Why GovTech MVPs Don't Look Like Startup MVPs

Founders are trained to ship the scrappiest possible MVP and iterate in public. In govtech, that instinct can sink you. A citizen service can't feel like a beta — the moment it looks unfinished or breaks for someone using a screen reader, you've lost trust you may never recover, and you've invited scrutiny you can't afford. So I redefine what 'minimum' means here. The MVP isn't a thin slice of everything; it's one complete, accessible, end-to-end path that a real person can finish with dignity. Narrow the scope brutally — fewer use cases — but never narrow the quality, the WCAG compliance, or the mature, non-startupy feel. That's the floor, not the roadmap. Then the path from MVP to full version is mostly about layered complexity: the simple core journey stays intact, and you add optional depth around it — edge cases, additional languages, advanced options — without ever disturbing the path most people take. I tell founders to think in concentric circles, not in feature checklists. Ship the center solid. Grow outward. The version you launch with should already be something you'd be comfortable defending in a public hearing.