[rajacombinator]

I think it's reasonable to expect a cofounder to pull his/her weight in terms of equity. But firing him should be a last resort. Ideally the cofounder should transition to other roles as the company grows and hires people that make him obsolete in whatever role he's currently doing. That's part of the natural evolution of a company and the CEO, cofounder, and you should all understand that. It's not necessarily a failure of the cofounder and shouldn't be looked at as such, unless he's truly just being lazy. If he can't program well he should either improve or find another way he can contribute effectively.

You've done the reasonable thing which is discuss with the CEO. The ball is now in his court. Maybe he is still trying to figure it out, maybe his hands are tied. You can just keep reminding him. Now if you think the CEO is dropping the ball and want to make a power play, you could take the nuclear option and approach the investors/board directly about the issue. This is a pretty dirty and risky move, but it does happen, see Twitter. If I were the CEO I would autofire you if I found out, even if your complaint was valid. Investors/board might not take it kindly either.