Start - Launch - Grow

Verena and Simon tackle three of the biggest concerns founders raise about AI-assisted and no-code builds: 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗚𝗗𝗣𝗥 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆.In a 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲-𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁, Verena steps into the shoes of a non-technical founder firing the questions every business leader is asking, while Simon shares what they actually explain behind the scenes. They unpack why 𝗔𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘀 of secure infrastructure, how Bubble's default US hosting compares to coded environments where you can spin up a database in Germany or the UK, and why scale is usually 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 - only around 5% of startups ever hit that wall. Their takeaway - 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘈𝘐, 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘵.𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Verena sits down with 𝗞𝗮𝘁𝘆, 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗼.Katy is a UK-based founder with over 𝟭𝟴 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀, 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿, who turned her solo consultancy into a nine-person audience research and insight business - by listening to what the sector actually needed when COVID closed every theatre's doors overnight.Katy shares how a single audience survey signed up by 𝟲𝟬𝟬 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 in a week became the foundation of 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗼 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, a collaborative research product, and why scaling it forced her out of the "𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦-𝘧𝘰𝘳-𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺" 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘱 she'd been in for 15 years.She also reflects on the 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁'𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝗮, the Miro board moment when the team had to ruthlessly cut features down to a real MVP, hiring 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 you need the help, and the Churchill principle she lives by - "𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳."👉 Learn more: https://millionlabs.com/

Verena and Simon tackle one of the most misunderstood concepts in the startup world: 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗠𝗩𝗣?With 𝟰𝟮% 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 due to no market need, they unpack why so many MVPs fall apart not because the idea was wrong, but because the product never delivered enough value for users to care. Using 𝗔𝗶𝗿𝗯𝗻𝗯 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆, they break down the three things every MVP needs to test properly: the 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 users must be able to complete, the 𝗨𝗫 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳𝗳, and enough functionality to capture real learning. Their takeaway - 𝘢𝘯 𝘔𝘝𝘗 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦, 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦.𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Simon sits down with 𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗸, 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗘𝗢 𝗼𝗳 𝗚i𝘁𝗟𝗮𝘄.Nick is a serial entrepreneur who has spent over $𝟮 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝘀 across his career - and decided to do something about it. GetLaw is an 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀, built for the 𝟵𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀 that can't afford a lawyer and currently rely on ChatGPT or whatever they have in their inbox.Nick shares how he validated GetLaw by 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘴, why he believes founders pitching investors without a prototype is no longer acceptable in 2026, and how AI tools like 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰, 𝗟𝘆𝘀𝘀𝗻𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲 have collapsed the cost of user research from days of work to a few clicks.He also opens up about 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝘅𝗶𝗲𝘁𝘆 in a world that moves faster than ever, why building has never been easier but going-to-market has never been harder, and the uncomfortable reality of competing with horizontal AI models that can now 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘢𝘱𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘰𝘰𝘯 - and his Yoda advice for new founders: 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘈𝘐 𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘰-𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥.👉 Learn more: https://millionlabs.com/

Verena and Simon revisit one of the foundational frameworks in startup building - the Lean methodology - and ask whether it still holds up in the age of vibe coding and no-code.In this episode they explore how Eric Ries' build-measure-learn loop has been reshaped now that building a product is up to 10 times faster and 10 times cheaper than the traditional 100k, 12-to-18-month build. They dig into the hidden danger of that speed: founders skipping validation altogether because building is suddenly easy, and finding out there's no customer only after they've spent the money. Their takeaway - speed solves the build, but not the clarity of knowing what you're actually testing.Verena sits down with Aneta, founder of Aithea.Aneta is a Munich-based founder with over 16 years in the compliance industry, building an AI-powered marketplace that helps organisations self-assess their financial crime risks and get matched to the right technology vendors - effectively replacing the expensive consultant for businesses with limited budgets.Aneta shares how deep market knowledge from her years as a global market strategy planner became her real validation, why she landed on a product "way beyond an MVP," and the honest reality of pricing something the compliance industry has never seen before. She also reflects on the trap of perfectionism, the unglamorous surprises of going from no-code prototype to live product - databases, hosting, password resets, notification emails - and learning to take the cut on feature creep and just launch.👉 Learn more: millionlabs.com 👉 Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MillionLabs

Verena and Simon tackle one of the most common pitfalls they see in startup advisory calls: the vague Ideal Customer Persona (ICP).In this episode they explore why founders instinctively cast their net too wide, trying to include everyone in their target market, and why this "shotgun" approach actually hurts growth. They break down how startups that nail down a specific ICP and geography are 55-60% more likely to succeed than those with broad, woolly definitions.Interview: Simon sits down with Janvier Wete, CEO and founder of Minute Shorts.Janvier is the founder of a video platform showcasing incredible short films from around the world, often described as the "Spotify of short films." Janvier shares how strong branding led to inbound opportunities like a Samsung TV Plus channel, a partnership with American Airlines, and brand activations with Nike, BBC, and WeTransfer. He discusses the realities of juggling multiple revenue streams, navigating tricky licensing and IP agreements, and he also reflects on resilience, patience, and his rule of thumb: whatever timeline you expect, double it.👉 Learn more: millionlabs.com👉 Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MillionLabs

Verena and Simon discuss the dramatic shift in app development: moving from Legacy Builds to "Vibe Coding."Drawing on data that shows traditional projects often cost $100k and take 18 months, they explore why the "old world" of 200-page specifications is now a liability. They break down the three biggest pitfalls of modern development: poor specification, underestimating QA, and the hidden costs of AI APIs, and explain how "Vibe Coding" has reduced development costs by 10x.They introduce the 5% Scoping Rule: a lean framework for defining personas, data architecture, and wireframes in just two days to ensure you ship a functional MVP in weeks, not years.Interview: Verena sits down with Ken, the Managing Director of Employtest.Ken is the founder of a pre-employment testing platform that helps small to medium-sized businesses verify candidate skills through a suite of hundreds of validated tests.Ken shares his journey of transitioning from reselling third-party tools to building a unified dashboard that now administers 75,000 tests per year. He discusses the hard lessons of "over-listening" to edge-case customers and why he wishes he had adopted low-code tools years earlier. Ken also reflects on the balance between AI automation and the "human touch" required to sustain a B2B company for over two decades.👉 Learn more: millionlabs.com👉 Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MillionLabs

Verena and Simon discuss the most underrated founder skill: knowing when to quit. Drawing on data that shows 42% of startups fail because of a lack of market need, they explore why founders often fall into the "sunk cost" trap and how to differentiate between a challenge that requires grit and a signal that an idea simply doesn't work.They introduce the 30-Day Kill Test: a practical, data-driven framework for validating demand through landing pages and waitlists before spending months building the wrong product.Interview: Simon sits down with David Bourne, who transitioned from a junior doctor to a medtech founder. David is the creator of SimPat, an AI-driven simulation platform designed to help medical students and healthcare professionals practice patient interactions.David shares his journey of teaching himself to code to solve a gap in medical education and discusses the "Start-Launch-Grow" phases of building his MVP. He also reflects on the vital role of accountability and building a support system to navigate the "trough of sorrow" in the early days of a startup.👉 Learn more: millionlabs.com👉 Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MillionLabs

Verena and Simon discuss why most MVPs fail and why founders often jump into building before validating what customers actually want. Drawing on their experience working with more than 2,000 startups, they explore the common mistakes founders make - from skipping customer research to leaving marketing and distribution too late.Verena speaks with Kausar Tahir, who transitioned from pharmacist to medtech founder, and is the creator of Me-Now, a multilingual menopause companion app.Kausar shares how she validated the idea and built her MVP using the low-code platform Bubble.io to support underserved communities globally.👉 Learn more: millionlabs.com👉 Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MillionLabs

Verena and Simon introduce the Start Launch Grow podcast. After working with more than 2,000 businesses, their motivation is to share real innovation journeys.We often hear about the Ubers of the world - but how did the next generation of rising companies actually get started? This podcast focuses on the practical steps you can take to turn ideas into reality.Catch-UpWe discuss the rise of vibe coding and what it means for innovators - from rapid idea validation to building custom tools for SMEs.InterviewSimon sits down with Phil Chell, founder of Chiron.ai, to discuss his journey from the construction industry into building an AI startup. Phil shares how he spotted the opportunity, built an MVP to validate the idea, and used his industry network to gain traction and raise investment.👉Learn more at: millionlabs.com👉 Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MillionLabs