Freelance devs are expensive and disappear after launch
Quality freelancers cost a fortune, and the cheap ones vanish the day after delivery — taking all knowledge of your codebase with them. Support costs extra, if you can reach them at all.
MVP development for non-technical founders
The technical cofounder you don't have to give equity to.
We build your MVP for a one-time fee, then take a small share of monthly revenue — you keep 100% ownership and control. If the product makes $0, you pay $0 beyond the build fee.
Built for first-time founders — fixed-scope proposals · you own 100% of your IP
The problem
Great ideas die in the gap between “I have an idea” and “I can't code.”
You shouldn't need a computer science degree to start a software company. But the current options are all broken in their own way:
Technical co-founders want 30–50% equity
A technical co-founder typically asks for a huge slice of your company before writing a single line of code. That's ownership you'll never get back — for a bet that may not pay off.
No-code tools break once you need real logic
Great for a prototype. But the moment you need real users, real logic, and real scale, you hit walls — and end up rebuilding from scratch anyway.
There's a fourth option: a studio that builds it and stays invested.
Book a free discovery call
The comparison
Honestly, here's how the options stack up
| Factor | Freelancer | Equity co-founder | Cofounder Studios |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ownership | You keep it — but so do all the problems when they leave. | You give up 30–50% of your company, permanently. | You keep 100% — code, IP, data, control. |
| Upfront cost | Quotes vary wildly; quality builds are rarely cheap. | Free in cash — paid in ownership instead. | From $1,000, fixed in the proposal. No hourly billing. |
| Ongoing incentive | Gone after delivery. Support costs extra — if you can reach them. | Vesting ends, motivation drifts, cap table stays split. | Paid only when your product earns. Incentives stay aligned. |
| Speed | Slow to vet, and timelines slip constantly. | Months of “co-founder dating” before anything gets built. | MVP in 4–6 weeks, with a ship date in writing. |
The process
From first call to launched product
Five steps. No jargon, no black box, no disappearing act.
-
01 / DISCOVERY
Discovery Call
We tear into your idea together and tell you honestly if it's buildable — and if we're the right fit.
30 minutes · free -
02 / SCOPING
Scope & Proposal
A fixed scope: exactly what gets built, what it costs, and when it ships. No surprises.
2–3 days -
03 / CONTRACT
Contract + Deposit
A plain-language agreement. You keep 100% ownership and IP, always.
a few days -
04 / BUILD
Build MVP
Weekly sprints with live demos, so you see progress every single week.
4–6 weeks -
05 / LAUNCH
Launch + Rev Share
We ship it with you. The revenue share only starts when you start earning.
ongoing
Who this is for
Built for people with the idea and the drive
You don't need to know how to code. You need to know there's a customer — we'll handle the rest.
Add a software product to what you already run
Your business works. A software product could open a second revenue line — without learning to code or hiring an in-house dev team.
Test an idea without quitting your job
A working MVP tells you in weeks what months of thinking can't. Validate with real users before you bet your career on it.
A technical partner without giving up equity
Get someone who ships. Keep 100% of your company while we worry about the code — and we only get paid when your product earns.
Sound like you? Let's talk about your idea.
Book a free discovery call
Current work
What we're building now
We're an early studio — our first build cycles are underway, and each one gets our full attention as it ships. Here's the kind of work currently on the bench:
AI-assisted SaaS tools
Dashboards, internal tools, and products that put AI to work on real workflows — our specialty.
Marketplaces & platforms
Two-sided products that connect buyers and sellers, from the first listing to the first payment.
Workflow automation
Systems that replace manual processes and brittle spreadsheets with software that just works.
HONEST CAPACITY
Book a free discovery call
We take on about two builds per month — that's how many we can do well. If you want one of the next slots, the discovery call is how it starts.
Quick answers
The questions everyone asks first
What if my product never makes money?
Then you pay nothing beyond the build fee. The revenue share is a share of real, collected revenue — 10–15% of zero is zero. You still own everything we built.
Do you take equity?
Never. No cap table, no vesting, no legal claims on your company. Our model is a fixed build fee plus a share of revenue — you keep 100% ownership from day one.
What happens after launch — do you disappear?
No — that's the whole point of the revenue share. Because we're paid only when your product earns, we're invested in your launch working. You get a post-launch support window for fixes, and we stay reachable after it.
Have an idea? Let's find out if it's worth building.
Thirty minutes, an honest conversation, and a straight answer — whether that's “yes, here's how” or “not yet.” No sales pitch either way.
Book your free discovery call30 MINUTES · NO PRESSURE · NO OBLIGATION
The process
How it works
Five steps from first call to launched product. No jargon, no black box — and you'll know exactly what's happening at every stage.
01 / DISCOVERY
Discovery Call
30 MIN · FREEWhat happens
A 30-minute video call. You describe the idea; we ask hard questions about who pays, why now, and what's essential. We tell you honestly whether it's buildable, whether an MVP is the right move, and whether we're the right people.
We need from you
A rough description of the product, who it's for, and why you believe it can make money. Thirty minutes and candor — no pitch deck required.
You receive
A straight answer: fit or not, and what the next step would look like. If it's not a fit, we'll tell you that too — before any money moves.
Timeframe
30 minutes, usually within a week of your request. Free, no obligation.
02 / SCOPING
Scope & Proposal
2–3 DAYSWhat happens
We turn the call into a written document: exactly what gets built, what explicitly doesn't, the fixed price, and the ship date. You review it line by line; nothing vague survives to the build.
We need from you
Answers to follow-up questions, any products or designs you like as references, and decisions on the must-have features we recommend cutting or keeping.
You receive
A fixed-scope proposal with a fixed price and a fixed ship date. If anything feels off, we revise until it's right — the scope only locks when you're confident.
Timeframe
Proposal in your inbox within 2–3 days of the discovery call.
03 / CONTRACT
Contract + Deposit
A FEW DAYSWhat happens
A plain-language agreement covers the work, the revenue-share terms, ownership, and exit terms — written to be read, not to confuse. A deposit reserves your build slot on the calendar.
We need from you
One signing session — an actual conversation, not a link you click alone. Plus decisions on the names, copy, and content that go into the product.
You receive
A signed agreement in which you keep 100% ownership of everything built — code, IP, data, and control. Read the full deal if you haven't.
Timeframe
Typically a few days, depending on how thoroughly you want to review — take your time, we'll answer everything.
04 / BUILD
Build Your MVP
4–6 WEEKSWhat happens
We build in weekly sprints. Every week you get a live demo, test it yourself, and give feedback that directly shapes the next week. You'll never wonder what's happening.
We need from you
Quick decisions at the weekly demos, plus content or credentials when we request them. No code, no technical homework — if you can use an app, you can do this part.
You receive
A working MVP — tested, documented, and deployed somewhere you can show real users. Every weekly demo is visible proof of progress.
Timeframe
4–6 weeks, depending on scope. The ship date was in the proposal — we hold to it.
05 / LAUNCH
Launch + Revenue Share
ONGOINGWhat happens
We launch with you: final checks, production deployment, analytics in place, and full handover. Then we switch to support mode while you start selling.
We need from you
The launch decision, and later, your monthly revenue reports from your payment processor so the revenue share reconciles cleanly.
You receive
A live product you own outright — and a studio that's still invested, because under this model a technical co-founder-style partner would hold equity; we earn 10–15% of monthly revenue instead, only when you do.
Timeframe
Launch week, then ongoing. The revenue share only starts when the product starts earning.
After launch
What happens after launch?
Plainly stated — what ongoing support is, and what it isn't.
Included
- A post-launch support window for bug fixes on what we built
- Full codebase and credential handover — deployment you control
- Written documentation on how to run what we shipped
- An invested partner reachable when it matters
Not included
- New feature development (quoted separately, fixed-price)
- Marketing, paid ads, or growth operations
- Long-term retained staffing or daily on-call
- Running the business for you — that's yours
Step one is a 30-minute call. Everything else follows from there.
Book a free discovery callReady when you are.
We'll tell you honestly on the first call if your idea is worth building — and if we're the right studio to build it.
Book your free discovery call30 MINUTES · NO PRESSURE · NO OBLIGATION
Pricing
The deal, in plain language
One page, every number. Here's exactly what Cofounder Studios costs — and what you get for it.
- One-time build fee
- Projects start at $1,000. Your exact price is fixed in the proposal after the discovery call, based on scope. No hourly billing, ever — the number only goes down if the scope shrinks, never up mid-build.
- Revenue share
- 10–15% of monthly revenue, agreed upfront in the contract. It starts only when your product starts earning. If the product makes $0 in a month, you pay $0 for that month.
- Ownership
- 100% yours. Code, intellectual property, data, credentials, control — all of it, yours from day one. No equity is taken. No cap table, no vesting, no legal claims on your company.
- The studio provides
- Design, development, and launch of your MVP; weekly demos during the build; documentation and full handover; and a post-launch support window for bug fixes on what we built.
- Not included
- Post-MVP feature development (quoted separately, fixed-price), marketing and paid ads, and ongoing staffing. When we don't do something, we say so here instead of surprising you later.
Worked example
Say your product makes $5,000 in a month. The revenue-share payment is $500–$750 — percentage agreed upfront, no surprises.
If it makes $0 that month, you pay $0 beyond the build fee. That's the whole safety net of the model.
Why this model
Why a revenue share, and not just a flat fee?
A flat fee ends our relationship at delivery. We've all heard the stories: the product launches, the builder moves on, and the founder is alone with code they don't understand and bugs they can't fix.
The revenue share fixes that by aligning incentives. We earn 10–15% of monthly revenue — which means we earn more only when you earn more. We're invested in choosing the right scope, shipping quality, and your launch working, because our upside is the same direction as yours.
It's not a hidden cost — it's the mechanism that keeps us on your side of the table after the launch confetti settles. And unlike equity, it never dilutes your ownership or complicates your cap table: you keep 100%.
HONEST CAPACITY
Book a free discovery call
We take on about two builds per month — that's how many we can do well. Pricing is honest; capacity is real.
Your exact number comes from a conversation, not a calculator.
Tell us what you're building. We'll tell you what it costs — straight, fixed, and in writing.
Book your free discovery call30 MINUTES · NO PRESSURE · NO OBLIGATION
FAQ
Questions, answered honestly
The straight answers to the questions every non-technical founder asks before booking. If yours isn't here, ask it on the call.
About the model
Equity, revenue share, and how the deal works
Do you take equity?
Never. There's no cap table, no vesting, no co-founder agreement on our side. Our model for MVP development for non-technical founders is a fixed build fee plus a share of revenue — you keep 100% ownership from day one.
What exactly is the revenue share based on?
It's a percentage of the monthly revenue your product collects — the money your customers pay you. If the product brings in money, our 10–15% comes from that same stream; if it brings in nothing, there's nothing to share. The exact percentage is agreed upfront in the contract and scales with the size of your build.
How do you verify my revenue?
Practically, through your payment processor. Most clients use Stripe or something equivalent, and we reconcile against those monthly reports — simple, auditable, and standard practice. The exact mechanics are spelled out in the agreement before we write a line of code.
Can I buy out the revenue share later?
Yes — we don't want it hanging over your company forever. Most agreements include a buyout path with terms agreed upfront, so if buying it out makes sense later, the math is already settled and it's clean when it happens.
About the build
What gets built, and how
What can be built in an MVP stage?
The working core of your product: accounts, the main workflow your idea depends on, payments if it sells something, and an admin view so you can run it. Anything sophisticated-but-secondary — extra integrations, mobile apps, advanced analytics — waits for version two. The goal is the smallest product that can start earning and teaching you.
What tech stack do you use?
A modern, hireable-for stack: a Python or JavaScript backend, a clean web frontend, and managed cloud hosting. Nothing exotic, nothing that traps you with us. The codebase is documented and handed over, so any competent developer can pick it up later.
How long does a build take?
Roughly 4–6 weeks from contract to launch day, depending on scope. You see progress every week in a live demo — we never go quiet for a month and reappear with a surprise. Fixed scope means the timeline is part of the proposal, not a wish.
What if I want changes after launch?
Small fixes are on us during the post-launch support window. Bigger changes — new features, redesigns, new modules — get a fresh fixed quote, the same way the MVP did. You'll never hit “while you're at it” scope creep mid-build.
About working together
Fit, legality, and exit terms
What if my idea doesn't work out?
Then it doesn't — and that's a fine outcome. The revenue share costs you nothing if there's no revenue; you keep the code and everything built. Our honest job in the discovery call is to tell you if the idea has obvious holes before any money moves.
Are you actually a “co-founder,” legally?
No — and that's deliberate. We're a development studio with revenue-share economics, not a co-founder with legal claims on your company. No board seat, no votes, no cap table, no permission to operate your business. We build the product; you run the company.
What happens if I want to end the agreement?
Every agreement includes clear exit terms: you keep 100% of the code, IP, data and everything built, and the revenue share only ever applies to revenue the product earned. No hostages, no kill switch, no lock-in. We'd rather you leave happy than stay reluctantly.
Still have a question? Bring it to the call — we answer everything.
Book a free discovery callThe shortest FAQ of all: just ask us.
Thirty minutes, no pitch. We'll tell you honestly if this is a fit.
Book your free discovery call30 MINUTES · NO PRESSURE · NO OBLIGATION
About
About Cofounder Studios
An MVP development studio for non-technical founders. We design, build, and launch your product — the technical team you never have to give equity to.
Our mission: every founder deserves a technical team — without giving up equity.
Who we are
A studio that builds and stays invested
Cofounder Studios exists for one reason: great ideas shouldn't die because the founder can't code. We're a senior-led studio pairing experienced engineers with AI-accelerated workflows — shipping production MVPs fast, without cutting corners.
Founded by engineers who build with AI-accelerated workflows
Senior-led, AI-accelerated, fixed-scope
Every build is led by senior engineers using AI-accelerated workflows — the speed of automation with the judgment of experienced builders. No junior-hour billing games, no black-box process.
Fixed scope, transparent pricing. You know exactly what gets built, what it costs, and when it ships — in writing before we start. Weekly live demos keep every step visible. See the full process.
Aligned incentives, no equity drama
Traditional agencies get paid whether your product works or not. Equity co-founders get ownership whether they deliver or not. Both arrangements tilt against the founder at the worst moments.
The revenue-share model flips that: we earn 10–15% of monthly revenue, so we earn more only when you earn more. You keep 100% of your company; we keep skin in the game. It's the closest thing to a technical co-founder without handing over your cap table.
Operating principles
How we operate
The rules every build runs on — no exceptions.
You keep 100% ownership
Code, IP, data, credentials, control — yours from day one. No equity, no cap table, no vesting, no legal claims on your company.
We only win when you win
Our upside is 10–15% of monthly revenue. If your product makes nothing, we make nothing — so we build like your launch is our business.
Honesty over hype
If your idea has holes, you'll hear it on the first call. No invented promises, no vanity metrics — straight answers before money moves.
Ship fast, never cut corners
Four to six weeks from contract to launch, with weekly live demos. Speed comes from focus and process — never from rushing the craft.
Like the way we work? Let's see if your idea fits it.
Book a free discovery callMeet the studio: it's one honest conversation away.
No theater, no pitch — just a straight conversation about your idea.
Book your free discovery call30 MINUTES · NO PRESSURE · NO OBLIGATION
Step one
Book a discovery call
Thirty minutes. We talk about your idea, we ask hard questions, and we give you a straight answer: worth building, or not yet.
Before we talk, have a rough idea of:
- What your product does — one paragraph is enough. If you can't explain it in a paragraph, we can find it together on the call.
- Who it's for — who pays, and why. “Everyone” is not an answer; a specific someone is.
- What success looks like in 6 months — be specific. “10 paying customers” beats “growth” every time.
Prefer email?
Send your details and we'll propose a time within one business day. This opens your email app with everything filled in — you just hit send.
Based where you are — we work with founders worldwide, async and on video calls.
Request your call
No pressure, no obligation — we'll tell you honestly if this isn't a fit.
The worst outcome of the call is thirty minutes well spent. The best is the start of your product.
Email us directly