

Scaling DevTools
Jack Bridger
We investigate what it takes to grow developer tools and AI DevTools. Topics include developer marketing, DevRel, developer advocacy and developer experience. Featuring founders and key people from the likes of Vercel, ElevenLabs and OpenAI. Scaling DevTools is sponsored by WorkOS.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 7, 2024 • 38min
Gonto - Auth0 Employee #6 shares developer marketing secrets
Gonto (Martin Gontovnikas) was the 6th employee at Auth0 and helped them grow fast and sell for $6.5billion to Okta. Now he is the founder of Hypergrowth Partners and helps DevTools grow fast.We discuss:What Auth0 did to become so valuable so fastWhat the best founders do (Guillermo Rauch)Different is better than better People follow people not brandsWhy bleeding edge mattersResourcesWhy Technical SDRs are the Future of DevToolshttps://playbooks.hypergrowthpartners.com/p/product-advocates-technical-sdrsGonto's website https://gon.to/Gonto's Twitter https://twitter.com/mgontoHypergrowth Partners https://www.hypergrowthpartners.com/Code to Market https://codetomarket.fm/Guillermo Rauch https://x.com/rauchgThis episode is brought to you by WorkOS. If you're thinking about selling to enterprise customers, WorkOS can help you add enterprise features like Single Sign On and audit logs.

Oct 31, 2024 • 47min
The Homebrew maintainers who built a startup - Mike McQuaid and John Britton from Workbrew
Mike McQuaid and John Britton are cofounders of Workbrew - a tool that gives you the missing features for enterprises running homebrew. John has previously worked at GitHub and Twilio and is a contributor to Homebrew. Mike has also worked at GitHub as well as being the project lead and longest running maintainer at Homebrew. We dig into:How Homebrew can trace its origins to a pub in LondonHow Apple actually work with HomebrewHow Homebrew managed to grow and scale upHow Workbrew are avoiding misaligned incentives so common in open sourceLinks for Mike, John and WorkbrewMike McQuaid https://mikemcquaid.com/John Britton https://johndbritton.com/Workbrew https://workbrew.com/This episode is brought to you by WorkOS. If you're thinking about selling to enterprise customers, WorkOS can help you add enterprise features like Single Sign On and audit logs.

Oct 24, 2024 • 42min
Paul Klein, CEO & Founder of Browserbase
Paul Klein, the CEO and Founder of Browserbase, shares insights from his journey creating a headless browser API for AI startups. He discusses the challenges of browser automation and the importance of transparency in building user trust. Klein emphasizes strategies for rapid growth by focusing on user pain points and fostering community connections. He also shares peculiar hiring tips, likening buying a dev tool to purchasing a jacket, and highlights the vibrant San Francisco tech culture that shapes his innovative approach.

Oct 17, 2024 • 30min
Fundraising, exiting to Elastic and the future of Product Engineering | Rasmus Makwarth (CEO, Bucket)
In 2017, Rasmus Makwarth sold his previous APM (Application Performance Managment) startup Opbeat to Elastic for an undisclosed amount. Opbeat became Elastic APM, which became a big part of the Elastic Observability solution and Rasmus became Senior Director of Product Management - with a focus on Developer Experience.Today, Rasmus is the founder and CEO of Bucket.co - a feature flagging tool built for B2B teams. Bucket has raised $5.7m from investors such as Project A and Creandum. We dig into:The realities of fundraising on a deadlineThe role of San Francisco in fundraising - do you need to be there?How exit opportunities can come from unexpected sources and the importance of showing up The importance of building a great productWhat Rasmus learned at Elastic - one of the biggest DevTools in the world Why Bucket is betting on helping engineers at b2b companies understand how users use their featuresThe future of product engineeringWhere to find Rasmus:LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/makwarth/?originalSubdomain=dkTwitter/X https://x.com/makwarthBucket https://bucket.co/ReferencesElastic https://elastic.co/Opbeat acquisition announcement https://www.elastic.co/blog/welcome-opbeat-to-the-elastic-familyShay Banon - founder of Elastic https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimchy/Gregory Tademoto - VP Global Business & Corporate Development https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregorytademoto/To support Scaling DevTools, check out the Enterprise Ready Conf from WorkOS https://enterprise-ready.com/

Oct 10, 2024 • 1h 16min
Shawn Wang (swyx) - founder of smol.ai, Latent Space, AI Engineer, DX.tips
Shawn Wang, known as swyx, is the founder of smol.ai and co-host of the Latent Space podcast, celebrated for driving the AI engineer movement. In this conversation, he shares insights on organizing AI Engineer conferences and promoting intentionality within the community. Shawn discusses angel investing in DevTools, the evolving role of developers in the AI landscape, and the balance between OpenAI's vision and profitability. They dive into the complexities of investing in developer tools and the significance of a supportive network for success.

Oct 4, 2024 • 56min
Sagar Batchu - co-founder of Speakeasy
Sagar is the CEO and co-founder of Speakeasy - an API tooling platform. We talk about the journey of Speakeasy. The challenges of startup life. How they developed the product and how they work with influencers in a surprising way.Building relationships with influencers can significantly enhance product development.Importance of listening to customersFine line between product and consultingThe role of documentation in user experienceBeing responsive to customer needs builds long-term relationships.The startup journey requires patience and adaptability.Links:Sagar Batchu Speakeasy https://www.speakeasy.com/Check out the Enterprise Ready Conf from WorkOS https://enterprise-ready.com/

Sep 26, 2024 • 41min
Anurag Goel - founder of Render
In this conversation, Anurag Goel, founder and CEO of Render, discusses the evolution of Render as a cloud infrastructure platform is actually simple to use.He shares insights from his time at Stripe, emphasizing the importance of customer focus, crafting a seamless user experience, and the philosophy of progressive disclosure of complexity. Anurag also highlights the significance of customer support as an integral part of the product and offers advice for aspiring founders on finding their passion and maintaining empathy in their work.This episode is brought to you by WorkOS. If you're thinking about selling to enterprise customers, WorkOS can help you add enterprise features like Single Sign On and audit logs.What we discuss:Building in special details enhances customer experience.The delicate balance between simplicity and capability. How the power of sensible defaults. and progressive disclosure of complexity improves usability.Focus on customer needs drives product development.Customer support should be treated as a product.Finding founder market fit is crucial for success.Empathy for users is essential in product development.LinksAnurag's Twitter https://x.com/anuraggoelRender https://render.com/Stripe https://stripe.com/KeywordsRender, developer experience, cloud infrastructure, customer support, startup culture, Anurag Goel, Stripe, product development, user experience, technology

5 snips
Sep 24, 2024 • 43min
Ant Wilson - Cofounder of Supabase (100th Episode!)
Ant Wilson, cofounder and CTO of Supabase, dives into the company's evolution and the power of open source in tech. He discusses the significance of community engagement and developer-centric branding, highlighting how these elements shape successful marketing strategies. The conversation offers insights into navigating enterprise challenges and the growing influence of AI and vector databases. Ant reflects on building trust with clients and celebrating the journey of reaching 100 episodes, all while emphasizing the competitive edge that open source can offer.

Sep 22, 2024 • 39min
Customer support for DevTools, with Nick Gomez from InKeep
Nick Gomez is the co-founder and CEO of InKeep. InKeep is an AI customer support tool focused on Developer Tools.They discuss the importance of understanding developer needs, the role of AI in technical support, and how community engagement can enhance support efforts. What we discussAI support for developer tools is different from traditional B2B SaaS support.Developers often seek help through documentation and community forums.Scaling technical support requires understanding the developer's tech stack.Clear communication channels can improve support efficiency.AI solutions must prioritize quality to build trust with users.Community engagement can help crowdsource support efforts.Support teams should continuously improve documentation based on user inquiries.24/7 support can be achieved through AI tools.Investing in customer relationships can lead to valuable insights and support.Innovative tools are changing the landscape of developer support.Links:Nick Gomez's Twitter https://x.com/nickgomezcInKeep https://inkeep.com/ KeywordsAI support, developer tools, technical support, community engagement, customer investment, quality assurance, support team structure, 24/7 support, innovations in development

Sep 20, 2024 • 1h 30min
The Developer Tools playbook, with Adam Frankl - VP of 4 DevTools unicorns
Adam Frankl, a VP at four Developer Tools unicorns and author of 'The Developer Facing Startup,' shares invaluable insights on fostering successful developer-focused startups. He emphasizes the importance of a Technical Advisory Board for genuine dialogue and effective solutions. Adam discusses engaging developers through meaningful one-on-one interviews and highlights the significance of storytelling for marketing. He also touches on the collaborative nature of developers and the need for founders to continually understand user needs and iteratively refine their approaches.