Startup Tech 101: A Guide for Non-Technical Cofounders

When startups form, especially those with both technical and non-technical cofounders, there is often an implicit trust that responsibilities will fall along the lines of expertise. The tech cofounder takes care of code, deployments, and infrastructure, while the non-technical cofounder focuses on business development, fundraising, and operations.

While this division may work in the short term, it can become a serious vulnerability down the road. All too often, years later when conflicts arise or a technical cofounder leaves, the non-technical cofounder realizes they have no access—or worse, no control—over the company’s core digital assets. This lack of visibility can cripple a startup.

This post outlines a growing list of key technical infrastructure components that every non-technical cofounder should proactively set up or retain ownership of from the beginning. Think of this as your startup's technical hygiene checklist.

First things first... domain name registration

You ideally want to ensure the startup owns its domain name(s) and that these are registered under a company-controlled account. But unfortunately this is not possible since you need to create an account with the domain provider (Namecheap or Squarespace Domains - previously Google Domains) before you can register your startups domain. Regardless, make sure you as the business owner creates and owns the domain.

Why this matters:

• Your domain is everything! Losing control of your domain can disrupt email, website, and marketing - your entire operations.

How to do it:

• Register domains with reputable providers (e.g. Namecheap, Squarespace previously Google Domains).
• Enable auto-renew and secure with 2FA.

Now that you have a domain... a general email address

Create a neutral, company-owned email address to serve as the administrative contact to create all technical accounts (GitHub, hosting, analytics, CI/CD tools, etc.). You as the business owner should have the password to this email address and protect it using MFA. This ensures continuity, especially in the event of staff turnover.

Why this matters:

• The email address used to register accounts typically holds the "owner" rights.
• Password resets and 2FA are linked to this address.

How to do it:

• Create an address like tech@mystartup.co or accounts@mystartup.co
• Use Google Workspace or another provider that lets you easily manage access.
• Store credentials securely (e.g. password manager with shared access).

Your code repositories

There are several options on where to store and manage your code, but the most popular and widely used is GitHub. Within GitHub, you can create an "organization" that allows multiple people to collaborate under a shared space with controlled permissions. If you’re new to GitHub, check out our introductory post to learn how it works and why it’s essential for your startup

Your code should never live under an individual’s personal GitHub account.

Why this matters:

• Personal GitHub accounts can be deleted, locked, or misused.
• If the person who created the repository leaves, you lose access to your code base and have to establish a plan to retrieve it back.
• Organization owners can manage roles and permissions.

How to do it:

• Create a GitHub account using tech@mystartup.co.
• Add your technical cofounder as the "Owner" or "Admin."
• Enforce 2FA for all collaborators.
• To learn the basics of GitHub, check out this post.

Your cloud provider

You need a cloud provider to host your website, store your files, run your app, or even power your AI. It's like renting space and tools on the internet to run your business - all online, and only when you need it. In the past, you would have needed servers or equipment to do this, now you pay companies like Amazon or Google to easily deploy your code on the internet.

One way to think about your code versus your deployed application

• Think of your code like the blueprints of a house — it defines how everything should be built: the walls, wiring, plumbing, and layout.
• And your deployed application (running in a cloud provider) is like the finished, livable house — built from the blueprints, connected to utilities (electricity, water), and open for people to walk into and use.

Why this matters:

• If you don't have the keys to your house, you're locked out. Similarly, if you don't have the master account credentials for the cloud provider your application has been deployed to, you are locked out of it and can't make any future changes.
• Creating this account using the general email allows you to maintain infrastructure continuity.

How to do it:

• Set up the hosting/cloud account using tech@mystartup.co.
• Add the tech cofounder as a billing/admin user thereafter.

Continuous Integration & Continuous Deployment (CI/CD)

CI/CD is a modern development practice that helps engineering teams ship updates faster, safer, and more reliably.

Think of it like an automated assembly line for your product’s code:

• Continuous Integration (CI) means that every time a developer makes a change to the code, it’s automatically tested to catch bugs early.
• Continuous Deployment (CD) means that once the code passes all the checks, it can be automatically pushed live without manual steps.

This ensures your app is always up-to-date, stable, and users get new features quickly — without the risk of someone forgetting a step. It's important to ensure these tools are linked to the GitHub Organization you created above and not to any personal accounts.

Why this matters:

• Deployment automation is central to your product lifecycle.

How to do it:

• Manage API keys and tokens securely.
• Confirm permissions are tied to organization repos.

Internal Documentation

In the early days of your startup, it’s common to rely on tools like Google Docs and Dropbox for managing documentation. While this works initially, things quickly become fragmented as your team grows. More importantly, it’s critical to establish and regularly manage access and permissions to sensitive documents. I recommend exploring platforms like Notion, Asana, Monday.com, or ClickUp early on, and adopting the one that best fits your team’s workflow. Starting with the right system from day one will save you significant time and confusion later.

Why this matters:

• Institutional knowledge is critical.

How to do it:

• Create a shared workspace under a company account.
• Ensure shared access control and backups.

Analytics & Monitoring Tools

Analytics tools help you understand how people are using your product — what pages they visit, where they drop off, how long they stay, and what actions they take.

Monitoring tools help you keep track of how your app is performing behind the scenes — whether it’s loading quickly, if users are running into errors, or if something breaks.

Together, these tools give you insight into both your user experience and your technical health, so you can make better decisions and respond to issues faster. The tools used to get setup for these such as Google Analytics, Hotjar, Sentry, LogRocket, often get set up under personal Gmail accounts.

Why this matters:

• Data ownership and long-term access.

How to do it:

• Create a shared workspace under a company account.
• Ensure shared access control.

Miscellaneous

Please note: The tools listed above represent the foundational components of most tech startups. However, if you’re operating in a deep tech or infrastructure-heavy sector, you may need to account for a few additional elements, including:

• App Store Accounts: If you’re building a mobile app for iOS or Android, be sure to register developer accounts (e.g., Apple App Store, Google Play) using your company’s generic email address — not a personal one — to retain ownership and access.
• API Integrations: If your product relies on external APIs (for example, telecom APIs or payment gateways), create and manage these developer accounts using the same shared email address to maintain continuity.
• Third-Party Data Providers: If you’re storing application data with external services like MongoDB, Redis, or Firebase, ensure that the master account is tied to your generic company email to avoid access issues down the line.

As a non-technical cofounder, you don’t need to manage the day-to-day technical work, but you must have administrative access and ownership visibility into the tools that power your startup. Technical infrastructure is just as strategic as financial infrastructure. Set things up right from day one—you’ll thank yourself later.

We'll continue updating this post with more infrastructure components as we gather more examples from the field.

Have a horror story or lesson learned the hard way? Send it our way—we're compiling them for a future post.