From Google to Indie Dev: Mac Apps, Subscriptions, AI Coding – Daniel Gräfe

Daniel Gräfe, founder of Timing and Cotypist, joins Marco to talk about the realities of indie software development after leaving Big Tech. They discuss turning side projects into a real business, risky rewrites, subscription pricing, and how AI fits into day-to-day coding and support.

Daniel shares lessons from more than a decade of building and maintaining Mac apps, including what worked, what didn’t, and why sustainability matters more than quick wins. A grounded conversation for developers thinking about indie SaaS, side projects, or life beyond a full-time engineering role.

💡 Topics in this episode:

Leaving Google to go indie

Side projects vs running a business

Rewriting a product from scratch

Subscription pricing decisions

B2B vs B2C tradeoffs

Using AI in everyday development

Long-term maintenance and sustainability

🕑 Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro

(04:08) Timing, CoTypist, and Daniel’s background

(05:30) Early side projects and first Mac apps

(13:16) Getting into Google

(20:02) Promotion, performance, Big Tech reality

(27:33) Quitting Google and going indie

(28:27) Rewriting Timing from scratch

(37:52) Launch day, sales, and burnout

(46:37) Subscriptions and pricing decisions

(54:13) Using AI for coding and support

(01:03:34) Advice for aspiring indie developers

(01:12:10) Agency vs intelligence

(01:13:22) Giveaway + outro

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🎥 Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/t4DkaadHLnI