Why Your First Hire Isn't an Engineer Anymore — Michael Batko, ex-Startmate CEO

The first hire used to be an engineer. Michael Batko thinks that's now backwards — and that's just the start of how AI is rewiring the way you build a tech team.In the first episode of Building Tech Teams, James MacDonald sits down with Michael Batko — who spent eight years as CEO of Startmate backing 240+ startups, and now runs the AI-native venture batko.ai. They get into what actually changes when the cost of building drops to near zero: why go-to-market now comes before engineering, why the 10x engineer is finally real, what "AI-native" means for a person and for a company, and how to lead a team through it without torching your culture.It's a practitioner-to-practitioner conversation with real opinions and real scar tissue — hiring for attitude over skill, the rise of the AI chief of staff, the squeeze on middle management, and why your hard-won experience is the one moat AI can't copy.Chapters0:46 — Why James launched the show, and why Batko is guest #12:00 — The first hire has flipped: go-to-market before engineers3:49 — Where real software engineers still matter (and the "vibe-coding" ceiling)9:01 — What "AI-native" actually means — building your personal, then company, "brain"12:06 — Agent hierarchies: one agent / one job, and the AI chief of staff14:50 — Getting AI into a traditional business: permission to play + an AI policy (and the IP-leak risk)17:25 — Quick wins: process-mapping by voice, and the dictation tool that changes the game20:54 — Your first 5–10 hires: attitude over skill, hungry over proven, junior over senior25:58 — Team size, layoffs, "AI-washing", and the shrinking PM-to-engineer ratio34:55 — The one skill AI can't replace: people management48:07 — Why you still want humans in the room: inspiration, fresh eyes, first-principles51:40 — Facing the fear: lean in, automate yourself out, take the skills with you58:33 — Taste, authenticity, and experience as your real moat63:54 — Batko's playbook for any company starting nowAbout the GuestMichael Batko spent eight years as CEO of Startmate, where he backed 240+ early-stage companies, and now builds AI-native tools for founders and businesses at batko.ai.LinksMichael Batko — batko.ai · LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/batkomichaelJames MacDonald — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-macdonald-au · NTP Talent: https://ntptalent.com.auHosted by James MacDonald, Managing Director of NTP Talent.Building Tech Teams is produced by Day One®, trusted partners in the technology space and the team that helped build Blackbird Ventures' Wild Hearts. Sister shows include First Cheque, Oversubscribed and In The Blink of AI. Episodes are cross-promoted across the network.