One of the questions I’m asked most often is how to build a software idea from scratch. Usually, this comes from people with business backgrounds who have a concept in mind but no clue where to begin. Instead of having the same conversation dozens of times, I decided to write down the best answer I have today.
If you don’t have any technical knowledge or skill, there are basically two paths you can follow:
- Learn to code yourself.
- Find an outstanding technical co-founder.
People often counter with ideas like:
- “I’ll just hire a computer science major and pay them a salary.”
- “I’ll just work with an agency to build my product.”
- “I found this cheap guy from [insert low wage country] who’ll do it for $1,000.”
If you’re serious about building a tech company, none of these approaches ever work. Building a product isn’t like making a PowerPoint presentation with a fixed scope that’s finished after a certain amount of time. Instead, software is an ongoing project with infinite room for improvement. There’s always something to refine, remove, or add—like fixing security issues, dealing with bugs, or rebuilding features to keep up with user needs. Especially in the early days, you’ll likely pivot and iterate multiple times until you get it right.
The second reason these quick-fix solutions fail is the lack of proper incentives. If you want a mediocre product, those paths might be fine. But if you want people to fall in love with your technology, you need team members who are obsessed with the details. Typical employees, freelancers, or agencies simply aren’t motivated to go that extra mile. They aren’t invested in the long-term vision or the small details that can make or break a product.
Some might argue that there are exceptions—like the McKinsey consultant who outsourced the tech and still found success. Sure, those stories exist, but they’re outliers. If you want to maximize the odds of building a thriving company, you need internal talent that’s passionate about technology.
Even in a post-AI world, where “AI engineers” will change how we build software, you still need someone who fully owns the technical side. Yes, you might only need a fraction of the resources you once did, but you cannot sacrifice real talent if technology is a core part of your idea.
So you come back to this: either learn to build it yourself (which AI has made far easier) or find a partner who’s ready for the >5 year journey it takes to create technology people truly love.