Your simile is right, but I think the problem is always in part these things: 1) Programming isn't impossible to learn. An outsourced MVP might be a sign that

Your simile is right, but I think the problem is always in part these things: 1) Programming isn't impossible to learn. An outsourced MVP might be a sign that the non-tech founder is not fully committed (my grandpa owned a small factory, but stressed the importance of knowing how to work all the equipment even if he stayed in the office). 2) Technical people (of which I am one) frequently underestimate technical challenges. I'm a good developer but at times have have massively missed deadlines, released buggy/untested shite, and mis-predicted technologies (e.g. I once thought Flex would take over the world). So if we have worked for years in a field and made these mistakes, we have a hard time trusting a non-technical person the even guess at the challenges/tradeoffs up ahead. And to tell when it's time to right the ship or pivot from an idea they are attached to. So to flip it, you need to market yourself more than your project. I think the best non-technical cofounder is somebody who is a some-time developer. As a manager at Vanderlay Industries once said: "If you think I'm looking for a guy to sit at a desk pushing around papers, forget about it. I got enough headaches trying to manufacture the stuff."