A product positioned around AI
with no AI features at all.
When I joined Zoftware in October 2023, the product was fundamentally broken. No AI-first features existed despite the company positioning around AI. The discovery flow had no logic, users could not reliably find relevant software. The homepage was not converting. No vendor onboarding system, no admin panel, no comparison tools.
The product lacked a design system, a component library, or any documented UX decisions. The brief was always informal: a problem statement, a feature idea, or a user complaint. Never a PRD. Never documentation.
I had to create structure, then create solutions within it, simultaneously.
"The platform kept growing. Every new feature was real value, but every new feature was also a new cognitive demand on users. My job was to keep expanding the product's capability while keeping the experience feeling simple."
Buyers drowning in 15,000+ options. AI as the guide — not just a filter.
Sole designer.
Every workstream, all at once.
Mapping the competitive
landscape.
In February 2026, G2 acquired Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice from Gartner for ~$110M. Four of the five incumbent review platforms are now a single entity controlling an estimated 55–58% of global software-review influence. The category just consolidated — which is precisely the opening for an AI-first, independent, decision-support challenger.
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| Criteria | G2 | Capterra | GetApp | SoftwareSuggest | SourceForge | Zoftware ↗ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scale | 2M+ reviews, 2,000+ categories, 100M+ users | 100k+ products, ~900 categories | 2M+ reviews, 37k+ products | 50k+ vendors, 1,500+ categories | Largest dev/open-source directory | 15,000+ curated listings |
| Ownership 2026 | Now owns 3 rivals | Owned by G2 | Owned by G2 | Independent | Independent | Independent |
| Positioning | Dominant, review-volume + AI-cited | Broad SMB discovery | Feature-fit discovery | Emerging-market reach | Developer / IT / open-source | AI-first decision support |
| Core strength | Highest AI citation density (2.6× rivals) | Broadest database | Fit Finder weighted ranking | Free listings, India reach | Developer trust | Tool-led guided discovery |
| Key gap | Enterprise-skewed, juggling 4 platforms | Less independent post-acquisition | Low traffic (#95k global) | Lower global authority | Narrow to dev/IT, dated UX | New entrant — building authority |
| AI capability | Citations strong; discovery still review-led | Minimal native AI | Minimal native AI | Minimal | Minimal | Strategy Builder · Fit Score · RFQ Builder · Smart Compare · Zain Bot |
| Monetization | Vendor plans from $2,999/yr | PPC $2/click, $500/mo min | PPC, syndicated | Free + paid promotion | Listings + promotion | Marketplace + advisory |
| UX signature | 6-tab listings, sliding scores | Clean, accessible | Save-to-board | Listing-dense | Functional / dated | Guided, AI-surfaced, decision-first |
15,000+ products. Three user types.
One coherent experience.
The platform has 15,000+ listed software products, multiple AI tools, a vendor ecosystem, and three distinct user types, buyers, vendors, and system integrators. The hardest design decision was managing cognitive load across a feature-dense platform without fragmenting the user journey.
The solution: a layered information architecture where power features are progressively revealed, not front-loaded. First-time visitors see a clean discovery surface. Repeat users and advanced buyers unlock complexity through contextual triggers, not upfront menus.
Enterprise buyers don't browse.
They interrogate.
After analysing user behaviour and competitor platforms (G2, Capterra, Gartner Digital Markets), one insight stood out: enterprise buyers arrive with a problem, not a category.
The original marketplace structure assumed browsing behaviour. I redesigned the discovery architecture around interrogation behaviour, leading with smart search, system fit scoring, and strategy generation rather than category navigation.
10+ features.
Every single one from scratch.
First Runner-Up.
G2 founder. 15+ countries.
"Praised by the founder of G2, the world's largest B2B software review platform. The platform's AI features were cited as genuinely innovative for the MENA enterprise market."
AI made me faster.
The judgment stayed mine.
| AI Tool | Used for | Human override |
|---|---|---|
| Claude | Research on unfamiliar domains, UX copy, PRD drafting, design documentation | All final decisions, all UX logic, all design direction |
| Figma AI | Component variants, rapid iteration | Visual judgment, final selection, quality bar |
| Generic AI | Stakeholder presentations, data visualisation, sheet creation | Strategic framing, narrative, business context |
"AI helped me research complex domains I'd never worked in before, like enterprise procurement workflows and cost automation modelling. But every decision about how to present that complexity to a user, that was never AI's job."
