Shows
Code to MarketWhen Giants Fight, Underdogs Get NoticedCloudflare vs Perplexity heats up, and Browserbase gets pulled into the fight. We dig into Perplexity’s shaky defense, the counter-positioning angle they missed, and why people don’t fully trust either side. Browserbase came out looking sharp, not just inserting themselves but being directly named in Perplexity’s reply. Then we shift to the influencer playbook, from OpenAI’s GPT-5 launch strategy to dark social tactics, and wrap with why bragging about Gartner wins usually backfires.
2025-08-1620 minCode to Market31: Cloudflare vs Perplexity, Laracon Recap, & Old NewsThis week, we break down Cloudflare’s public callout of Perplexity and why it’s a perfect PR move for their new bot-charging feature. Hank recaps Laracon, from selling more tickets than ever to turning a golf course into a sponsor-speaker free-for-all with documentary crews, Lambo stress toys, and collectible jackets & patches. We wrap with the bizarre Astronomer saga and how a Chris Martin ex turned it into viral gold.
2025-08-1122 minCode to MarketDevtools are Pivoting + Cluely HypeWe unpack the shift toward solopreneurs, prosumers, and "builder" personas, and what it means for onboarding, support, and product strategy.Then we break down Cluely, the Gen-Z startup with no clear product but a massive hype engine. Does marketing your marketing work? Should every startup build a hype team? And is Cluely the Fyre Festival of devtools?
2025-06-3022 minCode to MarketWhen Big Tech Copies YouRaycast got Sherlocked by Apple... or did they? We break down how they flipped the narrative from panic to power move with a killer mix of transparency, humor, and speed. Then we shift gears to talk about Accel’s video content strategy, including one about letting ScaleAI's founder live in a VC's basement. VCs are getting good at content and honestly who saw that coming?
2025-06-2716 min
Code to MarketThree Levels of Ad Landing PagesYou spent real money. The ad worked. They clicked. Now what?In this episode, we break down how Vercel, Claude, and Statsig handled their Acquired podcast sponsorships and what happened after the click. From custom landing pages to mismatched CTAs, we dissect what worked and what didn’t.Then we shift to launch videos. Cursor mailed it in. Sentry nailed the joke. And we explain why knowing the vibe of your product matters more than just production value.Share with someone running ads or making a launch video.
2025-06-1217 minCode to MarketClark, Cringe, & Counterpositioning: Retool vs SuperblocksTwo agent platforms launched within 24 hours (Retool Agents and Superblocks’s "Clark"), but only one nailed the launch & positioning. We break down why naming your AI sucks, what Superblocks did right with counterpositioning, and how Retool missed the messaging mark despite a solid(?) product. Plus, a rant on why launch videos are now table stakes and what you need to do beyond them to stand out.
2025-06-0622 minCode to MarketPLG isn't Passive: Multi-Product Startups + AI Distribution WarsWe explore how Clerk nailed its self-service, multi-product strategy without chasing enterprise customers. Hank breaks down why great second products should eclipse your first, while Gonto highlights Clerk’s clever integration with Stripe and strategic funding. Plus, Bolt's "Unleash the Vibes" event sets the stage for their massive hackathon, and OpenAI’s leaked strategy reveals why Meta, not Google, is their biggest threat due to unmatched distribution.
2025-06-0124 minCode to MarketMeeting Haters at React MiamiIn this episode Hank and Gonto dive into Hank's experience at React Miami, where online beefs turned surprisingly civil and a "Family Feud" parody stole the show. They also discuss Figma's head-scratching trademark battle over "DevMode," a move that ended up being less strategic genius, more meme fuel.
2025-04-2523 minCode to MarketHard Times for Developer MarketingWe share the wild projects, crazy constraints, and innovative pivots that turned panic into progress.
2025-04-1436 minCode to MarketHow to Hire Marketers Like Vercel, Auth0, & LaravelEvery startup struggles with this—even the best founders and teams we’ve worked with. How do you actually hire great people, build trust, and scale without turning into a slow, bloated mess? In this episode, we share the hard-earned lessons that helped us grow high-performing teams at Auth0, Vercel, Laravel, and more.
2025-04-0922 minCode to MarketHats, Haters, & HackathonsLevels.io is turning vibe coding into a full-blown distribution engine—shipping fast, selling hats, running hackathons, and pulling others into his orbit. We break down what B2B founders can learn from his playbook, then dig into the Rippling vs. Deel spy scandal, Vercel’s drama with Cloudflare, and Supabase’s documentary on Bolt.new. It's founder mode, for better or worse.
2025-04-0726 min
Code to MarketDid Laravel do a PERFECT developer marketing launch?This week, Hank's in the hot seat. Gonto grills him on Laravel’s latest launch - what was great, what wasn't, and what pissed him off.We cover:- Why bundling launches > launch weeks- The secret power of using other people’s audiences- Tips to improve marketing & pricing pages- How Gonto wishes Hank positioned harder against launch weeksOne of our most tactical episodes yet!
2025-03-2125 minCode to MarketRaycast launches the future while Bybit fights for survivalRaycast just launched AI Extensions, and we break down why their approach to marketing and UX is what Apple Intelligence should have been. Then crypto story time with Gonto as he talks about the biggest crypto hack in history—$1.4 billion stolen from Bybit—and why their response was a masterclass in crisis communication. We talk about speed, transparency, and how to turn disaster into brand strength. Plus, some thoughts on owned media, launch strategy, and the rise of B2B video marketing.
2025-03-0321 minCode to MarketEnablement Beats Collateral & Credit Card GatesWe discuss why sales enablement is more powerful than sales collateral and how to get them to stop relying on PDFs and case studies and instead focus on understanding the product and delivering answers in real time. We also discuss credit card gates on products. After gathering insights from DigitalOcean, MongoDB, and PlanetScale, we break down the trade-offs between frictionless sign-ups and filtering for serious users.
2025-02-2620 minCode to MarketTraffic from AI Chat is Growing Faster Than We ThoughtAI chatbots are driving more traffic than you think, and it’s happening fast. Hank and Gonto break down the latest data on AI-driven search, why it matters for businesses right now, and how companies should adapt. They also dive into a heated database debate between Neon, Planetscale, and Prisma, discussing how to handle trolls and bad benchmarks. Plus, a look at Laravel’s unconventional approach to conference pricing and a marketing experiment that had developers DMing their AWS bills.
2025-02-1721 minCode to MarketStop EXPLAINING your SaaS; SHOW why it's great insteadIn this episode ofCode to Market, Hank and Gonto break down thetrade-offs of fast follows—whyspeed gets you attention, but differentiation wins you customers. They explore the psychology of AI adoption (why the less people understand AI, the more they use it), and how devtool founders shouldsell the WOW first, then the HOW to drive real adoption.They also dive into the rise ofAgent Experience (AX)—whyAI agents will soon be your biggest users, how SEO is shifting away from Google rankings, and whyyour API matters more than your UI in an AI-driven world.
2025-02-1212 minCode to MarketDeveloper Marketing lacks VisionMost devtool founders and marketers focus too much on launches and not enough on vision. In this episode, we break down Andrew Chen’s take on viral launches—are they a waste of time or always worth it? Hank defends the power of going big, while Gonto argues for a more targeted approach. We also dive into the real reason technical founders struggle with storytelling, why Elon Musk’s never-ending vision keeps people engaged, and how to craft a marketing narrative that actually works.
2025-02-0919 minCode to MarketDevin AI, SF Dinners, & Raycast Ad
Questions answered:
What could Devin have done differently in their marketing? Are Devin's VC's stupid?
How can you run small dinners/meetups?
What's brilliant about Raycast's ad? (and what would we change?)
2025-01-2222 minCode to MarketThe Perfect First DevRel Hire for Devtool StartupsWhat makes a great early marketing or DevRel hire? In this episode, we break down why hunger for glory drives experimentation, why first hires should be generalists, and whether founders should test marketing channels before hiring. Plus, we discuss the different types of DevRel and analyze a great example of educational marketing from Resend.
🔹 When to hire your first DevRel
🔹 Charisma vs. content: What matters more?
🔹 Why experience can sometimes hold people back
🔹 A simple framework for building a DevRel team
Let us know your thoughts in the comme
2025-01-1918 minCode to MarketMaster AI + New Media in 2025 with UsHank & Gonto share their work and personal themes for 2025.
2025-01-1423 minCode to MarketIs attention & amplification more important than money now?In this episode, we discuss if attention and amplification is better than money now. We dive deep into organic and paid influencer marketing, and affiliate marketing.
2025-01-0315 minCode to MarketObsessing over Competitors & Blaming Marketing (Devtool Founders)In this episode we discuss frameworks on competitors, GitHub's "free" Copilot plan, and the bastardization of PLG
2024-12-2819 minCode to MarketSell to Developers' Human NeedsDevelopers make decisions with emotion, not just logic and rational thinking - you can use that! Also, Shopify's boring launch was a masterclass.
2024-12-2018 minCode to Market2 fights, 1 booth, and 0 cookiesThis week we discuss about 2 online fights: Supabase vs Levels & EDB vs PostgresWeekly, how to be creative with your booth and conference strategy, and how real "building in public" is.
2024-12-1219 minCode to MarketThe Rippling Effects of a Week LaunchWe discuss Rippling crossing the line with their comparison page mischief, a simple hackathon by Vercel, and our thoughts on "Mega Launch Week"3:35 PM
2024-12-0617 minCode to MarketObsessed with Service as Software (with Marcel Santilli)We discuss a new term on the rise, "Service as Software", and what it means for marketers and knowledge workers.
Admittedly less devtool-focused than normal - let's blame the election news cycle for that :P
Service as Software: https://x.com/JayaGup10/status/1852148821389934921
Marcel:
LinkedIn
Twitter
GrowthX
2024-11-1912 minCode to MarketMore Launches and Cool Dev Tools WebsitesThis episode discusses launches from GitHub Universe, Browserbase, Neon.tech Deploy, and Prisma Serverless Database. We also discuss PlanetScale's new website, Jina's new docs, and website's easter eggs
2024-11-0826 minCode to MarketNext.js Conf Marketing Breakdown + Disguised DuckDB AnnouncementWe discuss hits and misses from Next.js Conf 2024, plus how MotherDuck disguised a feature announcement in a post about design.
2024-10-3015 minCode to MarketPre-PMF Ads & Design Partners Done RightWe discuss the biggest wastes of money for devtool startups, plus how to think about design partners vs contractual commitments. Bonus topic: another boring launch.
2024-10-2420 minCode to MarketBoring Launches & Bad Names | Code to Market 03We discuss how we'd improve the messaging around a "boring" launch (like Deno's v2 launch), plus bad and confusing names of companies and products.
2024-10-1618 minCode to MarketShow-don't-tell Launches & Fighting to (not) PersuadeWe discuss how launches like bolt.new do a good job of showing instead of telling and gettting users to a moment of "wow!" faster. Plus thoughts on whether debating people on Twitter has any persuasive power.
2024-10-1117 minCode to MarketDevtool Influencer Sponsorship and WordPress Scorched EarthWe discussed Theo dropping Vercel as a sponsor and some general thoughts on content creator sponsorships, and the beginning of Automatic vs WP Engine.
2024-10-0819 min