Is indie software dead in the AI era? And if marketing is the answer, how do you actually do it without losing your mind?
Been building software for a while now. Have ideas, can ship. But I'm genuinely lost, and I want to know if anyone else feels the same.
Two things are eating at me:
1. Does software even have a future?
With AI the way it is now, anyone can prototype something in a day. Like, a working MVP in 24 hours. So what's the moat? If the barrier to building is basically gone, what separates a real product from something someone vibe-coded over a weekend?
I used to think "if you can build it, you have an edge." That feels less true every month.
2. If the answer is marketing, then how?
I keep hearing that distribution is everything. That a mediocre product with great marketing beats a great product with no marketing every time. I think I believe that now.
But I'm terrible at marketing. And the advice I keep seeing is "post 25 times a day, reply to 100 people, show up everywhere." That sounds insane to me. Is that actually what it takes? Is there a more sustainable path for someone who'd rather build than perform?
Not looking for cope. Looking for honest takes from people who've figured something out, or at least tried.