Developer Builds Open Source AI Skill to Validate Startup Ideas, Kills Own Idea in 10 Minutes

A developer and cloud engineer built an AI skill called startup-design that provides structured startup validation through 8 phases from initial brainstorming to financial projections. The tool is designed to force brutal honesty before founders become emotionally attached to ideas.

How the Validation Process Works

The developer tested his own startup idea through the skill: a certification body that validates companies' internal culture and practices for facing upcoming tech/IT challenges, similar to "Great Place to Work" but focused on tech-readiness.

The skill asked specific, challenging questions during the early phase:

• "You're a cloud engineer. Outside of tech, zero background in HR, consulting, or certifications. Why would any company buy a quality stamp from you?"
• "€5k budget, solo side project. How do you build credibility for a certification brand from scratch? Certifications live and die on reputation."
• "Great Place to Work, B Corp, Top Employer, Investors in People already exist. What's your strongest argument against your own idea?"
• "Have you actually talked to HR managers or CEOs to see if they'd buy this? What did they say?"

The Result

After answering honestly, the developer concluded: "I don't have what it takes for THIS idea. Not the skills, not the career background, not the network, not the budget. The idea isn't impossible, I'm just not the right founder for it."

The entire validation process took 10 minutes and killed what he thought was a solid idea. The developer's takeaway: "Killing a bad idea early is the best possible outcome. It's months of wasted effort you'll never have to spend."

Tool Availability

The skill is open source and available at github.com/ferdinandobons/startup-skill. The developer notes that the tool "did exactly what I designed it to do — force brutal honesty before you fall in love with an idea."