How to Talk to Your Codebase: A Guide for Non-Technical Founders

Stop Asking Developers "Where Is That Feature?"

You have a codebase. You have questions. Usually, you have to bug your CTO. Now you can just ask the code directly.

How It Works

The code is the truth. But non-technical founders cannot read it. Modern AI tools can index your entire codebase and let you ask questions in plain English.

The Setup

1. Clone the Repo: Get the files locally (or connect to GitHub directly)
2. Use Cursor or Greptile: These tools index the code and understand it semantically
3. Ask Business Questions: "Where is the Stripe logic?" or "How do we calculate fees?" or "What happens when a user cancels their subscription?"

What You Can Ask

• "How does our pricing work in the code?"
• "What third-party APIs do we depend on?"
• "When was the payment module last changed?"
• "What would break if we changed the subscription model?"

The Benefit

You get instant answers without distracting your dev team. More importantly, you build an intuitive understanding of your own product's architecture without needing to read code.

Why This Matters

Non-technical founders who understand their codebase make better product decisions. They ask better questions in standups. They catch scope creep earlier. They can evaluate engineering estimates with more confidence.

We set this up for every client so they have transparency into their own IP. Your code is your most valuable asset — you should be able to understand it.