The Idiot Index for Software
A simple method for measuring the (in)efficiency of software companies
At SpaceX, Elon Musk used the “Idiot Index” to expose inefficient manufacturing. Defined as the ratio of the cost of raw materials to the cost of finished product, a higher Idiot Index = more waste. The same idea applies to software.
Software’s raw material isn't metal or carbon fiber - it's people. The Software Idiot Index measures how many humans it takes to turn a user request into production code. And the numbers are... staggering 🤯
Picture this: a simple feature request's journey through Big Tech™️
Customer Support Agent: Receives feature request from user
Customer Support Manager: Advocates for feature to be built
Director of Product: Approves feature addition to roadmap
Product Manager: Defines feature scope, requirements
Design Manager: Oversees feature design direction
Product Designer: Designs feature interface
User Researcher: Tests feature with users
Engineering Manager: Coordinates feature development team
Tech Lead: Architects feature implementation
Frontend Engineer: Implements feature interface
Backend Engineer: Implements feature server-side
Mobile Engineer: Implements feature on iOS/Android
QA Tester: Verifies feature functionality
Product Marketing Manager: Promotes feature launch
Release Manager: Schedules feature deployment
That's 15 people to ship one feature. Not a typo. At major tech companies, an Idiot Index of 15 isn't a failure of the system - it IS the system.
How did we get here? Death by a thousand reasonable decisions. Each role seems essential. Each specialization feels justified. Yet somehow we built a machine that eats innovation, velocity, and margins for breakfast.
Tech's best leaders are waking up. Zuck flattened Meta's org. Musk slashed Twitter's headcount 80%. Brian Chesky had to unlearn everything about "proper" company building to fix Airbnb.
How low can the Idiot Index go? We've all met those rare product savants who design beautifully, code brilliantly, and ship complete products solo
They're living proof that an Idiot Index of 1 isn't just possible - it's software's natural state, waiting to be rediscovered.
Until now, these solo builders were precious anomalies - statistical outliers we couldn't scale. But we're entering an era where AI will democratize their superpowers.
What happens when product polymaths become abundant? 🚀
That's a story for another day…