Here's what you'll find in this issue:

• This founder acquires a profitable SaaS instead of going from zero-to-one.
• 5 vibe coding tools. Some of the latest apps for coding with AI.
• Yesterday's build board winners, including three new product launches from indie hackers.
• 30-second growth tip: Don't compete in a hot market. Sell intel about it to outsiders.

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Pascal Levy-Garboua is not a zero-to-one founder. He's much better at taking an existing business to the next level, so he does that instead. His company, Noosa Labs, acquires small, profitable SaaS businesses, and his current portfolio is pulling in $120k MRR.

Pascal targets bootstrapped companies in the $200k–$600k ARR range with high margins. After a painful lesson involving a cease-and-desist from WhatsApp that shut down his first buy (read more about it in the full interview!), he now avoids platform risk at all costs. His current portfolio includes an email countdown timer and an AI support platform.

We chatted with Pascal to learn his secrets! He dug into his playbook for growing acquired companies (like an onboarding fix that cut churn by 30%), why he pivoted from targeting large acquisitions to smaller ones, and why he thinks founders should obsess over growth initiatives instead of new features. He's got a ton of great advice for a different path. Highly recommend!

Read the full article →

You've built something real. But once your team starts growing, you’re suddenly drowning in payroll processing, benefits enrollment, and compliance questions you never signed up for.

That's where Justworks comes in. We handle the parts of running a business that don't deserve your attention: automated payroll that actually works, benefits your team will actually use, international hiring without the legal minefield, and tax compliance you can trust. When things get confusing (and they will), our team of small business experts is there 24/7 with actual answers — no automated responses, no AI agents.

Thousands of founders have freed up their time for what actually matters. Whether you're just hiring your first employee or scaling your team, Justworks grows with you, without the growing pains.

Visit www.justworks.com to see how other makers are building without the busywork.

1. Bolt.new: Prompt an app — Bolt spins up and deploys the full-stack in one click.

2. Snyk Code: Scan and auto-patch security flaws right in your source code.

3. v0: Type a prompt — v0 drafts production-ready React, Vue, or Svelte components.

4. Pieces: Store snippets of code offline and use a “long-term memory agent” to search, fix, reuse.

5. Windsurf: AI-powered IDE that anticipates your next move.

See all 30 tools in the directory →

Don't compete in a hot market. Sell intel about it to outsiders.

When China's economy boomed, IBISWorld didn't try to sell research to Chinese companies. Instead, they set up a joint venture to produce reports about Chinese industries for international clients.

This works in any emerging space. Crypto's exploding? Sell research to traditional finance trying to figure it out instead of building another exchange. AI is confusing everyone? Package explanations for puzzled users instead of products for those in the know.

The hottest markets are crowded with competitors and full of outsiders desperate to understand them. Be their guide!

Read the full growth report →

Every day, indie hackers post updates about the products they're building. Here's what the community voted to the top yesterday!

	1. Roipad: Stop Guessing Your Positioning. See What's Actually Working. Roipad: How to win on product positioning?	▲ 18
	2. Geomapping: Add interactive maps to your articles. AI-powered, zero conf Geomapping - Maps in < 3 minutes	▲ 9
	3. 1 Minute Timer: The ultimate free online 1-minute timer for focus, fitness, How a Simple 1 Minute Timer Can Cure Procrastination	▲ 7

Enjoy building in public? Post an update to your product page on Indie Hackers, and it will automatically be added to the daily leaderboard.

A tale as old as time!

—Channing

Did you like today's stories? Did they suck? Which ones?

We're constantly changing things up to make this newsletter more useful, so let us know what you think by replying directly to this email. We read every reply!

Special thanks to Yushavel Calderon for the graphic design, and to James Fleischmann for contributing a post.

—Channing