Why Startups Are Ditching Stealth: The “Build in Public” Revolution

How Radical Transparency Is Powering the Next Wave of SaaS and AI Breakouts

There’s a new kind of indie hacker swagger in the startup world, and it doesn’t come from winning a pitch contest or nabbing some glossy tech blog headline. It comes from coders and their team (if they have one) who are willing to work with the curtain up, risk their reputations on work-in-progress demos, and trade a little secrecy for a lot more momentum.

“Building in public,” once a somewhat renegade approach, has become the go-to style for some of the most compelling SaaS and AI product makers of the AI era.

But why has it caught fire now, and what does this really mean for founders, funders, and customers navigating today’s landscape?

Let’s rewind to the early days of SaaS, a time when closed betas were shrouded in mystery and traction was measured behind layers of NDAs. Founders hoarded metrics like crown jewels, and product launches resembled Broadway premieres more than startup journeys. Then something in the digital wind changed. Social platforms matured; developer and indie hacker communities craved realness; and, perhaps most importantly, a new generation of users and founders started to reward transparency over secrecy.

Pieter Levels’ journey with Nomad List is a classic example of the power of building in public. What began as a simple, open Google Spreadsheet, crowdsourcing the best places for digital nomads, quickly snowballed thanks to Pieter’s radical transparency. He updated the spreadsheet live based on community input, and as he transformed it into a website, he shared every step: from code commits to moments of crisis, directly with his Twitter audience. Revenue screenshots, membership growth, and even expense flubs were posted in real-time, turning everyday followers into invested collaborators and fans.

This openness wasn’t just about the wins. When chat forums descended into chaos or churn spiked unexpectedly, Pieter documented the missteps and his own learning journey, inviting public advice and critique. User-suggested features often went live in days, and the community could see their fingerprints on the product. The result? Nomad List didn’t just become a leading SaaS platform for remote workers; it became a living, breathing narrative that its users helped write, proving that showing your work in real-time builds trust, loyalty, and an unstoppable growth engine.

Why is this approach rocket fuel, especially in the noisy worlds of SaaS and AI? First, the spectacle of building in public creates a story people want to follow, and the story is the new marketing. Each “state of the union” demo, screen recording, and even failures became public content that generated engagement and trust-building, all at a fraction of the cost of paid advertising. Second, this radical openness keeps founders in a relentless feedback loop.

When users are part of the design process, both praise and harsh critique shape a better product, faster. It’s agile on public display.

But there’s another layer, psychological safety. With “build in public,” users, other founders, and even potential investors witness your authentic mistakes as well as your triumphs. That makes small teams magnetic to talent and partnership. Angel investors have flocked to these companies, not merely for their dazzling growth metrics, but because, as outsiders, they can gain a real sense of the founder’s learning velocity and personality by observing how they handle setbacks in public forums.

Of course, the tactic isn’t risk-free. Not every customer will empathize with your 3 a.m. bug fixes. There’s real exposure: competitors can see your playbook, and a single misstep can become meme-fodder. Yet, for those who navigate it well, the upsides far outweigh the risks.

So, what’s the right way to “build in public”? For one, be intentional, share early, but share context, not just wins or highlight reels. Lean into real-time engagement: live demos, Q&As, transparent revenue charts (even when small or a little embarrassing). Learn to laugh at yourself; humility is a trust accelerator. Set boundaries; some elements may need to stay confidential, especially customer data and “secret sauce” code, but resist the urge to over-curate. And remember: the audience you build while making the thing will nearly always be the audience that sustains it.

We’re entering an era where the myth of the lone, secretive genius developer is being rapidly replaced by a new archetype: the community builder, storyteller, and public learner. “Build in public” isn’t just a growth hack or a signal to potential investors. It’s the backbone of a startup’s brand, recruiting strategy, and go-to-market plan, all rolled into one. In the world of AI and SaaS, traction and trust are becoming synonymous, and there’s no better way to build both than by being transparent as you go.