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Go-to-Market Strategy

Dogfood first. The platform IS the proof. Proof IS the distribution.

Market Opportunity

TAM

Global AI-native ventures rebuilding commodity infrastructure

~500,000LOW
SAM

AI teams in English-speaking markets with engineering capacity

~50,000LOW
SOM

NZ + AU ventures reachable via direct outreach and dev community

~200MEDIUM

SOM is the only number that matters for Year 1. Even 200 requires proof.

For AI-native teams rebuilding commodity infrastructure before shipping a single customer feature, Stackmates provides shared coordination infrastructure so ventures skip the 12-month stack tax. Unlike PaaS platforms that give you a database, we give you the domain model — auth, payments, data, compliance, and tooling already wired and commissioned.

Distribution Strategy

ChannelRoleCACWindowPriority
DogfoodingP0 — seven ventures prove the platform works$0Month 1-6P0
Dev communityOpen source + hex architecture content$0Month 3-9P1
Direct outreachNZ/AU AI teams identified via LinkedIn$200-500Month 6-12P1
PartnershipsVenture studios, accelerators, AI labs$0Month 12+P2
1
AwarenessGitHub stars + dev community reach
500/month
2
InterestDocs + architecture page visits
200/month
3
ConsiderationStack Tax Calculator completions
20/month
4
DecisionOnboarding conversations
3/month
5
PurchaseVenture Team subscriptions
1-2/month
6
ExpansionExplorer→Venture Team conversion
10%
7
AdvocacyVentures referring ventures
20%

All numbers projected. Zero external data.

Pricing

Explorer is free. Venture Team pricing TBD pending 5 qualified conversations.

Explorer

Freeopen source

Access to shared infrastructure, community support, documentation

Self-serve
Recommended

Venture Team

TBD/month

Dedicated worktree, onboarding support, commissioning assistance, priority support

1-week onboarding

Enterprise

TBDcustom

Custom domain model, dedicated infrastructure, SLA, training

2-4 week onboarding

Competitive Landscape

CompetitorPriceWeaknessOur Angle
Build from scratchCustom Next.js + Prisma + Clerk + Stripe$50-200K dev cost12-18 months before first customer valueWe did the 12 months already. Start at month 13.
No-code platformsBubble, Retool, Airtable$50-500/moCeiling at scale. No agent coordination.We're code-first for agent-native teams
PaaS / BaaSSupabase, Firebase, Convex$0-500/moDatabase layer only. No domain model.We add the domain model on top
Venture studiosAtomic, Pioneer FundEquity + fundingEquity expensive. One venture at a time.Shared substrate, multiple ventures, no equity cost
High InfrastructureHigh Domain ModelLow InfrastructureCustom BuildNo-CodePaaS/BaaSVenture StudiosStackmates

High infrastructure + high domain model. No competitor pairs them.

Three Launch Phases

Dogfood

M1-6
  • Seven internal ventures use shared infrastructure
  • Onboarding time measured per capability
  • Architecture docs written from real usage

First External

M6-12
  • First external team onboarded with support
  • Stack Tax Calculator live and distributing
  • Pricing tested with 5 qualified conversations

Onboarding exceeds 40hrs = kill or simplify before continuing

Platform

M12+
  • Self-serve Explorer tier live
  • Community model launched
  • Second venture launches faster than first

Questions

If dogfooding is distribution, what is the first signal that external teams are watching?

  • At what point does NZ/AU become too small a SOM — and does that matter in Year 1?
  • If onboarding takes 40 hours, is the problem the platform or the documentation?
  • Which channel converts first — dev community or direct outreach?