# For founders Published articles for For founders. This is one page of public article previews, not the complete archive. Follow Next page to continue. Summaries are not the original full articles. ## Founder Mode: Dub's journey from side project to enterprise link attribution platform DevFeed: [Founder Mode: Dub's journey from side project to enterprise link attribution platform]() Original publisher: [Read original article]() Author: Tiffany Chen Published: 2025-02-10T00:00:00Z Content type: opinion Language: en Sources: [Mintlify Blog]() Topics: [Open Source](), [Development](), [Front end]() Tags: [article](), [enterprise](), [for-founders](), [open-source](), [platform](), [side-project](), [vercel]() ### AI overview Steven Tey describes Dub's evolution from a side project using edge functions and middleware into an open-source link attribution platform. The article attributes its growth to design, transparent public development, and organic discovery, and describes its expansion into end-to-end marketing attribution. ### Source excerpt Founder Mode is a series uncovering how founders and early leaders operate at today's standout startups. ## Founder Mode: How Windsurf builds product, from 0 to 1M users DevFeed: [Founder Mode: How Windsurf builds product, from 0 to 1M users]() Original publisher: [Read original article]() Author: Tiffany Chen Published: 2024-12-03T00:00:00Z Content type: opinion Language: en Sources: [Mintlify Blog]() Topics: [Development](), [dogfooding](), [Agentic development](), [developer tooling](), [GitHub Copilot](), [Visual Studio Code]() Tags: [agentic](), [agentic-development](), [article](), [discord](), [dogfooding](), [for-founders](), [github](), [github-copilot](), [vscode]() ### AI overview Kevin Hou describes how Windsurf, formerly Codeium, grew from an initial VS Code extension into a product used by more than one million users. The article attributes this growth to a free-first strategy, user feedback, dogfooding, vertical integration, and a focus on agentic development tools. ### Source excerpt [Note: This was published under Codeium, but the company has since rebranded to Windsurf. Edits have been made accordingly.] ## Founder Mode: How PostHog builds in public DevFeed: [Founder Mode: How PostHog builds in public]() Original publisher: [Read original article]() Author: Tiffany Chen Published: 2024-11-18T00:00:00Z Content type: article Language: en Sources: [Mintlify Blog]() Topics: [trust](), [Open Source](), [Website](), [Documentation](), [GitHub]() Tags: [article](), [developers](), [docs](), [for-founders](), [github](), [open-source](), [platform](), [processes](), [talent](), [trust](), [website]() ### AI overview PostHog co-founder James Hawkins explains how the company uses building in public and treats its website as a product. The article describes how public documentation, GitHub-based work, and transparency help PostHog build trust, attract talent, strengthen internal processes, and differentiate itself. ### Source excerpt Founder Mode is a series uncovering how founders and early leaders operate at some of today's standout startups. PostHog, an analytics platform, has built an iconic brand among developers since its inception in 2020. ## How we grew Mintlify by doing things that don't scale DevFeed: [How we grew Mintlify by doing things that don't scale]() Original publisher: [Read original article]() Author: Han Wang Published: 2024-01-26T00:00:00Z Content type: opinion Language: en Sources: [Mintlify Blog]() Topics: [Documentation](), [account]() Tags: [acquisition](), [building](), [customer](), [doing](), [for-founders](), [product](), [scale](), [startup](), [validation]() ### AI overview A personal account from Mintlify's founder describes growing the company from zero to more than 1,000 customers by using labor-intensive tactics, such as manually migrating documentation and building custom documentation for cold prospects. The article argues that early-stage startups should prioritize customer acquisition and validation over perfect products. ### Source excerpt Most people envision the process of founding a startup to play out like this: the founders brainstorm around a whiteboard, there is a lightbulb moment when a golden idea is born, users flock to the startup the day the product is launched, and then the founders ride off into the sunset to build a successful billion dollar company. ## Our journey through Y Combinator DevFeed: [Our journey through Y Combinator]() Original publisher: [Read original article]() Author: Han Wang Published: 2023-07-10T00:00:00Z Content type: opinion Language: en Sources: [Mintlify Blog]() Topics: [Learning](), [Persistence](), [Documentation](), [codex](), [OpenAI]() Tags: [2005](), [codex](), [documentation](), [for-founders](), [journey](), [openai](), [persistence](), [startup](), [time]() ### AI overview Mintlify co-founder Han Wang recounts the company's journey through Y Combinator, from the Figstack code-translation product through multiple pivots to becoming a documentation platform. The account emphasizes persistence, iteration, and learning from adjacent explorations. ### Source excerpt Y Combinator (YC) is widely seen as the world's best and most prolific startup accelerator. Since 2005, YC has funded over 4,000 companies, including Mintlify in its Winter 2022 batch.