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When Dan Borthwick reflects on his career, there’s a clear thread: a love of building, collaborating, and empowering others to create. From mobile games at EA and King to AI products in healthtech, he’s always gravitated towards highly cross-functional teams - places where designers, artists, engineers, and product managers work side-by-side to make magic happen.

After our conversation in mid-June, Dan pointed out how that kind of open, collaborative workflow has started to disappear. "We’ve kind of lost that ability for everyone to get stuck in," he says. "A designer might spot a spelling mistake in a web app, but they can’t just fix it anymore. They have to ask a dev to do it."

The root of the issue? Source control.

Most digital teams rely on Git to manage changes to their codebase. It’s powerful, yes—but famously complex. "Git is used by 90% of projects worldwide, but it was built for and by developers," Dan explains. "For non-technical team members, it's a wall." That’s when the seed for NiceGit was planted.
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NiceGit is a source control solution for everyone, not just devs. 
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It gives anyone on the team the ability to work on a project and sync changes without needing to learn Git. It’s one button. Sync. Done.

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"NiceGit empowers people, regardless of technical background, to contribute directly to digital projects with all the power and safety of Git, minus the complexity," he says. Imagine replacing 43-button interfaces with a single "sync" button. No command line. No tutorials. Just a clean, user-friendly platform that lets creators, marketers, writers, and designers work directly on the files they care about.
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The idea had been simmering in Dan’s mind for years, but it wasn’t until early 2024, after leaving his job and joining Startmate’s Launch Club, that he went full-time on the concept. "Launch Club really took me out of my comfort zone," Dan shares. "I’m happy in build mode, but the program pushed me to get out there, do dozens of user interviews, and actually validate and refine the positioning."

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One lightbulb moment? Realising just how many newcomers were entering tech through AI-assisted development and no-code tools - people who desperately needed something like NiceGit but just didn’t know it yet. "The [customer] interviews were eye-opening," Dan says. "We learned that it’s not just about making Git simpler, it’s about making collaboration accessible again."

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As a solo founder, Dan’s also leaned heavily into "working in public" and building relationships. "Some of the most valuable partnerships have started with a simple user interview," he notes. "It’s a ripple effect."

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Now, Dan is gearing up for a public beta launch of NiceGit and word on the street he’s also starting early conversations with investors ahead of a much anticipated pre-seed round. "We want to put this into the hands of real teams and see it make a difference," he says. "If we can reduce friction, unlock creativity, and make digital collaboration feel fun again, then we’ve done our job."

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Quietly and confidently building, Dan’s thoughtful decisions and customer led obsession makes NiceGit (and Dan) one to watch. You heard it here first folks.

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“It’s still early. But it’s happening. And I’m not doing it alone.”

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Keen to get involved?
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NiceGit is opening its doors - be part of the beta test. Investor? Supporter? Just curious? Dan’s raising soon and always keen to chat. 

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📩 Want updates? Join the NiceGit mailing list here.

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