Framework
Requirements-First Development
The CTO's core job is not writing code — it's translating business objectives into technical requirements, then ensuring the code solves the right problem. Start there. Generating code before generating requirements produces something technically functional that solves the wrong problem. The 70% wall is the symptom; deferred requirements are the cause. Requirements elicitation — guided prompting to extract what you actually need — is what separates MVPs from prototypes.
How it works
- 1New Binary's key insight from years of fractional CTO work: the biggest challenge in getting started was extracting ideas from founders' minds in a form that produced good technical output.
- 2The translation step — business objective → technical requirement — is what gets skipped in vibe coding. Every step skipped becomes a wall later.
- 3A developer picking up a vibe-coded prototype in Cursor is prompting without context: no architecture understanding, no business requirements, no knowledge of what was generated. Code without context produces more code without foundation.
- 4Lio automates requirements elicitation: it interviews the founder, generates technical scope including ICP and user types, then proceeds to code generation — in order.
- 5Versioning feature: collaborators can freeze a scope version before iterating, creating a clear history of decisions made and a structured path forward for each new iteration.
Hear it on the podcast
Most AI Prototypes Die Before LaunchListen to the episodeMore from this episode
The Four-Category AI Coding TaxonomyAI coding tools fall into four distinct categories with different users, capabilities, and failure modes: (1) generalist code assistants (Copilot, Cursor) for developers; (2) prototyping tools (Lovable, Bolt, v0) for fast front-end visualization; (3) lifecycle agentic flows (Devin) for engineering teams across the full SDLC; (4) MVP builders (Lio) for full-stack requirements-to-scaffold generation. Knowing which category you're in tells you what to expect, where you'll hit walls, and where to go next.The 70/30 Software StackSeventy percent of every new software application is commodity: authentication, user management, CRUD operations, data pipelines, notifications. It was never innovative. Every dev shop had internal boilerplates for it. The competitive advantage in software has always come from the 30% that's unique. In 2026, this matters more: any decent CRM can be built in a day. Automate the 70%; focus all human effort and genuine IP development on the 30%.
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