Running out of cash before software reaches viability is one of the biggest pitfalls. Producer Joseph Lewin introduces host Daniel Kazani as they dig into how to develop software without running out of cash. The conversation compares three paths for early traction and scale up: hire in-house, work with freelancers, or partner with an agency. Daniel explains commitment, premiums, and flexibility, including pause and resume development, start in two to four weeks, and build for three to six months. The discussion covers waiting for a CTO, the sweet spot of two to three months, and why CTO as a service can cover investor meetings, technical roadmap, scalability, and cloud. They highlight speed, screening and onboarding realities, notice periods, equity, and how priorities shift with new customers, funding, or AI. The episode calls out why maximum flexibility and maximum speed protect cash flow when things change.

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📌 What We Cover

• The tradeoffs between in-house, freelancers, and an agency for early traction and scale-up
• Commitment windows like six to twelve months vs pause and resume development for three to six months
• Why waiting more than two to three months for a CTO can let the market shift
• CTO as a service for investor meetings, technical roadmap, scalability, cloud, DevOps, and cybersecurity touchpoints
• The real hiring timeline: defining the role, screening, technical vetting, offers, equity, onboarding, and notice periods
• Broad expertise vs specific expertise, and shifting priorities across backend, QA, DevOps, databases, cloud, and security
• Risks of hiring students for core product work, including exam periods and speed
• Reputation concerns with outsourcing, buying as much as you can afford, and having one neck to choke

🔗 Resources Mentioned

• LinkedIn
• Naval Ravikant
• AWS
• Meta
• San Francisco