I Built 2 Failed SaaS Products. Here’s What They Taught Me About Value in the Age of AI
After two failed SaaS products, I learned coding isn’t the real work. In the age of AI, developers must define value—customer, business, world, team, and self.
“Coding is the lowest-value skill in software development. The real work happens before a single line is written.”
When I first read this, it felt extreme. But then AI started writing my code, fixing my bugs, and even committing directly to GitHub. Suddenly, the statement wasn’t extreme — it was obvious. Typing has become the lowest-value act in development. The real question is: what’s left for us?
I thought I had the answer. I called it TITO: Treasure In, Treasure Out.
Feed AI our best architectural documents and get superior code.
A neat equation.
I was wrong.
TITO treats AI like a mimic.
It assumes the best code comes from the best artifacts. But code isn’t treasure.
Value is. The paradigm has shifted to VITO: Value In, Treasure Out. And learning what “value” really means took me through five painful and necessary lessons.
Level 1: Customer Value | “Why Are We Building This?”
What happens if you ignore the customer’s real pain?
I learned the first rule of value the hard way. I once chased money instead of meaning, building a diet-tracking SaaS simply because it was trendy, then a scheduling SaaS because it seemed marketable. Both fizzled out: a handful of signups, minimal usage, and then silence.
The harshest lesson? If you don’t feel the customer’s pain, you’ll never build something that matters. Your customer doesn’t care about your elegant code or cutting-edge stack. They care about one thing: is their problem solved?
So ask yourself: does this feature save them time, reduce frustration, or simplify a complex workflow? If not, you’re building for yourself, not for them.
But solving one person’s problem isn’t enough to build something that lasts. That realization pushed me to the next layer of value: the business.
Level 2: Business Value | “Is This Important for the Business?”
What happens when a product solves a problem but still fails?
My money-chasing SaaS projects had no strategy. Even if they solved a niche problem, they didn’t contribute to any long-term value. There was no business to anchor them. Revenue wasn’t the issue — there was none. The real problem was purpose.
Without clear business value, code is disposable. Ironically, the projects I built to make money were the least capable of making any.
Business value elevates you from “coder” to “maker.” It forces you to ask: is this feature a short-term patch, or a long-term asset? Does this decision improve retention, revenue, or market position? Could you confidently say that without your work, customers would leave?
But even business value isn’t the final word. Because once you look beyond profit, a bigger question emerges: how does this change the world?
Level 3: Ultimate Value | “How Are We Changing the World?”
What happens when a business thrives but lacks a soul?
This is the stage where mission matters. Beyond solving customer problems and sustaining a business, we must ask: what ultimate, sublime value are we creating?
Are we connecting people in more meaningful ways? (Social Networks)
Are we democratizing knowledge and opportunity? (Online Education)
Are we enabling creativity and new art? (Design Tools)
After my empty SaaS experiments, I couldn’t stomach another soulless build. If I didn’t believe in the mission, I would burn out before anyone else cared. That’s when I understood: AI can replicate functions, but it cannot replicate conviction.
And yet — even conviction isn’t enough. Because no one builds alone.
Level 4: Team Value | “How Do We Elevate Each Other?”
But the journey doesn’t end with a grand mission. The next level of value starts with a question about the people sitting next to you: How do we elevate each other?
Are you writing code that others can read and extend?
Are you documenting decisions so the next developer won’t repeat your mistakes?
Are you mentoring juniors, or sharing context that strengthens the whole group?
Code quality isn’t just about machines — it’s about humans who inherit your work. AI can generate code, but it can’t generate trust. A team that builds trust multiplies value beyond any single contribution.
But there’s one last layer, the one we often ignore: ourselves.
Level 5: Personal Value | “Why Am I Still Here?”
What happens if you gain everything except your own fire? Finally, the most intimate layer: what value does building software create for you?
Is this project sharpening your skills and keeping curiosity alive?
Is it aligned with your own values, not just your employer’s goals?
Does it bring satisfaction, or at least growth?
I learned the hard way that chasing money left me burnt out and uninspired. If I wasn’t excited to use the product I built, how could I expect anyone else to be? Personal value matters because it sustains you when everything else falters. Without it, you’re coding on autopilot.
Conclusion: The New Burden of the Developer
AI is liberating us from the mechanical act of typing. It is replacing our fingers. Therefore, we must create with our minds and our hearts.
The bottleneck to creating truly great, resilient, and soulful software is no longer technical skill, but philosophical clarity. The treasure our AI generates will be a direct reflection of the values we provide.
If the systems we build are soulless, we can no longer blame the tool. We will have only ourselves — and the poverty of our declared values — to blame.
So, here’s my challenge to you: this week, don’t just close a ticket. Ask your product manager one question: what core human problem is this feature solving?
The answer might change not just the code you write, but why you write it at all.