Why Everyone Is About To Have Their Own Database

Superbase's Explosive Growth [00:00:00]

• Superbase has reached 13 million users, with over a million new databases being created weekly.
• Revenue is projected to grow fourfold this year, with databases under management approaching 50 million, up from 8 million last year.

  "So yeah, we're 13 million signups now, probably 12 months back, we would have been around three, perhaps this year, like revenue will grow Forex."

The Rise of AI Agents as Builders [00:01:00]

• Approximately 70% of new activity on Superbase comes from AI agents.
• This trend represents a significant shift towards agents wanting to build and customize applications.

  "You know, something like 70% of the new activity is from agents. Isn't that crazy?"

Superbase's Evolution and Agent Appeal [00:02:00]

• Superbase has transitioned from a dashboard company to an API company, and now emphasizes a code-first approach.
• Being chosen as a default database within AI tools like Cloud Code and Codex has been a major benefit.

  "So we try to have the modalities that the agents really want to build with, which is code first. They really want to use CLIs most of the time."

The Importance of Open Source [00:03:00]

• Being open source is critical for Superbase's success, especially with agents who value transparency.
• Agents can inspect the source code when something goes wrong, fostering trust and reliability.

  "I would guess that the agents actually really like open source, because when something goes wrong, it can just look at the source."

The Shifting User Profile: From Developers to Builders [00:04:00]

• The user base is expanding beyond traditional software engineers to a broader category of "builders."
• These builders may not have a software engineering background but have ideas they can now bring to life.

  "The other thing is just being chosen as a default in the LLMs, which I think we were a huge beneficiary of the timing of which we started to become a default choice for databases."

Unprecedented Growth Across Metrics [00:05:00]

• Signups, activation, and conversion rates are all increasing simultaneously, which is unusual during rapid top-of-funnel acceleration.
• This indicates that AI models are becoming highly effective at enabling people to build.

  "But actually, all of them are kind of going up and to the right, which is a bit insane, just because the models are getting so good at building."

Empowering Domain Experts and Niche Solutions [00:06:00]

• Builders with domain expertise can now address specific, unsolved problems in their niches without needing to convince engineers.
• This unlocks the creation of highly specialized software that might not have been built previously.

  "And now they don't have to convince anyone. They've got all these ideas that they're churning out."

Real-World Examples of Builder Innovation [00:07:00]

• A taxi driver in Brazil built a localized ride-sharing app using Superbase.
• A fintech founder, previously product-adjacent, is now building sophisticated personal finance software for himself.

  "Well, one kind of cool example was at our conference. We had the conference here and afterwards, this guy from Brazil came up to me and he's built an entire taxi app from his phone."

The Democratization of Personal Software [00:08:00]

• Users are building personalized applications for finance, health tracking, and data management.
• These applications can offer greater customization and context than off-the-shelf solutions.

  "But I think the magic of it is sometimes it's a mind boggling thought actually, is like, I think about like the finance section of like my one app for myself is better."

Owning Your Data and Applications [00:09:00]

• The trend is towards owning personal databases to build applications and agents on top, rather than relying on third-party platforms.
• This provides control and prevents data being locked into a single provider.

  "Like, it's sort of like the store record, what's the, the, the database is actually the thing that's valuable."

Scaling to Meet Future Demand [00:10:00]

• Superbase is architecting for massive scale, potentially supporting billions of databases weekly, inspired by platforms like ChatGPT.
• This requires significant architectural innovation beyond traditional database solutions.

  "And so that's like the scale that we're moving towards architectures that we need to have so that we can actually cater for, for that scale, which is something that has never had to happen before on the database, database realm."

Dual Strategy: Prototyping to Petabytes [00:11:00]

• Superbase is adopting a dual product strategy, with Superbase Postgres scaling to petabytes and Superbase Spark (using Terso) catering to prototyping and SQLite workloads.
• This allows them to serve users from initial development through massive scaling.

  "So our tagline's kind of prototype to petabytes. And we as a company need to make sure that we can provide for everyone."

AI Accelerating Engineering Productivity [00:12:00]

• Superbase engineers are increasingly using AI coding agents, with adoption rising from 10% to 60% of engineers writing 80% of their code with AI in six months.
• The company allows engineers to use any tools they prefer, fostering rapid adoption of effective AI tools.

  "So we don't have an AI policy internally. We just let people do whatever they, whatever they want."

Enhancing Agent Experience with Better Error Messages [00:13:00]

• Superbase is improving error messages to be more actionable for AI agents, guiding them on how to fix issues or find relevant documentation.
• This is crucial for preventing agents from getting stuck and encouraging them to stay within the Superbase ecosystem.

  "So inside the error messages, you are literally telling them how to fix this error or to go and read some docs to fix the error."

The Future: Personal Databases and Agent Interaction [00:14:00]

• Copplestone is bullish on personal agents and believes Superbase will be central to storing personal data for these agents.
• The company is focused on building for agents, anticipating that human interaction with code will decrease.

  "I'm very bullish now on personal agents after a week of my EA being away and me learning exactly what they can do."

Embracing Durable Categories and Adaptability [00:15:00]

• Databases are a durable category, expected to remain relevant for decades, providing a stable foundation for Superbase.
• The company prioritizes adaptability, constantly evolving to stay ahead of the rapid pace of technological change.

  "Databases have been around for 50 years. I think they'll be around for another 50 years."

Dogfooding and Strategic Partnerships [00:16:00]

• Superbase emphasizes dogfooding its own tools to identify gaps and areas for improvement.
• Partnerships with key players in the AI space allow them to gather feedback and explore new possibilities, even if not all bets succeed.

  "So I'm always trying these tools with ours to know where are the gaps. There's no better feedback than you getting stuck on your own tooling and then having capacity."