8.9 KiB
8.9 KiB
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
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 │
│ Speckl Open Standard + Foundation │
│ (SpeckDL language, Dark Provenance methodology, │
│ reference agents, community, certification) │
└────────────┬──────────────┬─────────────────────────┘
│ │
▼ ▼
┌────────────────┐ ┌──────────────────────────┐
│ PLAN C │ │ PLAN A │
│ Consulting ├─▶ Developer Tool (SaaS) │
│ + Services │ │ - Self-serve PLG │
│ - Validates │ │ - Scales from C learnings│
│ - Funds early │ │ - Generates provenance │
│ - Builds case │ │ graph data │
│ studies │ │ │
└────────────────┘ └──────────────┬─────────────┘
│
▼
┌────────────────────────┐
│ PLAN B │
│ Compliance Infra (API) │
│ - Feeds on SaaS data │
│ - Highest margin │
│ - Enterprise sticky │
└────────────────────────┘
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.
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) |
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 |
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 |
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
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)
Next Actions (In Motion)
All parameters cleared. Dispatching now:
- @engineering — Set up Forgejo repo
sscoble/specklwith 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.