Founders gotta eat too. In that case, budget is a looser term.

The point is, launch isn't when the battle is won or lost. Launching is just the first time you're engaging with the enemy. So you shouldn't expend all of your resources (cash, optimism, etc.) before that point... It's a long road.

Hey, I'm Des , I wrote the post. I agree with you, in principle, but I've also seen hackers run out of money. It's not just development costs, if your app sends texts, or uses AuthSMTP, or even requires a lot EC2 instances or a hefty Heroku server then you'll still have a few bills piling up pre-revenue.

I guess the over-arching point is that you need a cash buffer large enough to cover you for the period from when your bills start to the time when your revenue tops them, and that time is usually a long time after launch.

Cheers for reading. Des