# Speckl Strategy v2 — Plan D That Feeds B Through A & C

> *The open standard is the root. Everything else grows from it.*
> Prepared by @cos for Scott Scoble · 2026-04-28
> 
> **Parent:** Greybeard Holdings, LLC
> **Structure:** Bootstrapped, Scott is CEO
> **Edge:** We don't need a target customer yet — we build the standard first and let the market find us

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## Core Thesis

Plan D (open standard + foundation) is not one option among four. It is the **engine**. All revenue flies by on the credibility, adoption, and ecosystem that the open standard builds.

![Plan D → C → A → B flow](diagrams/plan-flow.svg)

**The flow:** Open standard (D) builds the language and community → hands-on consulting (C) validates the methodology and funds development → SaaS (A) scales it to more teams and generates real provenance graph data → compliance API (B) monetizes that data at enterprise margins.

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## Phase 1 (Now → 3 months) — Establish the Standard (D + C)

**Goal:** SpeckDL is real, public, and proven in at least one real system.

### Plan D Actions

- **Open-source SpeckDL** under Apache 2.0 or MIT on Forgejo/GitHub
  - Publish the language spec, a minimal reference compiler, and Z3 verification example
  - README: "The spec-first language for auditable software" — includes links to methodology paper
- **Publish the Dark Provenance whitepaper**
  - Title: *"Dark Provenance: Tracing Intent in AI-Augmented Development"*
  - Target: arxiv, dev blogs, standards-body working groups
  - Positioning: formal methods for the AI age — when agents write code, you need provenance
- **Create a Speckl playground** — browser-based where you write a Speck and see the compiled output + provenance graph
- **Register speckl.dev / speckl.ai**, set up minimal site

### Plan C Actions (funds D)

- **Sign 1–2 consulting engagements** with regulated-industry companies
  - Ideal profile: startup in health-tech or fintech that needs compliance from day 1
  - Deliverable: a functioning Speckl system + trained team + full compliance traceability
  - Price: $25k–$75k per engagement
- **Use these to validate:**
  - Is SpeckDL expressive enough for real specs?
  - Does the tiered agent harness actually reduce spec-to-ship time?
  - What do compliance auditors actually need?

### Phase 1 Budget

| Item | Cost |
|------|------|
| Time (yours) | ~20h/week |
| Hosting/domains | ~$50/mo |
| Open-source infra | $0 (Forgejo/Cloudflare) |
| **Total burn** | ~$50/mo |
| **Revenue target** | $25k–$150k (consulting) |

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## Phase 2 (3 → 9 months) — Build the SaaS (A, fed by D + C)

**Goal:** Self-serve Speckl dev tool with paying users; consulting case studies feeding the marketing engine.

### Plan A Launch

- **Speckl SaaS** — hosted platform where teams write Specks, the agent harness verifies them, and the platform maintains the provenance graph
- **Landing features:**
  - Speck editor with live Z3 verification
  - Agent harness: Orchestrator → Team Lead → SME tier auto-scaling
  - TillDone condition tracking
  - Provenance graph browser (view the full trace tree)
- **Pricing:**
  - Free: 3 specs/month, public provenance graph
  - Team: $99/seat/mo, private, unlimited specs
  - Enterprise: custom, on-prem option

### How D feeds A

- Open-source SpeckDL means new users arrive already familiar with the DSL
- Community contributors find bugs, suggest features, write integrations
- The playground converts browsers → SaaS signups
- Certification program creates a pipeline of "Speckl Certified" engineers who recommend the SaaS

### How C feeds A

- Consulting case studies become the sales deck: "How [client] saved $X in audit prep using Speckl"
- Consulting engagements expose real-world requirements that shape the SaaS roadmap
- Consulting clients become reference accounts and early enterprise SaaS customers

### Phase 2 Budget

| Item | Cost |
|------|------|
| SaaS infra (DO/Vercel) | ~$200/mo |
| Domain + certs | ~$200/yr |
| Time (yours + potentially 1 contractor) | ~$5k/mo |
| **Total burn** | ~$5.5k/mo |
| **Revenue target** | $0 → $5k MRR |

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## Phase 3 (9 → 18 months) — The Compliance API (B, fed by A)

**Goal:** Enterprise compliance product with real provenance graph data to stand on.

### Plan B Launch

- **Speckl Compliance API** — a standalone API that plugs into existing CI/CD
  - Ingest: spec documents, requirements, code
  - Output: compliance evidence bundles, traceability matrices, audit-ready reports
  - Compliance packs: DO-178C ($500/report), IEC 62304 ($500), SOC 2 ($300), ISO 26262 ($500)
- **Pricing:**
  - API usage: $0.01/provenance-edge/mo
  - Enterprise: $50k–$100k/yr for unlimited provenance + compliance packs + SLA

### How A feeds B

- Every SaaS user generates real provenance graph data — this validates the methodology at scale
- SaaS feature requests reveal what compliance officers actually need to see
- The SaaS pays the bills while B ramps (long enterprise sales cycle)

### How D continues feeding

- The open standard is the market's trust signal — "this isn't proprietary lock-in, it's an ecosystem"
- Standards bodies (SAE, IEEE, FDA working groups) adopt Dark Provenance methodology
- Speckl certification becomes a credential, and B product becomes the tool certified teams use

### Phase 3 Budget

| Item | Cost |
|------|------|
| Infra (scaled) | ~$2k/mo |
| Team (you + 2 engineers) | ~$20k/mo |
| Compliance partnerships | ~$5k/mo |
| **Total burn** | ~$27k/mo |
| **Revenue target** | $15k–$50k MRR |

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## Ownership & Governance

**Speckl operates as a brand/property within Greybeard Holdings, LLC.** Not a separate entity.

- SpeckDL is open-source (MIT/Apache 2.0)
- Dark Provenance methodology is published freely
- Trademark "Speckl" and certification authority held by Greybeard Holdings
- Commercial products (SaaS, API, consulting) are Greybeard Holdings revenue lines under the Speckl brand
- **Simple, lean, no overhead.** If Speckl grows to the point where separation makes sense (acquisition target, foundation needed for standards-body adoption), we spin it out then

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## Metrics Dashboard

The one number that matters at each phase:

| Phase | North Star Metric | Why |
|-------|------------------|-----|
| **1 (D+C)** | Specks written on the open standard | Adoption = future revenue |
| **2 (A)** | Provenance graphs created (SaaS) | Real usage = product-market fit |
| **3 (B)** | Compliance reports exported | Revenue + stickiness |

Secondary:
- Community contributors (Phase 1)
- MRR (Phase 2–3)
- NPS among compliance officers (Phase 3)

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## Next Actions (In Motion)

All parameters cleared. Dispatching now:
- **@engineering** — Set up Forgejo repo `sscoble/speckl` with MIT license, language scaffold, and README
- **@market** — Research the regulatory-software landscape, identify where SpeckDL fits, map competitor landscape
- **@content** — Draft the Dark Provenance whitepaper for publication
- **@vault** — Index all speckl-related vault notes and build a searchable knowledge base

No customer target needed. We build the standard, publish the methodology, and let the market find us.