Marco Herten
Founder
I run an e-commerce brand and focus on one thing above all else: making operations leaner. That means questioning every process, automating wherever possible, and replacing manual work with AI-supported systems. My day-to-day is less about managing tasks and more about designing the systems that handle them - so the team can focus on what actually matters.
Industries
Working Style & Philosophy
I constantly ask myself: is the way we've always done this actually the best way? That question drives everything. I regularly challenge existing processes, approach them from scratch, and actively seek input from others - whether they've cracked the same problem or failed at it. I don't optimize for comfort, I optimize for outcomes. And I let those experiences, including the failures, shape how I build.
"I don't optimize for comfort, I optimize for outcomes."
Tools I Can't Live Without
Claude Code
What I use it for:
My go-to coding environment for turning ideas and small helpers into real, working projects - fast.
Why I can't live without it:
Claude Code with Opus is simply a beast when it comes to coding. Other tools exist, but nothing comes close to how quickly it moves from idea to implementation. It lowers the barrier between "I have an idea" and "it's running."
If I could change one thing:
The pricing. It's one of the most expensive systems in terms of token cost, and that adds up quickly.
Google Antigravity
What I use it for:
My primary IDE for daily work — not just coding, but structuring and working through complex problems. It's a VS Code fork with deep Gemini integration and a genuine agent-first approach where the AI plans tasks, writes code, runs tests, and verifies features through the browser autonomously.
Why I can't live without it:
It's more than a copilot - it's a platform where AI agents take on large tasks end-to-end. That shift from "AI assists" to "AI executes" changes how you work fundamentally. And the fact that it's currently free makes it a no-brainer.
If I could change one thing:
Native support for third-party LLMs beyond the preset models. I want to bring my own.
Boost.space / make.com
What I use it for:
Our operational backbone. Whenever we want to permanently integrate a process or connect systems, this is the platform we build on. Make.com is the engine underneath; Boost.space is the data layer on top.
Why I can't live without it:
It connects thousands of tools and lets us build stable, scalable process structures without reinventing the wheel every time. Once something is built in here, it runs - reliably, in the background, without us thinking about it.
If I could change one thing:
Nothing comes to mind right now.
Slack
What I use it for:
Our main team communication channel — messaging, coordination, keeping everyone aligned.
Why I can't live without it:
It's the standard for a reason. When your team is distributed and moving fast, you need one place where things don't get lost. Slack is that place.
If I could change one thing:
Better native Google Meet integration. The current setup could be a lot smoother.
Perplexity
What I use it for:
Deep research. When I need to aggregate real knowledge on a topic - not just surface-level results - Perplexity is where I start.
Why I can't live without it:
It's the best deep research tool I've found. When I need to go deep on something and then derive next steps from it, nothing else comes close. It's become the first step in any serious research process.
If I could change one thing:
Nothing - it does what it does exceptionally well.
Shopify
What I use it for:
Everything. It's not just our shop system - it's our entire e-commerce infrastructure.
Why I can't live without it:
What surprises me every day is how well Shopify is designed for complexity. Integrating third-party systems, handling performance at scale, building custom workflows - it handles all of it better than anything else I've tried. Most shop systems are just that: shop systems. Shopify is infrastructure. That distinction matters.
If I could change one thing:
Nothing I'd change right now.
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