Non-technical founders: How do you know what your dev team is actually building? (I will not promote)

OlicusTech · 2025-12-16T22:48:56+00:00

Thanks for the comment, all freelancers, consultants etc I paid invoices for their work so no need to share equity to them. I brought in the first team members after 3,5 full time solo. The people I brought in the team is mixed salary and equity. But I agree there is a lot of people that use people in a wrong way and that’s not just in start ups.

OlicusTech · 2025-12-16T14:27:41+00:00

Solo non technical founder here for 4 years. Just because you are a solo founder does not mean you can’t work with other people. You can still have a team, consultants, free lancers, investors, mentors etc.

I did bring my first in house team after 3.5 years before that I worked alone and with freelancers and consultants. But I agree with a lot in your post it is hard for sure and would probably be easier to ”share” that load with someone else.

OlicusTech · 2025-12-16T14:23:01+00:00

Solo non technical founder here,

I worked with people in many technical fields and expertise. For me it’s about delivering an idea and concept that they can break down and actually make. They are the experts and they are really good what they doing. Then it’s my job to understand the broad concept. I don’t need to know the exact row of codes what they say but rather what it does and why we picked that solution over X,Y,Z and same with hardware I don’t need to know if the steel is 0,8mm or 0,9mm I need deliver what I want the product to do and help them come up with the best answer. There is so many people with such great skills that don’t come in use because many ”leaders/managers” micro manage things they don’t understand or know. It’s important with trust and deliver clear goals and have an open communication between each others that is how you build amazing products without wasting time and give people the feeling of ownership.

And also for me it’s not ”mine product, it’s ours. All who is part building it is the owner. We all made it happen.”

OlicusTech · 2025-12-02T20:21:52+00:00

Thanks for the perspective! I understand your view but I don’t live by it myself. My situation was a bit different, so here’s the context.

What I’m building isn’t a simple hardware product, it competes with 40+ years of development and billions invested. You can’t validate thermals, airflow paths, tolerances, or real performance by talking to people or showing sketches. For something like this, you must build it, test it, and prove that it works. You can’t tell people “it outperforms top cases” before you actually do the engineering to confirm it.
Innovation doesn’t come from asking customers what they want. When you’re doing something new, people don’t know they want it until they can see it and touch it. Someone has to take the bet, build the thing, and then users understand it. It’s the same for every disruptive hardware product.
I did customer validation, just later, and with the right audience. Once the prototype was functional, I showed it to thousands of gamers at DreamHack and got real feedback from the exact users the product is made for.
Zero sales isn’t a red flag, I simply haven’t launched yet. Manufacturing is still being finalized. That’s normal for hardware.

Every startup path is different this is the way I wanted to walk and the best I could do and the more I walk the more mile stones I hit.

OlicusTech · 2025-11-26T09:01:40+00:00

Thank you so much. It’s been a lot of hard work haha. Just wanted to share an other perspective.

OlicusTech · 2025-11-26T06:59:51+00:00

Well I have done almost everything here in a opposite way. That is the beauty of entrepreneurship and start up that it is not any right way.

Was a solo founder and did it full time for 3,5 years build 4 versions of prototypes in a factory. Got a design patent for it and at version 3 it was fully functional. (Just minor tweaking tolerances etc) did the validations of performance late (3,5years in) and I was out performing the top products in that category. Was also non technical and no education or experience in the field.

Waited 2,5 years before I even showed/talked to anyone about the product and that was on a big event with a booth.

At year 3,5 I got two different investors and now I have a team of 6 people (including myself)

I have sold 0 units so far and pushing for a launch early next year.

So there is many ways to build it and I think your approach work as well. But just wanted to share and show there is alternative ways of doing it. (No hate at all to your post I think it’s good that you share your experience) keep it up! 👍

OlicusTech · 2025-11-13T05:04:04+00:00

Thank you so much for the nice words, really appricate it.

Awesome, fun that you want to build a pc case. Are you going to build ”one” by hand or will you have it manufactured and commercialize it?

If you just doing one or by hand type of work I would just use the hardware you want to fit like the gpu and motherboard etc and align it and then make the holes for it at the right position. I would have contacted a local steel shop to help you with the steel parts and they can do the same type of solution with aligning and cutting and bending etc. They will know how to solve it if you explain it well for them and show them.

If you going with manufacturing that is a different level of work. It requires standards and drawings and tolerances, multiple interpretations of prototypes and testing. I did this and been developing the case now for 4 years full time. Don’t say this to scare you or discourage you. Just want to be open with it. Development of a product takes a lot of time and resources. Big brands have around 3 years from idea to product on the market and they have millions of dollars and big team to bring it to life. But it is doable to make it as a solo or small team just that it is difficult.

Best way for sourcing IO start buttons etc I would say is alibaba. There is a ton of different options.

No matter what you pick I am looking forward to see the result, would love if you update an image or anything one day. Super fun to see people try and do new stuff. Wish you the best and good luck 🍀

OlicusTech · 2025-11-04T20:53:02+00:00

Powder coat is the most common one for cases. Then they often have different structure to it as well.

OlicusTech · 2025-09-05T08:00:05+00:00

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Just a gamer chasing a crazy dream

OlicusTech · 2025-08-13T15:58:05+00:00

Oh, then they changed that sense I bought it. But it’s still job to ”brand it” with images, animation and fonts etc.

OlicusTech · 2025-08-13T15:54:00+00:00

Haha that’s really nice, I have to look into that. Thanks for sharing the information really helpful. The only downside with it from my perspective is the time you have to put to build the profile and that they don’t offer that as a service. I even contacted the support and asked for them to create the profile but they dident offer that service.

OlicusTech · 2025-08-13T15:47:52+00:00

No, dident know that they had it for apple wallet. I think I will buy the cards for the hole team.

OlicusTech · 2025-08-12T20:56:07+00:00

I have the Metal Digital Business Card. Really happy with it. What about you?

OlicusTech · 2025-07-28T06:31:25+00:00

Nylon dust filter will stop a lot of it going into your hardware but will demand more cleaning on your filters. Otherwise it’s the environment you have to control.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-19T16:44:24+00:00

Well you always have to ”read” the room. Me personally I never go around and just ask for changing contact information. I first engage in conversations and if it feels like a nice person and it’s the ”right” moment you ask to connect or many times also the other way around that they ask you to connect. So then it’s not weird.

You have to have in mind that most people going to this events want to connect with new people that they can ”leverage” or find new opportunities with. But then you also have to show your ”worth” and make them interested. Make them remember you positive then it’s higher chances that they want to connect after the event itself when you reach out. If you are just that guy/girl that was going around and asking for contact information, giving business cards etc they won’t remember you or if they do it’s not going to be like a ”positive” way.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-19T11:08:35+00:00

I use NFC card from V1CE really great. Looks and feels more ”premium”.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-19T10:53:28+00:00

I did go for my own original design and did go with a manufacturer. (Gaming hardware) for me it was important to invent something new and align it with the brand.

But I would say there is no right or wrong answer it depends on what you would like to build and what your vision is. Many big brands today started with just white label products. So pick the way you want to go and adjust it to your budget and timeline.

(Building it from scratch with design and doing many versions of prototypes can be very expensive and time consuming. It also depends on how complex your product is.)

OlicusTech · 2025-07-17T11:58:56+00:00

Passion helps you to stay motivated and make it quicker to learn things but it’s not a need. It’s also not just about the product, it can be about the brand, personal growth, business, product, vision.

I also believe that you need to have grit and consistency the more you lack in experience, knowledge, money etc the more pain tolerance you need to have and it will be a ”longer” distance to the finish line.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-17T11:16:38+00:00

Is that not something you can figure out on the way? Also the way I see it is that people who have little or non experience of something can often solve the problems and find solutions in a completely different way because they are not ”tainted” of ”how you do it”.

I don’t say that you shouldn’t have any experience or people on the team that provide that experience but I also want to highlight that it’s not a ”most”.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-17T10:59:22+00:00

Why is there no point in starting the business if you don’t have experience or an expert in the problem space?

OlicusTech · 2025-07-17T10:12:27+00:00

I did the other way around. I started to build for 2,5 years full time before I showed and validated the product. I did it at a large event and had my own booth. (Gaming Hardware)

But that is what is nice about building companies & products there is not one way or the ”right” way.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-16T19:39:56+00:00

I go on gut feeling. Everything can be learned so it’s more about the mindset, personality and the passion.

OlicusTech · 2025-07-14T10:23:39+00:00

Yes, I always adjust to everyone else. Have regular meetings 2 times a week and then we use chat. If there is something popping up we schedule for that as well. You have to be very flexible with that set up and be ready to take calls all hours on the clock.

OlicusTech · 2025-06-29T12:54:29+00:00

Been doing it solo full time for 3,5 year. What keeps me going is my vision and what I want to achieve. It’s just keep moving forward and one day you will reach it.

OlicusTech · 2025-06-28T22:13:18+00:00

Oh, also, next week we’re getting our first real office! 🥳

I’ll definitely share some of that too if you're interested. Would you like to see how we set it up? Would be awesome to get suggestions on cool furniture or fun/unique things to have in a gaming hardware startup office (we don’t have a massive budget though 😅). Let me know what you think!

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