π οΈ Hire me to implement AI in your business: https://markszymanski.co/work-with-me
π Join my community and learn how to leverage AI: https://ModernBuildersSociety.com
π‘ Book a 1:1 advisory call with me: https://markszymanski.co/advisory
ποΈ About this episode with Jake Goldman
Jake Goldman is the founder of 10up, the WordPress agency he scaled to about $45 million in revenue and roughly 300 people over twelve and a half years, before merging it into Fueled and stepping into a partner role. We get into how he started, why he deliberately built a company that was never about him personally, what it looks like to live through the AI transformation as a founder instead of just commenting on it, why he believes customers will keep paying agencies even as AI does more of the work, and his closing call to install one of the tools this weekend and just go try making something you didn't think you could.
π Connect with Jake Goldman
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobgoldman/
Fueled: https://fueled.com
10up: https://10up.com
π Connect with Mark Szymanski
Website: https://markszymanski.co
Facebook: https://mjs.link/FB
Instagram: https://mjs.link/IG
LinkedIn: https://mjs.link/LI
X: https://mjs.link/X
YouTube: https://mjs.link/YT
π§ About this show
Fueled By Progress is a long-form conversation series with builders, operators, and thinkers exploring business, technology, and what it actually takes to build a meaningful life in a modern world.
If you're new here, welcome. If you've been here since episodes recorded in my car, thank you. We're still just getting warmed up πͺ
π Free Value
- Get your AI Resource Bundle: https://markszymanski.co/ai-crash-course-resources
- Full AI Crash Course: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1cd_ntgOuY
- Claude Code Beginner's Guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0nJ_8_77Yg
- Follow my thinking between videos: https://mjs.link/Newsletter
β±οΈ Chapters
00:00 Cold open
00:41 Mark's intro
05:48 Meet Jake Goldman: how he started 10up
12:42 Scaling 10up to $45M and 300 people
18:06 Joyful UX and the developer mindset
23:50 Jake's day to day at Fueled now
25:34 Going all in on AI tooling
37:18 Why this AI shift is genuinely different
39:13 The "golden era" that minted today's web devs
45:03 Personal brand vs entity brand
49:49 Why customers still want humans accountable for code
01:20:00 Emotion, defensiveness, and the AI debate
01:32:49 Jake's advice: just go try and make something
01:34:44 Mark's closing thoughts
π Ethics Statement: https://markszymanski.co/policies/ethics-statement/
π Join my community and learn how to leverage AI: https://ModernBuildersSociety.com
π‘ Book a 1:1 advisory call with me: https://markszymanski.co/advisory
ποΈ About this episode with Jake Goldman
Jake Goldman is the founder of 10up, the WordPress agency he scaled to about $45 million in revenue and roughly 300 people over twelve and a half years, before merging it into Fueled and stepping into a partner role. We get into how he started, why he deliberately built a company that was never about him personally, what it looks like to live through the AI transformation as a founder instead of just commenting on it, why he believes customers will keep paying agencies even as AI does more of the work, and his closing call to install one of the tools this weekend and just go try making something you didn't think you could.
π Connect with Jake Goldman
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobgoldman/
Fueled: https://fueled.com
10up: https://10up.com
π Connect with Mark Szymanski
Website: https://markszymanski.co
Facebook: https://mjs.link/FB
Instagram: https://mjs.link/IG
LinkedIn: https://mjs.link/LI
X: https://mjs.link/X
YouTube: https://mjs.link/YT
π§ About this show
Fueled By Progress is a long-form conversation series with builders, operators, and thinkers exploring business, technology, and what it actually takes to build a meaningful life in a modern world.
If you're new here, welcome. If you've been here since episodes recorded in my car, thank you. We're still just getting warmed up πͺ
π Free Value
- Get your AI Resource Bundle: https://markszymanski.co/ai-crash-course-resources
- Full AI Crash Course: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1cd_ntgOuY
- Claude Code Beginner's Guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0nJ_8_77Yg
- Follow my thinking between videos: https://mjs.link/Newsletter
β±οΈ Chapters
00:00 Cold open
00:41 Mark's intro
05:48 Meet Jake Goldman: how he started 10up
12:42 Scaling 10up to $45M and 300 people
18:06 Joyful UX and the developer mindset
23:50 Jake's day to day at Fueled now
25:34 Going all in on AI tooling
37:18 Why this AI shift is genuinely different
39:13 The "golden era" that minted today's web devs
45:03 Personal brand vs entity brand
49:49 Why customers still want humans accountable for code
01:20:00 Emotion, defensiveness, and the AI debate
01:32:49 Jake's advice: just go try and make something
01:34:44 Mark's closing thoughts
π Ethics Statement: https://markszymanski.co/policies/ethics-statement/