[dictum]

>And if you really want it, it can probably be contracted, in a way the first two roles never can.

HN (rightly) bashes "idea guys", but there is really only one thing in a startup that cannot be contracted: what the startup is trying to do or achieve.

Design for a startup can be contracted in the same way software engineering can be contracted. That is to say: you will get reasonably good results if you find a good contractor who is a good fit for the project, but it will not be the same as having an employee fully dedicated to create a great product, analyze the market's reaction to the product as it is developed and marketed and adjust the design/the technology to the market's needs and expectations.

If you can contract a designer (and not hire one), you can contract a developer too. Results will be mixed.

[seanmcdirmid]

This is right: outsourcing design is just like outsourcing development; do it if its not at the core contempancy of your startup. Game startups almost always have design talent in founder roles for this reason. A lot of novel app companies have at the very least design-gineers in founding roles, if not full time designers.