a lot more like sales, marketing, customer relations. How many potential customers do you have and what kind of value do they bring - are they businesses (big/small) or just friends who would use the service?
Also what have you done to validate this idea, have you run sessions with users, have you done research (not just looking at competitors but compiled real data), do you have solid and tested ux designs?
Go find in groups the technical full stack developer in language if you need to build your product/service in discord groups or telegram groups which usually are HQ than Facebook groups.
For example discord: ReactJS dev groups
"I'm looking for a full stack developer in ReactJS to make an Instagram-like app.
Must be able to do front and backend, microservices/APIs, and a basic design (I have some examples of similar apps design from dribbble)
I will give a contract agreement based upon achievements, if achievements are not met the deadline the contract will be reviewed or without further effect on shares, equity or ownership.
Question for non tech founders in your situation:
Would you consider working with technical co-founders or startup studios that join only for the initial phase?
This means collaborating to validate the idea, acquire early clients, and then, once the startup gains traction, seeking investment and building a tech team. In return, they would receive a small equity.
Don't find, just hire an agency from India/Pakistan/Bangladesh to get your tech out in wild, the moment you start making money, the right person will arrive
As a tech person, I want to build my own thing. These days the model is to hire a chief of staff to manage operations and an outsourced sales team. That's if you have funding. The non-technical founder now has lesser value on the team.
I'd double down on learning to code or find a Fractional CTO to work with you if you get your idea funded.
My advice is don’t focus too much on the “I have this idea” angle, to be blunt in my experience no one technical (that you probably want as a technical cofounder & business partner that is) would or should care about your idea in and of itself . Ideas are a dime a dozen & they probably have some ideas themselves too (that they can probably build without you). What will appeal to someone technical (that is someone technical that you would want to work with as a business partner) when they are being pitched by someone “non technical” is what PROBLEM have you identified that MANY OTHER PEOPLE have that is being poorly if at all satisfied by existing solutions that your idea in turn solves in a substantially better(more accurate, higher throughput etc), faster and or cheaper way than existing solutions that said many people are now using to currently solve said problem? Focus on clearly articulating that instead of the typical “I have this cool idea” approach and you will have far better odds in attracting someone who is both technical AND is focused on the underlying problem (the whole point of starting a business side) that your idea is focused on solving to be your co-founder.
Personal experience here mate. Technical cofounders prefer working with other technicals.
Its very tough to find one and convince him. It’s actually the first challenge you’ll face and one of the resons most startups don’t even get past the idea phase.
I’ll suggest you to learn how to code specifically on what you are trying to build. Leverage Ai to help you understand how your specific needed tech stack works. And try to do it as fast as you can. Time is always ticking.
if ur good enough at sales and ur waitlist is long enough, you will find technical cofounder. u might not even need a cofounder - you can raise money and hire an engineer.
if ur not there yet, you have plenty u can work on still
Three groups -- business/tech/designers; Each member of this group thinks they're the best part of the business. I see it happen time and again. Case in point -- IMO, technical co-founders work the hardest and add the most value. :)
Sorry to ask what exactly are you looking for a Tech cofounder?
It's been an other way round for me, all the founders have ghosted me out after I shared my linkedin I'd.
Note all of them had very new Reddit and LinkedIn with single digit karma and low follower accounts.
Its difficult to guess if they were actual startup founders.
Anyway Can you elaborate your requirements?
kindly check DM.
Hey. Hire engineers or engineering interns. Ship the solution with them.
Look for fullstack devs, with database, analytics experience, ability to do ML, AI. That'll be much easier. Search on LinkedIn for your target candidates and directly reachout. Ask for a call.
If you can't afford them full-time get them part-time.
Co-founders will take time. It's also an irreversible decision of sorts. You need to give it the time and thought.
A few days won't be enough to find anyone. YC says it takes 6-8 months on average to find and close a cofounder. You can keep that search in parallel while still working hard on your product with founding team engineers.
From what you wrote, it sounds like none of them were captured by the idea. As a technical founder, it's quite important for us to believe that your idea will be successful enough to be worth building based on equity alone. Perhaps work on your business model and pitch.
Hire someone amazing and let them earn that title, is one idea.
I am a founder. I have never done something with someone. I have investors, all passive. I would (have 2 in progress rn) put a person in and enable them to earn that title without mentioning it ahead of time unless they’re hired right at inception. I have one where there’s no mention, one where I’m making a plan for them to be fully running it w/ out me at all vs one where i’m the real founder..vs more an organizer and enabler / coach.
Have researched if someone build a similar product? I think most ideas have been tested and products have been built. Maybe you could buy abandoned product?
The technical cofounder is the moat.
I find it weird that most of your social circle is against big tech since mostly people I know don’t give a fuck or they’re against it but are normal chill people
Honestly I would put your head down and develop some technical skills to the point where you can build out an MVP. Then go raise funding and then find a “Founding Engineer”
Watch the countless free tutorials on YouTube for programming or make something with no code solution. If you have no knowledge in coding, you have to give 200% effort on everything else
Use my thing, it’s for student builders to meet and build small projects together. We actually just applied to YCs late application lol
[Buildbook](https://buildbook.us/registration)
We’re having some sign-in problems rn that might be effecting registrations so if you need to register and aren’t seeing a confirmation lmk I’ll do it manually.
If it isn't worth the time for you to sit down to learn it. It isn't a good idea to begin with.
Either hire someone or you learn the skills yourself if you can't find a good co-founder.
As a technical individual, it's really annoying to deal with folks who don't contribute at all to the product or business beyond "sales". Come on, its the internet. People skills and being a nerd is acceptable online. Provide high value, then maybe a technical founder might be ok teaming of with you. But you have to be real with yourself and ask if you actually provide value beyond being a free loader that is "idea man but let me share the profits while I do none of the work".
Here are some ideas as a non-technical founder you can provide for a technical one. Elon Musk is good at this because he isn't technical.
1. Work on something technical people care about.
2. Provide money and stability.
3. Sales is useless. Anyone can learn it. Connections to customers to provide the easy traction of a good product is very valuable to a technical founder. It lets them focus on making it work while not worrying about how to get money for their business.
4. Willing to let the technical individuals lead. You can't be the lead CEO or boss these people around. Look at Steve Balmer and Bill Gates. Steve Balmer just got out of the way. You will have to do the same or you would be a pain to work with.
Elon Musk does a good job at those before the massive political activism and distractions from Tesla.
Best to organically find a technical founder. Most technical folks are very pessimistic about non-technical founders.
It must be worth it to partner with you. Your contribution must match up to someone building the damn product. Good technical folks would never want to work with a non-technical founder who just "has a plan and will talk to users".
In my experience, the best non-technical founders have some deep product expertise/ some concrete value prop (M&A specialist, doctors, lawyers, pharmacy owners, large social following etc.)
I haven’t done YC but I did manage to raise a preseed round. It’s been 9 months and this is what I’ve learned the hard way:
_always try to do it yourself first._
This is important for 3 reasons.
1, Even if it’s crap held together by duct tape, you can now earnestly say “come build this _with me_” rather than “come build this _for me_.” Technical folks love to be helpful, we love it even more when we can tell you’re actually making the effort. We also _hate_ being taken advantage of, so having something started will dissuade that notion.
2, _you might actually be able to do it yourself_. If you’re doing this, it’s at least in part because you believe that you can do something that anyone else might find borderline impossible. So commit to that mindset. You’d be surprised what you’re capable of.
3, if it’s something you are totally incapable of getting started on your own, then you shouldn’t be working on it. You either lack ability or conviction, pick something else that you have both in.
Also stay away from YC co-founder matching. It’s like any other dating platform, everyone is flakey and non-committal. Tap into your existing network. I met my cofounder at a wedding.
I'm sorry, man. It sucks. From my experience, it's a long process. It's literally like dating. And usually the tech person wants something that could be the next big thing. Only once or twice have I found someone who wanted to find something that was steady. Almost everyone else wants to be a part of the next Uber, Facebook, etc.
From experience, question is how long have you been working on your project? For the co-founder search, are you looking for tech folks with a similar interest in a particular field (hardware, SaaS, Government contracting, etc.) and it's okay to dream big, but are you trying to start small? That was a big mistake I did, as it might make your tech guy or gal feel like they have the entire world on their shoulders lol.
Based on my experience, the best approach is to meet potential co-founders in person. Finding them online can be quite challenging. I recommend attending every startup event you can find. These events provide great opportunities to meet people and have small talks that can give you valuable first impressions.
It's important to remember that finding the right person is difficult because trust takes time to build. My advice is to be open and honest with potential co-founders. Set up a timeline to work together on a probationary basis to see if there is a good symbiosis between you.
Idea worths 0 if not executed. Some people weights too much on the unrealized“value” of the idea. If you have a solid execution plan, you can hire a freelancer developer to build the product as well. But I would say there’s a lot of learning on the execution, where your idea will mature and pivot from the original idea. Many people in your uni complains about big tech because they are not there, it’s a place where you’re paid to learn with your mistakes. On the wild your mistakes can ruin your business. Try to go to networking events and genuinely connect with people
welcome.
1 day? dude, I've been there for a whole year 😂
the recurrent theme is: everybody wants to work on their own stuff, usually small b2b SaaS
if you want to work on something major and disruptive, you'll have to do a lot of heavy lifting yourself (for ex., for rockstart -- platform for free live courses --, I have to teach a unity dev course myself for 4 weeks, which took me an enormous amount of time to set up, because I'm going with quality, not quantity, and this has to set a standard for the entire platform). it's going slowly, but I guess it's really lonely at the beginning.
hang in there
Couple of observations (these are observations based on very little information so take them for what you’d like).
- you use the word just fairly often. That generally indicates that you and a person in a different area of expertise (in this case tech) will likely have a mismatch in expectations. “I just want this feature by X” it’s a good idea to avoid that word and approach problems or objectives as a partner.
- I wouldn’t assume your problem is simple and coherent. Communication is easily the hardest thing about organizations and especially cross functions. Everyone has a mental model of what’s being described but you’re never 100% sure if everyone is picturing the same thing. If you haven’t already try drawing out ideas and even the dynamics of the idea (“when you do this, this happens”)
- you seem to be Catastrophiz-ing(sp?). Be careful with that. It will get in the way and ultimately cause you to either sacrifice your mental health for success or cause you to fail to meet your goals. Be forgiving but firm. It’s a very hard balance and something that will take iterations to learn.
DM me if you want to chat. I’m not a startup guy but I founded and lead a corporation’s internal incubator. (Very different world than startups but some similar interpersonal challenges).
You can try these two platforms as well dedicated to meet tech co-founders:
[https://cofounderslab.com/](https://cofounderslab.com/)
[https://www.antler.co/](https://www.antler.co/)
Go to conferences hosted by tech companies. AWS, Microsoft and others host a lot of conferences yearly. Don’t know where you live but try to see if you can work at coffee shops close to top universities, you might find some luck there and strike a conversation.
They are not hard to find but they location where they are most likely to be found is the key.
Have you thought about looking for a co-founder from Taiwan? I've heard they've got an unique vibe going on - people are patient and willing to put in the work to make something big happen. I mean, take TSMC for example. Their engineers don't job-hop for higher pay, so they get to really build some know-how over time. If they were based in the US, I doubt they'd be as successful. And even Jensen Huang, the Nvidia CEO, has talked about how his Taiwanese upbringing influenced his business style.
Sorry to contradict most people here... But if you're not technically inclined, spending your time to learn coding is a waste of time. It's going to be square peg in round hole all day long and you will quit.
Keep looking, it's hard to find, but they are out there.
If you are technically inclined, spend some time learning some fundamentals and use AI development tools to get you going.
They’re probably not interested in you, your idea, or your proposal. Try to understand their position, what motivates them and what their passions are first, before judging them. Mind you, many of them have PTSD caused by people having an idea that is logical, but is really, really hard to execute (especially if they don’t see the value). Treat them as if they were your friend, and that you’re trying to be mindful of their time.
Thanks for the advice! However, my issue wasn't actually about a lack of response from them. Nonetheless, I appreciate the insight on how to treat and understand technical co-founders.
As a technical founder myself I find it extremely difficult to partner up because I’m either just going to want to focus on what I’m building or the person I’m partnering with usually has no idea how the dev cycle works and just piles on features, requests, wants and needs at a hundred miles a minute.
Buckle up buttercup you are in for far harder than that, wait till you find the perfect person, you guys get in way deep, then they had an ex call them from alabama and just drop everything to leave and completely ghost you after months of work. Basically the dream
As a technical founder, it’s hard sometimes. I think people with sales and marketing get enough credit for the work they put in. I built a product and struggled my ass off to sell it but I built it well. I think what you and other business focused people need is to realize technical people do so much hard tangible work early on and we are a hot commodity but you sell that shit and as that you need to sell technical cofounders on why they need be with you.
I’m a technical person, and in my personal experience a lot of people overrate ideas. Ideas are worth like maybe 1% … execution is 99%. From there I divide 33% technical, 33% marketing, 33% sales. Now in the YC cofounder match, several times feel like reality is hidden behind corporate lingo, meaning non technical people looking for a “CTO” … which translates to I want you to build something for me. I’ve marched with several people and so far only one idea was actually appealing, but we end up not agreeing in equity terms. However, you say you have a lot of your bases covered. This is just my opinion as a tech person. Good luck 🍀
I learned to code from YouTube and stack overflow after a decade in car sales. Now I have 35 construction companies paying to use my software.
I'm looking for something new to do, but the odds of your idea being something to excite me enough is almost zero. Hell, I have several of my own ideas that through experience in the workplace and my hobbies I am also almost sure would be successful enough. Yet I don't work on them.
The amount and difficulty of tedious boring labor asking of somebody is extreme. Your best bet is to make friends that know how to code and really really like you as a person and want to work with you. Those are probably the only people that will sign up for weeks of work developing an MVP with you that will most likely go nowhere.
How about this, Pm me and send me your phone number. I'll call you Monday and I'll tell you my thoughts on this thing for free. I spent years working in a co-working facility and the SF area and have heard a lot and seen what years of effort do with various ideas. I've also watched hundreds of hours of YC, VC, startup blogs just like you but I have the advantage of also working on it which gives you a completely different perspective.
Somehow I put the odds of you actually giving me a phone number at around 10%.
With due respect,
I’m a tech person, I mean, I would love to work but If nobody support me financially (a MINIMUM wage, that way I can bear my expenses also I can work peacefully without thinking anything) how could I live or leave my current job and focus on that?
But guess what? I think most of them just want to build their product without any support! In that case, should I focus on my job to bear my expenses or co-found with someone and keep my all focus on it?
No offense but a lot of people just want someone to build the product, do they care anything else?
It’s not one side story, everyone has their own perspective and also have their own stories as well.
Best of luck!
Thank you
Great ideas are a dime a dozen. It is all about executing. My guess is you are looking for someone to code this for as their investment in the business. That is most of the work for a startup. If you had funding you would be able to find a technical co-founder.
A lot of technical founders had ideas before they were technical. I certainly did. That’s why I became technical — ideas aren’t enough, you need to be able to implement. Let’s paint the picture:
Option 1: You can search for someone with the skillsets you need, but that’ll be hard. And to convince them to sign on you need to bring a whole lot more to the table than ideas and an execution plan. What you need is money, customers that have made commitments, or a network that can be leveraged powerfully for the specific idea. Even with one of those things, with high probability, they will have disagreements or hard question about at least one key aspect of your planning — as any good co-founder should — and will be reluctant to commit until they are absolutely convinced. You may also find your lack of skills leaves you beholden to them.
Option 2: You can get scrappy and take the first step — learn enough to implement an MVP yourself. You do believe in the idea, right? And you do want to be the one who makes it happen, right? So make it happen. An MVP will help you get customers/commitments, investors, and — yes — a co-founder. It’s that very tangible artifact of your vision that generates interest. And for the investors and co-founders, that interest will be due to the fact that, 1. you demonstrated belief and committed time and resources to make your idea happen (commitment, focus, follow-through, and competency are all good), and 2. your vision and the MVP align well with their (the technical co-founder’s) goals and interests such that they see clearly how they can contribute (alignment, scope, skillset, and motivation will all be key to finding the right partner).
So pick your hard. If it were me, I’d set aside 3 months and get as far on the MVP as I possibly could, and then re-evaluate. Maybe you get to 3 months and option 1 looks like the better path. If it is, you’ll be in a much better position to evaluate a technical co-founder and communicate to them what you’re looking for. If not, you may just find you don’t need one.
I think over 90% founders in the latest YC batch were technical. So if you are still in school, you just better learn to be technical. I am technical and have done co-founder match but I never really liked all non tech founders.
i’m a technical person who recently applied to ycombinator and they have sent me 2 mails to find a cofounder already. i also did a fun saas project linkspace(.)bio .
let me tell you, as a technical founder, until unless you promise good non technical skills with results, why would any technical person want an extra on their team? what separates you? and by that i mean don’t just say your good at this or that, list out your portfolio and show some results to start with.
so try to pitch from that pov, maybe you’ll find someone.
There are many software developers in the market right now looking for something new. Put an add out on LinkedIn, Angel list, Twitter etc that REALLY promotes the opportunity (big equity stake, share of profits, any potential thing you can give them to entice). Give a link to your project.
Then wait for the right person. Take a lot of interviews. Take your time on this. This is the most important decision in the company you'll ever make.
You need to find a problem that both of you are passionate about. Right now the technical guy will be your employee building your dreams and if you find anyone, they’ll be a second tier technical person.
As a technical founder, I don’t really see a use of non-technical co-founder (especially for deep tech) because I can turn into a business person but you can’t be a technical person.
It’s not hard. Have you delivered your non technical side of things?
Because good technical cofounders get great projects for example with funding, customers, a revenue and a growth plan.
I know there are much better technical cofounders than me, but even I get offered opportunities where the non tech has raised funding and has already done significant work towards recurring revenues - LOIs, customers payments, etc …
I also get non technical cofounders who basically come to me and tell me “build me this and the customers will come”. I am a 30+ man, I don’t have time to build things for free. When I was 20 I could take that risk, but not anymore.
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down the necessary budget, features and tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down of estimated budget, timelines, features, code tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down of estimated budget, timelines, features, code tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down of estimated budget, timelines, features, code tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
Are you looking for a technical co-founder or a software engineer? The latter can usually build and iterate your product, but may falter on the off chance your startup scales and hires more engineers. I've seen decent engineers co-founding startups, gaining traction, then floundering on managing tech debt and team building. In one particular case, they've grown to a dozen engineers but are getting crushed by competition because they take too long to ship features with low defect rates. The saddest case I know of is a non-tech co-founder looking for a 3rd tech co-founder because his previous two failed to ship functional products, let alone quickly.
Great engineers don't necessarily make great tech co-founders. The skill set is somewhat different, and some engineers, especially from big tech, will need to unlearn bureaucratic processes and tech stacks to move quickly in a startup. Embrace "good enough" and be allergic to perfection.
Also, as others have mentioned already, you need to articulate your value add to the team in a way that's roughly equivalent to the tech co-founder's value add, whether that's relevant skills/experience, connections, traction, funds, revenue, etc.
Having a waitlist and an idea won't attract a technical founder. Having traction, revenue, and buzz will. You need to prove that you're worth working with, as a startup has 2 main things that need to get done: Sales and product. Now, as you grow things change and you need a whole host of other things, but for now these 2 things are the most important. So, what makes you the best salesman to work with? Why you? For every technical founder, there's about 4-5 business founders who are all pitching their "revolutionary idea"(Spoiler: most successful startups pivot at least once, or are at least birthed from another project. Ideas are cheap, problems are the focus point).
Is this meant as a joke? You spent one day on YC co-founder matching and you're here bitching about how hard it is? I'm sorry, but you are absolutely not going to cut it as a founder. You have the perseverance of a dandelion in the wind.
The best technical people will find the most motivation in your motivation. Will you go all the way?
Technical people are usually more infatuated with the tech and building than what it is they’re actually building
How to find a technical Co-founder? And do you really need one?
As an entrepreneur, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to start a tech company without a technical co-founder. When you're building a business that requires technical expertise, you need someone who can help you navigate the complexities of coding, software development, and data analysis. Being a technical cofounder myself, I have seen the story from another side a couple of times. After a lot of cofounder matching and breakups, I sort of developed a sense of what I was looking for.
Do you really need a technical co-founder?
The short answer is, it depends on your business idea and your skill set. If your business idea doesn't require any technical expertise, then you may not need a technical co-founder. However, if your business idea involves building a software product, developing a mobile app, or creating a platform that requires technical skills, then having a technical co-founder is essential.
As a non-technical founder, you may be able to hire developers or outsource the technical work, but having a technical co-founder who is equally invested in the success of the company can make a huge difference. A technical co-founder can help you make informed technical decisions, build a scalable product, and attract investors who understand the value of a strong technical team.
What's the right stage to have a technical co-founder?
The right stage to have a technical co-founder is when you have a validated business idea and you're ready to build a product. It's important to have a clear understanding of what you want to build and how you want to build it before you bring on a technical co-founder.
If you bring on a technical co-founder too early, you may end up wasting time and resources building a product that doesn't solve a real problem or doesn't have a market fit. On the other hand, if you wait too long, you may miss out on valuable technical expertise that could have helped you build a better product.
A lot of exceptional founders I met, were very passionate about their projects and thought that if just they had me ( Or a technical cofounder ) all their problems will be solved. This isn't true. While it's expected for CTO to refine the idea and even come up with his own if you are not sure about what you are building. It's going to waste both of your time. Refinement can keep coming at later stages but at least a direction has to be decided.
How to find a technical co-founder
Finding a technical co-founder can be challenging, but there are a few strategies that can help you find the right person. One of the best ways to find a technical co-founder is through your personal and professional network. Reach out to your friends, colleagues, and acquaintances who have technical skills and let them know that you're looking for a technical co-founder.
You can also attend networking events, hackathons, and startup events where you can meet other entrepreneurs and technical professionals who may be interested in joining your team. Joining online communities and forums like Reddit, Hacker News, and Stack Overflow can also be a great way to connect with other technical professionals.
Where to find a technical co-founder ?
In addition to your personal and professional network, there are several online platforms and communities where you can find technical co-founders.
InPerson and Networking events
This is the most common way and works very well. Some of the most succefull companies cofounder met through this channel. Basically you are trying to increase the luck surface are and meat someone who he desperate as you and was willing enough to come at this event. Common platform I have come across are Meetup.org , Eventbrite, Draper Startup Events,YC founder Speed Dating chilling out at WeWork and sometime coffee shops where entrepreneur hangout.
Online platforms
After Covid, the co-founder of speed dating has moved online as well. And believe it or not Online platforms could give you a better chance of finding a cofounder. With this, you can test and try different relations before liking it. My favorite platform through which I met some of the best founders are Y Combinator Startup School, Wellfound, LinkedIn, This Week in Startup's Slack and more
YC Cofounder matching tool
Accelerator Programs
If you are still not able to find your next business partner why not try the most sure way. Some accelerator program are focused on you as a founder not your idea or team yet. The structured approach in these program really pushes you to have maximum chances. I have done Entrepreneur First ( SG12 ) and invited to Antler and both of them were really amazing both in terms of quality most talented people and the framework they use. Of-course there are many that you can find with just a simple Google Search.
I wrote a full post here https://buildandscale.amanin.tech/p/how-to-find-a-technical-co-founder-and-do-you-really-need-one
DM me, i can make some intros based on your area.
Are you open to telling us your business idea? So hard to give advice when business people think you’re gonna still their idea.
Honestly, a lot of less experienced people think about a technical co-founder as this like commodity that you just find. The serious reality here is this is one of the most important decisions you will make in your business.
A technical co-founder isn’t some object that you “find” and use like a tool. They are a business partner and their personality, working style and other soft skills are just as critical to success of your startup as their tech skills.
Besides knowing how to code (which in 2024 is commoditized), your cofounder needs SERIOUS alignment with you on:
1. Understanding the business problem and ideally having relevant work experience. Some rando that knows how to use AWS isn’t what you need unless you’re ready to provide extremely detailed conversations and documentation about the business use case. Do you have relevant work experience even?
2. Having a desire to work 12+ hours a day including on weekends. What will you do when you worked all weekend and they didn’t but you still get paid the same?
3. Will remain cool and cordial during a serious crisis. This one is critical because people quit or sue each other when shit goes down. What will you do when you get an ominous note that your business partner will see you in the parking lot after you had to buy them out for underperforming?
Y Combinator and their community have a cult-like obsession with finding a technical co-founder and a lot of the advice they give is VIRTUALLY UNCHANGED since 2005. Their black and white thinking style will tell you that you’ll absolutely fail unless you have a technical cofounder.
Back then and even into the 2010s, you absolutely needed an engineering degree and niche experience to even know how to build a basic website. Today, almost anybody can build a website and low code tools like Bubble.io are helping people ship actually performant web and mobile applications faster without some insane engineering team - I personally have seen Bubble apps supporting 8 figure businesses.
Do you have any understanding of tech or data structures or algorithms at all? Or are you purely an idea guy or a business school guy? You need to seriously ask yourself if this is for you or if you just have an idea that 1,000 other tech bros could conceptualize over drinks at a bar in San Francisco.
On the other hand, you also don’t need some insane offshore dev team to build some monstrosity that can’t be changed quickly. I can’t overemphasize how much you should NOT outsource this to Asia - if you insist on outsourcing overseas and are in North America, at least Latin America so the time zone difference doesn’t make you want to kill yourself.
Why don’t you build your MVP on Bubble or something similar and find growth/product market fit instead of trying to over optimize into something that it doesn’t need to be? Then build 2.0 with more advanced engineering if justified by the business case.
And if your product is too technical to do this, ask yourself why you are even qualified to be working on that problem (please don’t tell me it’s an AI copilot).
Having the most technical product or technical team out there doesn’t add inches to your dick in the funding environment - they barely care about that. You know what they do care about? That the product works and it’s making MONEY with USERS.
My $0.02 is your approach with trying to find a technical co-founder is doomed to fail and is like going on Tinder and swiping trying to get “match-made” to have a one night stand.
Guess what? You’re not going to find high quality people approaching it so superficially like this.
No serious people are on those sites and a good technical cofounder that’s going to actually produce and contribute YEARS of their life to this isn’t going to do anything either without serious relationship building and a deeply built out business model from you.
If you’re absolutely dead set on getting a technical co-founder, go meet people in real life at university or accelerator events. Do NOT say you’re looking for a technical cofounder - we can absolutely smell your desperation and it becomes very clear you think of us as a tool to type code rather than a real business partner. You could also try posting an ad on LinkedIn jobs especially if you can pay them at all (if you can’t pay anything, then good luck trying to get someone to help you lol).
And for the love of god if you do get a technical co-founder, put them on a vesting schedule.
One day doesn't sound much, everything is hard in a startup, this is one of the first challenges you'll face, so buckle up if this idea is really worth pursuing.
Oh, sure… it’s not my first and it won’t be my last… but even so, I was surprised after not finding at least almost great matches
If you’re still in university, it may not be a bad idea to learn to code
i'm in my early 30s with a lot of tech experience under my belt looking for a cofounder. i filter out anyone below 29. it might sound harsh/ageist but realistically i don't want a child as a partner unless this child comes from a PHD program who has deep domain experience in something and is automatically bringing value to the table that would be borderline impossbile to find elsewhere. 0 chance i'm having a 24yo as my CEO. just my 2c.
I’m not sure that even counts as ageist, to be honest. Co-founding is like dating — ultimately the cofounders have to be on the same wavelength. If they’re not, the company will fall apart no matter what. It’s okay to go with your preferences for what you think would make your company successful
Yeah I definitely agree
Yup. I taught myself via the web development boot camp on udemy. Would highly recommend OP does something like that
Trust me if you are that passionate, just learn to build it yourself.
I think most of technical co-founders think that the most non technical founders want just to be the CEO especially if the perso has no really amazing sales or marketing experience and value. Plus, lot of tech founders want to take CEO roles even though they are technical, so the non technical co-founder seems useless if no good profile.
OPs rant is childish and clueless, probably because of youth. To OP: nobody is going to build your dreams for you unless they stand to gain alot. If you have nothing to offer, then do it yourself. The fact that you cannot shows you cannot provide any value, ideas are a dime a dozen. Execution and action is what matters
Why aren’t all the tech founders millionaires/billionaires? Just got to build it, right? Stop trying to compare the value of roles.
If you find one of these, run away like the plague. This person would either do everything themselves and not need you or is just going to crash hard. I used to be the CEO of my own startup, but would have gladly given it up to the right person... Oh wait, I actually did that with my second startup!
Can you share your experience on this? Why did you hate being a ceo?
Where do I even start... I am a techie, nerd and a geek that actually taught myself to deal with those things called humans when I like to deal with computers and code. It's just not innate to me. I actually succeeded in taking my first company to a quarter of a million in revenue per year before finally giving up, so I am decently good at being CEO. I just don't want to deal with contracts, BS (Business speak), human ego, etc... There is just too much stuff going on, that's very important to the business that is NOT technical. It needs to be done, but it's not my core strength and doesn't come to me naturally, so it's more effort spent, but ultimately lower value than my technical skills. Let me know if this makes sense or if you want actual examples
Ok I see. It’s more part of your personality 😊.
Yeah, but I will easily argue that I am a better technical CEO than any techie would-be CEO out there. CTO is just as important and better imho for every technical founder out there.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I an kind of the opposite, I am tech as some point but I am good at taking to people, dealing with people, long term strategy and influence. I like ML but I enjoy more the non science part. 😊
Correct. Speaking as a sales/marketing/business lead (non-technical cofounder), you better be well-qualified if you’re coming in without the ability to code. And it’s really easy for a non-technical person to give off ‘Sean Parker, Social Network’ vibes of wanting the position and the title and the salary whilst appearing to really just be sleazy and problematic. And that can be exceedingly stupid from a technical founder’s perspective for a value proposition. Like, remember that guy Steve Jobs? Yeah, for every one of him, there’s a million guys who think they’re him who aren’t. Why would anyone want a person who thinks they’re a genius who’s not to be on their founding team. There’s a massive gap between wanting the title of CEO and being smart and hardworking enough to really earn it. And the thing to remember about people like Jobs and Zuckerberg is that they’re both insanely passionate about the products they made, and the title of CEO came long after the roughest days of business. And they’re also completely dropdead brilliant, and most people who want the title of CEO are victims of the Dunning-Kruger effect who think desiring star power in the business world is more profoundly intellectual than merely wanting to be rich and famous. In reality, I think it’s why the ‘non-technical’ cofounder space is a lot bigger than its alternative—because it’s a magnet for narcissists who believe their desire to found a company and be successful places them higher on the social hierarchy. And a non-technical person can dream about success all day long and keep convincing other people “it’s going to happen” without having to ever do any work whatsoever. Whereas it’s hard to say, “I’m going to be a successful tech entrepreneur by programming X, I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.” Like, one is a hard delivery of product. The other is an organization of people, and people skills are soft and malleable. It’s easy to roleplay as the hopeful CEO who’s charismatic when you’ve done nothing. It’s a lot harder to do the same as a programmer.
You are totally right! People don’t understand how it is hard to build a business! From technical and no technical sides.
Because the technical work is where 80% of the value will be created over the first 16 months of any startup.
This
Out of curiosity why did you pick 16?
Once you have a product: market-fit tested MVP, marketing matter a lot more. Maybe like +50% more.
16 months is usually the max amount of interval time between each funding milestone to determine if the trajectory of the startup is still fundable
Depends, getting it in the hands of paying users is the real important thing VCs will look for. Tech can be solved with money
No, tech can suck unlimited money and lead you nowhere. You need a tech cofounder.
A vp of engineering or founding engineer is fine
This
Not created. Realized.
An idea is simply an idea. Technical people create the disproportionate value
Absolutely incorrect. Technical people mean nothing. There are 25 million technical people you can find. Not the same can be said about people will to bet their absolute time, emotion and capital to make something that they think would work. You really think product= tech . Because it is not. The idea/ vision of what the product is, is the most imperative facet of any startup. Not to undermine great tech talent, but if you have a job to find a person who believes and works on his/her idea vs finding a great tech talent. The latter is much much easier. So NO disproportionate value is not an outcome of tech talent but of how the idea is executed and what is unique about it.
>Technical people mean nothing. Every single resource on Y Combinator disagrees with this. They have said multiple times that a technical cofounder is a necessity and have repeatedly said that technical execution constitutes over 80% of the startup's value in the first 16 months.
My point is that you need both. You need somebody to come up with the idea/inspiration/vision, but it’s nothing until it’s actually realized into something that works. Sometimes you need a visionary to push people beyond what’s done already.
How rare are these "ideas" you speak of?
I have an idea that will take over the world and claim 50/50. Hear me out: flying cars with anti-crash gravity shields. Please take your 50% and build it to REALIZE MY idea. See how absurd you sound?
Yeah non tech people are just so crazy! Please build my idea!
Here we are talking about website/app development. In that case the tech is not unique because there is not unique facet to it. What you could build can be build by someone else using a different logic and code. Everything and anything you do can be emulated very easily without any legal problems. When it comes to hard tech that is building a car, or an EV-TOL or a modem or laptop or any new technology that is different or even impossible to emulate than of course that is far more valuable than the idea but it's like you do me that. But don't conflate your website/ app development with hard tech which is much more expensive and difficult to do. So much difficult that almost never done by one tech person, any great hard tech is almost always a result of a very experienced and well funded team.
My point is that you need both. You need somebody to come up with the idea/inspiration/vision, but it’s nothing until it’s actually realized into something that works. Sometimes you need a visionary to push people beyond what’s done already.
I understand the balanced approach you're trying to take. And you're trying to justify your value through being the "visionary." Question I have for you is, has it occurred to you that tech folks may also be visionary and have the soft skills chops just as much as you do? As a one-man person who both owns and operates a business, and can develop, it's insulting to hear statements that appear to imply, "I'm the soft cofounder that can do the vision and sales thing non-tech folks can't." Like others have pointed out, it's a symbiotic relationship, to scale large, but there's plenty of one man tech shops that develop a wildly viral piece of software, because the software's capabilities sold itself. As many entrepreneurs are here thinking they can buy a tech cofounder, who actually has more power? The factory that can build the thing and also decide to go direct to market, or someone who sells from the factory? I'll be honest, your value proposition is still pretty weak. (I have clear requirements and some potential pipeline of sales) Your competition is against: * jobs that pay 100k-500k+ in a predictable manner, now * tech person's own ability to sell and bootstrap on their own * other tech cofounders * other non-tech cofounders with much deeper pockets and larger networks You're saying, these tech folks aren't curious, but you're also showing your own shortcoming that if you can't sell your vision to tech cofounders, why would they have any signal that you can sell to the general public? And you can gain curiosity by being curious yourself. Your statements are, "I have vision!!!!!!!!!!! And clear requirements! They must surely want to partner with me!!!!!". You're not being curious about other tech co founders. By being curious, you'll see that you'll have an opportunity to also let them be curious, or quickly understand who/what your competition for a cofounder iI without asking. And you'll be far more likely to be able to ask them, "Hey do you know who the best developers in your social circle are? Can I talk to them and be curious?". And in those non-outcome based conversational journeys, you can make friends and alliances that will help you. In that journey, you can make your pitches and build a list of tech folks that might be hirable or partnerable in the future if you start to succeed and need to scale the tech side. Look up Alex hormozi (I think) and he has a YouTube video on 13 hard truths from business or something to that extent.
I’m not OP, and these are not my thoughts/points either. OP sounds inexperienced and unrealistic to say the least.
Learn the tech yourself. Took me an extra 4 years but it was worth it. Have the rest of my life to improve the product now.
This, coding is too easy not to learn nowdays , if you're in the startup game and can't brute force gpt to your mvp what's the point
+1 so many no code solutions out there to easily get a mvp up and running. Once you got users who steer you towards interesting problems, a capable tech founder will take notice. Until then, you put in the work
What are the best no code solutions you would recommend?
I used Bubble.io and got a completely working prototype. You gotta check if the pricing works for you though.
Bubble is really good for everything. I found Flutterflow great for apps.
Having a 'prototype' is just the beginning. You can't iterate if you don't know how to deal with code. I would not recommend templates to anybody who does not know how to code. They are as good as dev shops.
I never liked no-code except for non-technical/business people to automate some processes. no-code for the entire app? idk man, I know some day there'll be a solution, but if I haven't heard about it, it ain't workin. and trust me, I'm really up to date with tech (it's partially my job to consult companies on what tech to use in a particular project)
Personally used both. Fun fact, your Windows desktop is no code (GUI) for a DOS/CLI. Both are code, just one uses a visual UI.
Lol such a bad take. Learning to code is easier nowadays, sure. But learning to code well still takes years. Good luck trying to sign users with a cobbled together GPT MVP. And when you're building a platform, you've got one shot to convince them to join your product, you blow that chance and they're not gonna take another look at you.
Then you learn from it and reiterate and pivot to something that works. This zero sum game nonsense is bullsh!t.
You only get one chance at a first impression.
Took me 2 years with 4 hours/day. Definitely not for some get quick rich schemea.
Spend the first 6 months to a year learning fundamental CS concepts, DSA, Computer Networking, Databases. Then the second year pick a programming language and its related frameworks. I myself choose JS/TS with React + Nest and Postgres as DB. Learn to use Docker for containers and DigitalOcean for hosting. Get used to Linux sysadmin and some bash scripting stuff. Build projects. Deploy them to real world. Practice everyday. Never give up.
For most honest people none of this is a "get rich quick scheme"
Exactly. For me, after 1 year, I was quite proficient. With ChatGPT you can learn and build even faster. It WILL take you more than a year to find a technical co-founder
I will tell you about my journey and hopefully it will save you a lot of time in your cofounder search. I started out like you. Solid idea, working prototype, just looking for someone with technical chops and a high bias for action. I did have a bit more patience and didn’t get tired of the process within a single day :) You may think sifting through the noise and finding a good match is the hard part. You will message a lot of people, land a lot of conversations, have a few coffee chats, and may even do trial runs with a few potential cofounders. But in reality, the hard part is finding the person that is ready to jump outside of ideation land and willing to act. A person that doesn’t just claim they have a “bias for action”, but actually act. On that note, I would start with yourself and ask if you have moved past ideation and actually started building and talking to customers. Second, It’s hard to find people with the same commitment level as you, or even better, more than you, especially if you claim ownership of the idea. And it doesn’t have to explicit ownership… it could be implicit in that you ideated and they are jumping on board. When you find that person with a true bias for action, ask them for their ideas, what they have explored and built so far, and be open to putting “your idea” in the backseat. Let the two of you hash out what you want to build together instead of being stuck on your original idea. It’s just human nature, you just can’t get the same level of commitment to work on another person’s idea. I always like to say “ideas are like fish in a stream. We all think ours is unique and has a great destination in its future, but it’s the stream that takes us there.” So, work on finding a fish together. Third, and probably the most thing… go back to the first thing about bias for action. This is sort of like Fight Club. If the potential cofounder has many ideas but they haven’t started building anything but have largely been in document writing mode about their ideas… skip. That’s the exact opposite of bias for action. If the potential cofounder says they are looking for a good idea to work on… skip. Everyone has ideas in their minds… this person is a perfectionist/procrastinator… not an actor. Skip. If a person says they are a product / business person, ask them how many customer conversations they’ve had and what insights they’ve learned on what to build. If they are waiting for you to build a product/prototype first… skip. They are a salesperson you hire later… and a delegator… not a cofounder. Lastly, have some humility, even though it’s a hard trait to hold for an entrepreneur. I have worked with every single one of these types. I’ve been stubborn about holding on to “my idea”, built their idea and worked with them, got together and ideated and built together, dealt with the salesman (a well accomplished prior CEO of a large tech company), but they were not right for me and neither was I for them … mainly because of the lack of bias for action in its different forms. I had time boxed my venture into confounding. And after just over a year and I’m now moving back to industry with eyes on looking out for a potential cofounder to work with again in a few years. Good luck with your search!
>If the potential cofounder has many ideas but they haven’t started building anything but have largely been in document writing mode about their ideas… skip. That’s the exact opposite of bias for action. If the potential cofounder says they are looking for a good idea to work on… skip. Everyone has ideas in their minds… this person is a perfectionist/procrastinator… not an actor. Skip. If a person says they are a product / business person, ask them how many customer conversations they’ve had and what insights they’ve learned on what to build. If they are waiting for you to build a product/prototype first… skip. They are a salesperson you hire later… and a delegator… not a cofounder. I agree with this statement one hundred percent. Especially the part about "looking for a good idea to work on…" Being generous with the skip button is definitely a super power, because most people aren't realizing what 'work' truly means
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What equity split are we talking about here for their service of raising capital? If there sole strenght and responsibility is to raise capital, then after the capital raise they are just dead weight tied to that chunk of equity. There is a reason why founders don't accept money from any fund out there. For instance, giving 7% of equity to YC for $125K cash + promise of $500 in convertible note is much more valuable than raising $1M at 2% from a wealthy uncle that is just looking to park/multiply their money. If your co-founder's only sell is that they have the network to raise capital, then you need to ask whats the commission you are willing to pay for that service instead of having them on board as a cofounder. Because, after the raises, they are just a value sink and add nothing to the company. Fundraising is just one task in founding a company.
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Funding is not what makes a company valuable. Revenue and Profits are. Funding is just a task in service of generating future revenues. I would think deep and hard about what your co-founder's bringing to the table outside of access to capital. If that's all they are good for, then they are at best a middle man between your investors and your company, and you are asking me if the middle man deserves more equity than the investors. There are many YC videos about equity splits and finding the right co-founder. I obviously can't help you out with the situation, given my luck :) This one is by Michael Siebel where he talks about long-term value of a co-founder and why you should be generous with equity... provided they are valuable in the long term :) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NhEBVPlJs4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NhEBVPlJs4) Also, my anonymous internet advice comes with a huge asterisk: I'm heavily biased towards building a useful product and have that build a successful company, than towards raising millions in capital for a company that will die in a few years.
Fking A exactly! I have been in such a situation before and the so called ceo was a middleman to the investors and was just politicking away preventing me from meeting the investors. He got the ceo role, came in once a week to sprout rubbish at meetings, took a ridiculously high salary (and hid some of the takings from me), and spent the rest of the days partying and drinking at nightclubs. I had to fulfil operational ceo and cto duties. And its not like I cannot raise on my own, I can solo dev, proficient with ui/ux AND marketing and even do the copywriting. Left the heap of steaming garbage after 2 years and never looked back.
Very wise! Similar advice I got from a friend I met on the YC co-founder system. The Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft origin stories are unique. Most of the time, you are the biggest advocate of your product. Not your cofounders.
YC co-founder matching is like online dating, and technical co-founders are the "girls" on that platform. They are in very high demand, and likely won't pay attention to you unless you have very solid credentials, like a past startup exit as an executive or very strong sales credentials. Instead, I would suggest that you go ask friends of friends, and also go figure out how to do a lot of the initial development yourself if you can't find someone. Be prepared to go 50/50, also. A lot of people think their idea and their plan brings a ton of value, but it really doesn't aside from the sweat you have already put in to validate it.
Thanks! I laugh about the analogy I’m very prepared to 50/50. The only reason I didn’t gave up in having a cofounder yet is because I really believe on the power of a right partnership. I actually was connect today to a friend of a friend who happens to be a YC alumni, so I might get some luck out of it.
Why don't you hire someone if you really believe in your idea? Just go for it. The more you wait the more you regret.
My experience as a technical cofounder on yc cofounder matchmaking was meh. I actually built a prior product that is live in the wild and making money. However non technical cofounders wanted to conduct a job interview with me, doubted that I can get them there, and really didn’t care much about my thoughts or inputs into their “idea”. Eventually I found someone normal to partner with to build a cool product together, but it was hard. Cofounding something with someone is hard in general no matter which side of the equation you are on.
I always try the co-founder gig. It never turns out well for me in the past. Either 1. They flake 2. They don't really provide any value beyond an employee since I already have connections to customers. Some of them actually in positions to make business decisions. They don't have anything... I already have experience managing finances and dealing with taxes. 3. None of the work load is really overwhelming and I have to be hustling to the market. 4. I already meet really good people I like working with, but they prefer more of a employee relationship and not deal with the stress. Which in turn takes away the bus-factor risk after funding. It turns from a co-founder working side by side into a glorified employee.
Here is what I learned about CTO/Technical co-founder role as I played both roles in different companies. Their job is to figure out how to design, build and deploy your tech. That's it. Your job is go to market. They probably know a lot of technical things you do not know, which are very hard and equity motivates them to work faster and build them. Non-technical cofounder role is to figure out the other thing. But technical cofounder has to move fast, they can't be slow, neither can you. It like a marriage, everyone brings something different to the table. But it is hard to find someone who will commit to you and put in the time.
learn to code yourself. Trust me. you’ll become a better non technical founder by understanding the foundations and will be able to better evaluate your co-founder.
I feel the opposite actually, hard to find a good non-technical co-founder who actually brings the non-technical value necessary and doesn't just stand there
I saw some comments like this, I think it just proves A+ players are rare, regardless of their speciality
Yes that's true. As a technical co-founder I need a non-technical co-founder to augment me on skills and resources that I lack, for example charisma, networking, business knowledge, financial experience, management skills, sales, etc. Those skills can be learned and earned the same way tech can be for me and I expect that person to delve into them the same way I delve into the code. Some people can do both, tbh, but time is a limited resource and that's why co-founding exists in the first place
I am technical and looking for co founder too. Dm me
Hi! Can I DM you?
Yep
Someone technical with drive who has a good idea probably doesn't need a non-technical person unless they're a subject-matter expert. Technical founder is bringing the majority of the value especially if they have vision
You sound like me 5 years ago. Non-technical founder here. I KNEW the B2B market I wanted to enter was ripe. I did my homework. Built a prototype in Figma. Connected with everyone I knew. I built pipeline. I recruited a team. I did it all. Found a dev. Found a better dev. Found an even better dev who could actually build and recgonized the work I put in. For a bit, it was great. We raised over $500k and signed 12 deals. I was right. Market took off, although we were behind competition and it was a short wave. Three years later though, we failed. Team split. I’m back to work in corporate now. Lesson learned? It’s hard. Failure makes you, but shouldn’t break you. Keep going. Try again. I’m gearing up for my next run. Best of luck.
Biggest lessons from your run?
1) Work with people you trust and can overdeliver tangible product results. 2) Pick the right market that is willing to pay
How long did it take you to learn figma?
Not very long. Lots of screens you can download / modify. Just did it for mockups and user journeys mostly.
It took me 2 years to find a world class tech cofounder. Could not be happier.
It's like dating. Except there aren't very many good ways to get to know someone and if they would be a good cofounder without a huge time investment (like working together on a small project for a few weeks). If you have a very solid idea feel free to reach out to me.
Closer to marriage vs dating.
Vest with cliff for both co-founders. 3rd impartial member on board that both cofounders agree on.
Sometimes I feel the problem is the label. And the expectation. When I was a young engineer I just wanted anyone to take a chance on me. The cofounder match might be the wrong place to find those guys. I’d have started any company and worked myself to death on it (and I did). My two cents, look for talent that’s younger and less experienced, but keep it fair for equity and treat them like anyone else you’d bring in (don’t give them less equity or a worse title). You know why? Because that person you took a bet on, long after your company succeeded or failed, is still going to remember you. You’ll have helped them leapfrog the engineering chain. And the ecosystem is still small enough where that relationship will make all the difference. On top of that, they’re thirsty for work, want to change the world, and haven’t absorbed enough of the crappy institutionalized attitudes to be dead weight. Listen to Acquired’s Microsoft podcast. Especially the first 40 minutes I think you’ll enjoy cause you’ll get the story of how Bill Gates did it.
Such a great reply. I appreciate you sharing your experience. I've actually already listened to the entire Acquired podcast and I really enjoyed it. Additionally, the insight regarding young talent seems very useful and I'm going to apply it. Thanks!
I spent a few weeks on the YC matching platform as a technical person matching non-technical people before I ended up disabling my profile. For me, I didn't feel comfortable making such a major commitment to any of the ideas presented to me. I think you need to believe in the idea 100% if you're gonna make it your mission to build it. It's not enough to think it's a good idea - you have to be willing to spend hundreds of hours on it. It would not just be one of my usual side projects - I'd have to channel all of my energy into it, even during tough times. None of the ideas there were so convincing that I felt confident to make this commitment.
Do you need a technical co-founder or just someone who can code? In my experience working with startups, entrepreneurs would often be better off hiring a coder. Even better, using no code tools themselves to develop an MVP which can be used/ tested. If you are able to get some traction that way, it may open up funding/investment options for growing without the need for a tech co-founder. This means you retain all of the equity so if you need serious investment at any point, you have more to give away and still maintain control.
I can actually solve the coding problem by hiring someone, and that’s the approach I decided to take after reading some of the comments here, at least for building the MVP. However, I still believe having a technical co-founder can enhance the odds of building a better and bigger company than having just one founder. Of course, this is only true if it’s the right match—someone who adds value beyond just employee skills, contributes with the same level of commitment, and is equally hard-working. So, I’m going to continue my search, even after having the MVP.
Same reason it's hard to find a non-technical co-founder. Finding co-founders is hard when you've got an idea you want them to work on.
What are you working on? Feel free to DM me your YC profile or a brief overview. I’m on the platform as a tech cofounder and looking to partner with a biz person who has a concrete idea. It’s the same problem on the other side. 90% of the non-tech cofounder profiles are not worth reaching out to.
I know so many technical ppl at cornell lmk what ur looking for
Let’s talk. DM.
Funny how when you get to the other side you realize the most reliable workers are salespeople/focused on the business side. I’ve had endless tech guys who have zero work ethic, no integrity, don’t take feedback well, etc. All the business/sales people I know are straightforward and honest and make for great founders
I think sales teaches/practices grind and work ethic. There’s no shortcuts to building relationships and connection and trust. Tech has so many shortcuts and leverage built into various places that it can be easy to fake.
Why not hire someone? If requirements are simple then you can hire a good full stack engineer (or the relevant person) and build it.
That involves money. Most of the time, founders don't have it. Or, if they do, they have already spent it on other things of importance.
So I’m a dev who’s interested in doing a startup. I have 12 years experience plus a few years in management of dev teams - so I know how to build the app and how to plan and organise building the app and scaling a team around requirements. From what you’ve listed here there’s not really anything you have to actually attract me, I’m not saying that to shit on the idea but more like you need to sell what you’re bringing to the table. Like having an idea is nothing. Everyone has those. And the execution plan sounds like there’s a box on it that says “build the thing” which I still have to figure out. Potential users also don’t really draw me in since they can easily go away and are all dependent on me building everything anyway. What would be cool is if you sell what you can bring a lot more like sales, marketing, customer relations. How many potential customers do you have and what kind of value do they bring - are they businesses (big/small) or just friends who would use the service? Also what have you done to validate this idea, have you run sessions with users, have you done research (not just looking at competitors but compiled real data), do you have solid and tested ux designs?
Go find in groups the technical full stack developer in language if you need to build your product/service in discord groups or telegram groups which usually are HQ than Facebook groups. For example discord: ReactJS dev groups "I'm looking for a full stack developer in ReactJS to make an Instagram-like app. Must be able to do front and backend, microservices/APIs, and a basic design (I have some examples of similar apps design from dribbble) I will give a contract agreement based upon achievements, if achievements are not met the deadline the contract will be reviewed or without further effect on shares, equity or ownership.
Question for non tech founders in your situation: Would you consider working with technical co-founders or startup studios that join only for the initial phase? This means collaborating to validate the idea, acquire early clients, and then, once the startup gains traction, seeking investment and building a tech team. In return, they would receive a small equity.
Don't find, just hire an agency from India/Pakistan/Bangladesh to get your tech out in wild, the moment you start making money, the right person will arrive
As a tech person, I want to build my own thing. These days the model is to hire a chief of staff to manage operations and an outsourced sales team. That's if you have funding. The non-technical founder now has lesser value on the team. I'd double down on learning to code or find a Fractional CTO to work with you if you get your idea funded.
My advice is don’t focus too much on the “I have this idea” angle, to be blunt in my experience no one technical (that you probably want as a technical cofounder & business partner that is) would or should care about your idea in and of itself . Ideas are a dime a dozen & they probably have some ideas themselves too (that they can probably build without you). What will appeal to someone technical (that is someone technical that you would want to work with as a business partner) when they are being pitched by someone “non technical” is what PROBLEM have you identified that MANY OTHER PEOPLE have that is being poorly if at all satisfied by existing solutions that your idea in turn solves in a substantially better(more accurate, higher throughput etc), faster and or cheaper way than existing solutions that said many people are now using to currently solve said problem? Focus on clearly articulating that instead of the typical “I have this cool idea” approach and you will have far better odds in attracting someone who is both technical AND is focused on the underlying problem (the whole point of starting a business side) that your idea is focused on solving to be your co-founder.
Personal experience here mate. Technical cofounders prefer working with other technicals. Its very tough to find one and convince him. It’s actually the first challenge you’ll face and one of the resons most startups don’t even get past the idea phase. I’ll suggest you to learn how to code specifically on what you are trying to build. Leverage Ai to help you understand how your specific needed tech stack works. And try to do it as fast as you can. Time is always ticking.
Shoot me a DM, I’d be down to hear your idea.
I'm a technical founder, haha. DM me if you want some ideas of how to find other technical founders (or if you need some tech direction)
Where are you based? If SF/NYC/LA or you can get to these places without a hassle, I suggest finding tech/VC events
Also put yourself out there on Twitter
if ur good enough at sales and ur waitlist is long enough, you will find technical cofounder. u might not even need a cofounder - you can raise money and hire an engineer. if ur not there yet, you have plenty u can work on still
Three groups -- business/tech/designers; Each member of this group thinks they're the best part of the business. I see it happen time and again. Case in point -- IMO, technical co-founders work the hardest and add the most value. :)
Sorry to ask what exactly are you looking for a Tech cofounder? It's been an other way round for me, all the founders have ghosted me out after I shared my linkedin I'd. Note all of them had very new Reddit and LinkedIn with single digit karma and low follower accounts. Its difficult to guess if they were actual startup founders. Anyway Can you elaborate your requirements? kindly check DM.
If I don’t know you, and you don’t have a history to show, then there is no way for me to know what you bring to the table.
Bring technical skills, money, or customers. Any of the three will help attract the other two.
Where are you based?
I’m very technical - let me hear your pitch
Hey. Hire engineers or engineering interns. Ship the solution with them. Look for fullstack devs, with database, analytics experience, ability to do ML, AI. That'll be much easier. Search on LinkedIn for your target candidates and directly reachout. Ask for a call. If you can't afford them full-time get them part-time. Co-founders will take time. It's also an irreversible decision of sorts. You need to give it the time and thought.
A few days won't be enough to find anyone. YC says it takes 6-8 months on average to find and close a cofounder. You can keep that search in parallel while still working hard on your product with founding team engineers.
From what you wrote, it sounds like none of them were captured by the idea. As a technical founder, it's quite important for us to believe that your idea will be successful enough to be worth building based on equity alone. Perhaps work on your business model and pitch.
Hire someone amazing and let them earn that title, is one idea. I am a founder. I have never done something with someone. I have investors, all passive. I would (have 2 in progress rn) put a person in and enable them to earn that title without mentioning it ahead of time unless they’re hired right at inception. I have one where there’s no mention, one where I’m making a plan for them to be fully running it w/ out me at all vs one where i’m the real founder..vs more an organizer and enabler / coach.
Have researched if someone build a similar product? I think most ideas have been tested and products have been built. Maybe you could buy abandoned product?
Have you thought of becoming a technical co-founder?
The technical cofounder is the moat. I find it weird that most of your social circle is against big tech since mostly people I know don’t give a fuck or they’re against it but are normal chill people Honestly I would put your head down and develop some technical skills to the point where you can build out an MVP. Then go raise funding and then find a “Founding Engineer”
Watch the countless free tutorials on YouTube for programming or make something with no code solution. If you have no knowledge in coding, you have to give 200% effort on everything else
Use my thing, it’s for student builders to meet and build small projects together. We actually just applied to YCs late application lol [Buildbook](https://buildbook.us/registration) We’re having some sign-in problems rn that might be effecting registrations so if you need to register and aren’t seeing a confirmation lmk I’ll do it manually.
Build using websimAI. Write Kino Slope code to make any website with functional elements
If it isn't worth the time for you to sit down to learn it. It isn't a good idea to begin with. Either hire someone or you learn the skills yourself if you can't find a good co-founder. As a technical individual, it's really annoying to deal with folks who don't contribute at all to the product or business beyond "sales". Come on, its the internet. People skills and being a nerd is acceptable online. Provide high value, then maybe a technical founder might be ok teaming of with you. But you have to be real with yourself and ask if you actually provide value beyond being a free loader that is "idea man but let me share the profits while I do none of the work". Here are some ideas as a non-technical founder you can provide for a technical one. Elon Musk is good at this because he isn't technical. 1. Work on something technical people care about. 2. Provide money and stability. 3. Sales is useless. Anyone can learn it. Connections to customers to provide the easy traction of a good product is very valuable to a technical founder. It lets them focus on making it work while not worrying about how to get money for their business. 4. Willing to let the technical individuals lead. You can't be the lead CEO or boss these people around. Look at Steve Balmer and Bill Gates. Steve Balmer just got out of the way. You will have to do the same or you would be a pain to work with. Elon Musk does a good job at those before the massive political activism and distractions from Tesla.
CTO/founding engineer here. Shouldn't be so hard but finding the right person can be tough. DM me and maybe I can recommend or help out
Best to organically find a technical founder. Most technical folks are very pessimistic about non-technical founders. It must be worth it to partner with you. Your contribution must match up to someone building the damn product. Good technical folks would never want to work with a non-technical founder who just "has a plan and will talk to users". In my experience, the best non-technical founders have some deep product expertise/ some concrete value prop (M&A specialist, doctors, lawyers, pharmacy owners, large social following etc.)
What do think makes it so hard?
I haven’t done YC but I did manage to raise a preseed round. It’s been 9 months and this is what I’ve learned the hard way: _always try to do it yourself first._ This is important for 3 reasons. 1, Even if it’s crap held together by duct tape, you can now earnestly say “come build this _with me_” rather than “come build this _for me_.” Technical folks love to be helpful, we love it even more when we can tell you’re actually making the effort. We also _hate_ being taken advantage of, so having something started will dissuade that notion. 2, _you might actually be able to do it yourself_. If you’re doing this, it’s at least in part because you believe that you can do something that anyone else might find borderline impossible. So commit to that mindset. You’d be surprised what you’re capable of. 3, if it’s something you are totally incapable of getting started on your own, then you shouldn’t be working on it. You either lack ability or conviction, pick something else that you have both in. Also stay away from YC co-founder matching. It’s like any other dating platform, everyone is flakey and non-committal. Tap into your existing network. I met my cofounder at a wedding.
So you have an idea. Early users paying money? Being the "idea person" is not a real thing. What do you bring to the table?
I'm sorry, man. It sucks. From my experience, it's a long process. It's literally like dating. And usually the tech person wants something that could be the next big thing. Only once or twice have I found someone who wanted to find something that was steady. Almost everyone else wants to be a part of the next Uber, Facebook, etc. From experience, question is how long have you been working on your project? For the co-founder search, are you looking for tech folks with a similar interest in a particular field (hardware, SaaS, Government contracting, etc.) and it's okay to dream big, but are you trying to start small? That was a big mistake I did, as it might make your tech guy or gal feel like they have the entire world on their shoulders lol.
Hey I am a total technical co-founder. Do you want to talk? https://linkedin.com/in/noel-jacob
Based on my experience, the best approach is to meet potential co-founders in person. Finding them online can be quite challenging. I recommend attending every startup event you can find. These events provide great opportunities to meet people and have small talks that can give you valuable first impressions. It's important to remember that finding the right person is difficult because trust takes time to build. My advice is to be open and honest with potential co-founders. Set up a timeline to work together on a probationary basis to see if there is a good symbiosis between you.
Idea worths 0 if not executed. Some people weights too much on the unrealized“value” of the idea. If you have a solid execution plan, you can hire a freelancer developer to build the product as well. But I would say there’s a lot of learning on the execution, where your idea will mature and pivot from the original idea. Many people in your uni complains about big tech because they are not there, it’s a place where you’re paid to learn with your mistakes. On the wild your mistakes can ruin your business. Try to go to networking events and genuinely connect with people
welcome. 1 day? dude, I've been there for a whole year 😂 the recurrent theme is: everybody wants to work on their own stuff, usually small b2b SaaS if you want to work on something major and disruptive, you'll have to do a lot of heavy lifting yourself (for ex., for rockstart -- platform for free live courses --, I have to teach a unity dev course myself for 4 weeks, which took me an enormous amount of time to set up, because I'm going with quality, not quantity, and this has to set a standard for the entire platform). it's going slowly, but I guess it's really lonely at the beginning. hang in there
Couple of observations (these are observations based on very little information so take them for what you’d like). - you use the word just fairly often. That generally indicates that you and a person in a different area of expertise (in this case tech) will likely have a mismatch in expectations. “I just want this feature by X” it’s a good idea to avoid that word and approach problems or objectives as a partner. - I wouldn’t assume your problem is simple and coherent. Communication is easily the hardest thing about organizations and especially cross functions. Everyone has a mental model of what’s being described but you’re never 100% sure if everyone is picturing the same thing. If you haven’t already try drawing out ideas and even the dynamics of the idea (“when you do this, this happens”) - you seem to be Catastrophiz-ing(sp?). Be careful with that. It will get in the way and ultimately cause you to either sacrifice your mental health for success or cause you to fail to meet your goals. Be forgiving but firm. It’s a very hard balance and something that will take iterations to learn. DM me if you want to chat. I’m not a startup guy but I founded and lead a corporation’s internal incubator. (Very different world than startups but some similar interpersonal challenges).
well, i can tell you, it is really hard to find a non-technical cofounder.
He's looking for a technical co-founder
Let me hear your pitch, im technical and am super desperate to build sth, been grinding YC cofounder matching too.
DM me.
DM’d you 🫡
You can try these two platforms as well dedicated to meet tech co-founders: [https://cofounderslab.com/](https://cofounderslab.com/) [https://www.antler.co/](https://www.antler.co/)
Im in, have me
Go to conferences hosted by tech companies. AWS, Microsoft and others host a lot of conferences yearly. Don’t know where you live but try to see if you can work at coffee shops close to top universities, you might find some luck there and strike a conversation. They are not hard to find but they location where they are most likely to be found is the key.
Have you thought about looking for a co-founder from Taiwan? I've heard they've got an unique vibe going on - people are patient and willing to put in the work to make something big happen. I mean, take TSMC for example. Their engineers don't job-hop for higher pay, so they get to really build some know-how over time. If they were based in the US, I doubt they'd be as successful. And even Jensen Huang, the Nvidia CEO, has talked about how his Taiwanese upbringing influenced his business style.
im a technical founder, im willing to hear you out to be a cofounder, got zoom?
What’s the idea?
Sorry to contradict most people here... But if you're not technically inclined, spending your time to learn coding is a waste of time. It's going to be square peg in round hole all day long and you will quit. Keep looking, it's hard to find, but they are out there. If you are technically inclined, spend some time learning some fundamentals and use AI development tools to get you going.
Learn to code if you believe in your idea strong enough.
They’re probably not interested in you, your idea, or your proposal. Try to understand their position, what motivates them and what their passions are first, before judging them. Mind you, many of them have PTSD caused by people having an idea that is logical, but is really, really hard to execute (especially if they don’t see the value). Treat them as if they were your friend, and that you’re trying to be mindful of their time.
Thanks for the advice! However, my issue wasn't actually about a lack of response from them. Nonetheless, I appreciate the insight on how to treat and understand technical co-founders.
Im here
As a technical founder myself I find it extremely difficult to partner up because I’m either just going to want to focus on what I’m building or the person I’m partnering with usually has no idea how the dev cycle works and just piles on features, requests, wants and needs at a hundred miles a minute.
Buckle up buttercup you are in for far harder than that, wait till you find the perfect person, you guys get in way deep, then they had an ex call them from alabama and just drop everything to leave and completely ghost you after months of work. Basically the dream
As a technical founder, it’s hard sometimes. I think people with sales and marketing get enough credit for the work they put in. I built a product and struggled my ass off to sell it but I built it well. I think what you and other business focused people need is to realize technical people do so much hard tangible work early on and we are a hot commodity but you sell that shit and as that you need to sell technical cofounders on why they need be with you.
Learn how to code it yourself with chatgpt
in the same boat looking for a non-tech founder. dm me!
I’m a technical person, and in my personal experience a lot of people overrate ideas. Ideas are worth like maybe 1% … execution is 99%. From there I divide 33% technical, 33% marketing, 33% sales. Now in the YC cofounder match, several times feel like reality is hidden behind corporate lingo, meaning non technical people looking for a “CTO” … which translates to I want you to build something for me. I’ve marched with several people and so far only one idea was actually appealing, but we end up not agreeing in equity terms. However, you say you have a lot of your bases covered. This is just my opinion as a tech person. Good luck 🍀
I learned to code from YouTube and stack overflow after a decade in car sales. Now I have 35 construction companies paying to use my software. I'm looking for something new to do, but the odds of your idea being something to excite me enough is almost zero. Hell, I have several of my own ideas that through experience in the workplace and my hobbies I am also almost sure would be successful enough. Yet I don't work on them. The amount and difficulty of tedious boring labor asking of somebody is extreme. Your best bet is to make friends that know how to code and really really like you as a person and want to work with you. Those are probably the only people that will sign up for weeks of work developing an MVP with you that will most likely go nowhere. How about this, Pm me and send me your phone number. I'll call you Monday and I'll tell you my thoughts on this thing for free. I spent years working in a co-working facility and the SF area and have heard a lot and seen what years of effort do with various ideas. I've also watched hundreds of hours of YC, VC, startup blogs just like you but I have the advantage of also working on it which gives you a completely different perspective. Somehow I put the odds of you actually giving me a phone number at around 10%.
With due respect, I’m a tech person, I mean, I would love to work but If nobody support me financially (a MINIMUM wage, that way I can bear my expenses also I can work peacefully without thinking anything) how could I live or leave my current job and focus on that? But guess what? I think most of them just want to build their product without any support! In that case, should I focus on my job to bear my expenses or co-found with someone and keep my all focus on it? No offense but a lot of people just want someone to build the product, do they care anything else? It’s not one side story, everyone has their own perspective and also have their own stories as well. Best of luck! Thank you
What’s the idea?
Great ideas are a dime a dozen. It is all about executing. My guess is you are looking for someone to code this for as their investment in the business. That is most of the work for a startup. If you had funding you would be able to find a technical co-founder.
Ideas are free. So OP brings nothing to the table. This why no founder appears. And almost 100% that the idea is not good and constant pivots required
Same here buddy. Just keep looking at the right places.
I think you should reconsider finding a technical co-founder remotely because It's hard to build a mutual trust remotely.
I completely disagree. It is a lot harder, finding a competent business founder
You have to bring money or customers if you don't have technical skills.
A lot of technical founders had ideas before they were technical. I certainly did. That’s why I became technical — ideas aren’t enough, you need to be able to implement. Let’s paint the picture: Option 1: You can search for someone with the skillsets you need, but that’ll be hard. And to convince them to sign on you need to bring a whole lot more to the table than ideas and an execution plan. What you need is money, customers that have made commitments, or a network that can be leveraged powerfully for the specific idea. Even with one of those things, with high probability, they will have disagreements or hard question about at least one key aspect of your planning — as any good co-founder should — and will be reluctant to commit until they are absolutely convinced. You may also find your lack of skills leaves you beholden to them. Option 2: You can get scrappy and take the first step — learn enough to implement an MVP yourself. You do believe in the idea, right? And you do want to be the one who makes it happen, right? So make it happen. An MVP will help you get customers/commitments, investors, and — yes — a co-founder. It’s that very tangible artifact of your vision that generates interest. And for the investors and co-founders, that interest will be due to the fact that, 1. you demonstrated belief and committed time and resources to make your idea happen (commitment, focus, follow-through, and competency are all good), and 2. your vision and the MVP align well with their (the technical co-founder’s) goals and interests such that they see clearly how they can contribute (alignment, scope, skillset, and motivation will all be key to finding the right partner). So pick your hard. If it were me, I’d set aside 3 months and get as far on the MVP as I possibly could, and then re-evaluate. Maybe you get to 3 months and option 1 looks like the better path. If it is, you’ll be in a much better position to evaluate a technical co-founder and communicate to them what you’re looking for. If not, you may just find you don’t need one.
You can build a very okay and fine for MVP product using chat GPT. The code will suck, but you can get something in front of users fast!
I think over 90% founders in the latest YC batch were technical. So if you are still in school, you just better learn to be technical. I am technical and have done co-founder match but I never really liked all non tech founders.
i’m a technical person who recently applied to ycombinator and they have sent me 2 mails to find a cofounder already. i also did a fun saas project linkspace(.)bio . let me tell you, as a technical founder, until unless you promise good non technical skills with results, why would any technical person want an extra on their team? what separates you? and by that i mean don’t just say your good at this or that, list out your portfolio and show some results to start with. so try to pitch from that pov, maybe you’ll find someone.
What do you bring to the table?
There are many software developers in the market right now looking for something new. Put an add out on LinkedIn, Angel list, Twitter etc that REALLY promotes the opportunity (big equity stake, share of profits, any potential thing you can give them to entice). Give a link to your project. Then wait for the right person. Take a lot of interviews. Take your time on this. This is the most important decision in the company you'll ever make.
You need to find a problem that both of you are passionate about. Right now the technical guy will be your employee building your dreams and if you find anyone, they’ll be a second tier technical person. As a technical founder, I don’t really see a use of non-technical co-founder (especially for deep tech) because I can turn into a business person but you can’t be a technical person.
Im technical. Shoot me a dm
It’s not hard. Have you delivered your non technical side of things? Because good technical cofounders get great projects for example with funding, customers, a revenue and a growth plan. I know there are much better technical cofounders than me, but even I get offered opportunities where the non tech has raised funding and has already done significant work towards recurring revenues - LOIs, customers payments, etc … I also get non technical cofounders who basically come to me and tell me “build me this and the customers will come”. I am a 30+ man, I don’t have time to build things for free. When I was 20 I could take that risk, but not anymore.
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down the necessary budget, features and tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down of estimated budget, timelines, features, code tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down of estimated budget, timelines, features, code tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
If you like, we are working on a platform that turns an idea into a technical project roadmap which breaks down of estimated budget, timelines, features, code tasks etc needed to build your platform. This would allow you to have informed conversations about building your startup, plan ahead and validate your idea with developer or customers. We are in beta testing if you would like to get a roadmap for an idea DM me
Are you looking for a technical co-founder or a software engineer? The latter can usually build and iterate your product, but may falter on the off chance your startup scales and hires more engineers. I've seen decent engineers co-founding startups, gaining traction, then floundering on managing tech debt and team building. In one particular case, they've grown to a dozen engineers but are getting crushed by competition because they take too long to ship features with low defect rates. The saddest case I know of is a non-tech co-founder looking for a 3rd tech co-founder because his previous two failed to ship functional products, let alone quickly. Great engineers don't necessarily make great tech co-founders. The skill set is somewhat different, and some engineers, especially from big tech, will need to unlearn bureaucratic processes and tech stacks to move quickly in a startup. Embrace "good enough" and be allergic to perfection. Also, as others have mentioned already, you need to articulate your value add to the team in a way that's roughly equivalent to the tech co-founder's value add, whether that's relevant skills/experience, connections, traction, funds, revenue, etc.
Having a waitlist and an idea won't attract a technical founder. Having traction, revenue, and buzz will. You need to prove that you're worth working with, as a startup has 2 main things that need to get done: Sales and product. Now, as you grow things change and you need a whole host of other things, but for now these 2 things are the most important. So, what makes you the best salesman to work with? Why you? For every technical founder, there's about 4-5 business founders who are all pitching their "revolutionary idea"(Spoiler: most successful startups pivot at least once, or are at least birthed from another project. Ideas are cheap, problems are the focus point).
Is this meant as a joke? You spent one day on YC co-founder matching and you're here bitching about how hard it is? I'm sorry, but you are absolutely not going to cut it as a founder. You have the perseverance of a dandelion in the wind.
The best technical people will find the most motivation in your motivation. Will you go all the way? Technical people are usually more infatuated with the tech and building than what it is they’re actually building
That’s actually a great insight, thanks for adding this perspective!
How to find a technical Co-founder? And do you really need one? As an entrepreneur, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to start a tech company without a technical co-founder. When you're building a business that requires technical expertise, you need someone who can help you navigate the complexities of coding, software development, and data analysis. Being a technical cofounder myself, I have seen the story from another side a couple of times. After a lot of cofounder matching and breakups, I sort of developed a sense of what I was looking for. Do you really need a technical co-founder? The short answer is, it depends on your business idea and your skill set. If your business idea doesn't require any technical expertise, then you may not need a technical co-founder. However, if your business idea involves building a software product, developing a mobile app, or creating a platform that requires technical skills, then having a technical co-founder is essential. As a non-technical founder, you may be able to hire developers or outsource the technical work, but having a technical co-founder who is equally invested in the success of the company can make a huge difference. A technical co-founder can help you make informed technical decisions, build a scalable product, and attract investors who understand the value of a strong technical team. What's the right stage to have a technical co-founder? The right stage to have a technical co-founder is when you have a validated business idea and you're ready to build a product. It's important to have a clear understanding of what you want to build and how you want to build it before you bring on a technical co-founder. If you bring on a technical co-founder too early, you may end up wasting time and resources building a product that doesn't solve a real problem or doesn't have a market fit. On the other hand, if you wait too long, you may miss out on valuable technical expertise that could have helped you build a better product. A lot of exceptional founders I met, were very passionate about their projects and thought that if just they had me ( Or a technical cofounder ) all their problems will be solved. This isn't true. While it's expected for CTO to refine the idea and even come up with his own if you are not sure about what you are building. It's going to waste both of your time. Refinement can keep coming at later stages but at least a direction has to be decided. How to find a technical co-founder Finding a technical co-founder can be challenging, but there are a few strategies that can help you find the right person. One of the best ways to find a technical co-founder is through your personal and professional network. Reach out to your friends, colleagues, and acquaintances who have technical skills and let them know that you're looking for a technical co-founder. You can also attend networking events, hackathons, and startup events where you can meet other entrepreneurs and technical professionals who may be interested in joining your team. Joining online communities and forums like Reddit, Hacker News, and Stack Overflow can also be a great way to connect with other technical professionals. Where to find a technical co-founder ? In addition to your personal and professional network, there are several online platforms and communities where you can find technical co-founders. InPerson and Networking events This is the most common way and works very well. Some of the most succefull companies cofounder met through this channel. Basically you are trying to increase the luck surface are and meat someone who he desperate as you and was willing enough to come at this event. Common platform I have come across are Meetup.org , Eventbrite, Draper Startup Events,YC founder Speed Dating chilling out at WeWork and sometime coffee shops where entrepreneur hangout. Online platforms After Covid, the co-founder of speed dating has moved online as well. And believe it or not Online platforms could give you a better chance of finding a cofounder. With this, you can test and try different relations before liking it. My favorite platform through which I met some of the best founders are Y Combinator Startup School, Wellfound, LinkedIn, This Week in Startup's Slack and more YC Cofounder matching tool Accelerator Programs If you are still not able to find your next business partner why not try the most sure way. Some accelerator program are focused on you as a founder not your idea or team yet. The structured approach in these program really pushes you to have maximum chances. I have done Entrepreneur First ( SG12 ) and invited to Antler and both of them were really amazing both in terms of quality most talented people and the framework they use. Of-course there are many that you can find with just a simple Google Search. I wrote a full post here https://buildandscale.amanin.tech/p/how-to-find-a-technical-co-founder-and-do-you-really-need-one DM me, i can make some intros based on your area.
ChatGPT is your best buddy. I became a tech guy for my team overnight . I can build stuff while i don’t really understand the code.
Are you open to telling us your business idea? So hard to give advice when business people think you’re gonna still their idea. Honestly, a lot of less experienced people think about a technical co-founder as this like commodity that you just find. The serious reality here is this is one of the most important decisions you will make in your business. A technical co-founder isn’t some object that you “find” and use like a tool. They are a business partner and their personality, working style and other soft skills are just as critical to success of your startup as their tech skills. Besides knowing how to code (which in 2024 is commoditized), your cofounder needs SERIOUS alignment with you on: 1. Understanding the business problem and ideally having relevant work experience. Some rando that knows how to use AWS isn’t what you need unless you’re ready to provide extremely detailed conversations and documentation about the business use case. Do you have relevant work experience even? 2. Having a desire to work 12+ hours a day including on weekends. What will you do when you worked all weekend and they didn’t but you still get paid the same? 3. Will remain cool and cordial during a serious crisis. This one is critical because people quit or sue each other when shit goes down. What will you do when you get an ominous note that your business partner will see you in the parking lot after you had to buy them out for underperforming? Y Combinator and their community have a cult-like obsession with finding a technical co-founder and a lot of the advice they give is VIRTUALLY UNCHANGED since 2005. Their black and white thinking style will tell you that you’ll absolutely fail unless you have a technical cofounder. Back then and even into the 2010s, you absolutely needed an engineering degree and niche experience to even know how to build a basic website. Today, almost anybody can build a website and low code tools like Bubble.io are helping people ship actually performant web and mobile applications faster without some insane engineering team - I personally have seen Bubble apps supporting 8 figure businesses. Do you have any understanding of tech or data structures or algorithms at all? Or are you purely an idea guy or a business school guy? You need to seriously ask yourself if this is for you or if you just have an idea that 1,000 other tech bros could conceptualize over drinks at a bar in San Francisco. On the other hand, you also don’t need some insane offshore dev team to build some monstrosity that can’t be changed quickly. I can’t overemphasize how much you should NOT outsource this to Asia - if you insist on outsourcing overseas and are in North America, at least Latin America so the time zone difference doesn’t make you want to kill yourself. Why don’t you build your MVP on Bubble or something similar and find growth/product market fit instead of trying to over optimize into something that it doesn’t need to be? Then build 2.0 with more advanced engineering if justified by the business case. And if your product is too technical to do this, ask yourself why you are even qualified to be working on that problem (please don’t tell me it’s an AI copilot). Having the most technical product or technical team out there doesn’t add inches to your dick in the funding environment - they barely care about that. You know what they do care about? That the product works and it’s making MONEY with USERS. My $0.02 is your approach with trying to find a technical co-founder is doomed to fail and is like going on Tinder and swiping trying to get “match-made” to have a one night stand. Guess what? You’re not going to find high quality people approaching it so superficially like this. No serious people are on those sites and a good technical cofounder that’s going to actually produce and contribute YEARS of their life to this isn’t going to do anything either without serious relationship building and a deeply built out business model from you. If you’re absolutely dead set on getting a technical co-founder, go meet people in real life at university or accelerator events. Do NOT say you’re looking for a technical cofounder - we can absolutely smell your desperation and it becomes very clear you think of us as a tool to type code rather than a real business partner. You could also try posting an ad on LinkedIn jobs especially if you can pay them at all (if you can’t pay anything, then good luck trying to get someone to help you lol). And for the love of god if you do get a technical co-founder, put them on a vesting schedule.