I've been both the programmer and the entrepreneur. With multiple exits, I've been choosing my projects for years.
Software is more deterministic that humans. When businesses fail, it usually comes down to the other business partners/clients making and enforcing the wrong call - often in unpredictable ways. If you have to choose, manage the software, control the company.
IMHO, it always works out better for yourself when you own & control everything. If you have partners, have the veto.
Using a crowd sourced approach, a group of accredited investors (buyers) can participate in purchasing a block of shares as a fund. A win for the smaller individual investor who could not normally participate due to various constraints (ie buying power, transaction costs).
Likewise, its also a win for sellers and it applies to the Unicorn's of the world. It gives these shareholders access to a market they wouldn't normally access.
It seems that selling shares privately is becoming more common, any model that connects a larger group of accredited buyers to accredited sellers is good - IMHO.