To be fair Mike, your original question was pretty specific and used the word "cofounder," which is rich in semantics around these parts. So I think the feedback you've received shouldn't confuse you. And I have no idea why it matters whether the feedback came from people with a technical or non-technical background.
A few thoughts:
* Stop using the word cofounder. This person is an employee. You don't consider them a peer or central to the success of the business. You created your own mess by setting expectation that they could be a cofounder and cofounder almost always means a significant chunk of equity... not 2%.
* You let this person take on a major role in advisor/investor discussions. Combine that with "cofounder" discussion and, again, you shouldn't be surprised if this person wants a more significant equity position. Where is the "politics" in all this? You have someone who wants to forgo a paycheck in exchange for equity and is trying to negotiate the best package for himself. Why is this a bad thing? Why does this make you want to "axe him?"
* "they hardly understand the 1y vision" ... If that is the real case, then fire him. You clearly have little respect for the guy so why all the contorting?
* I don't understand the paragraph about employees not believing in revenue. Here you have a guy that is willing to forgo cash compensation for equity, so *clearly* he believes in the ability for the company to generate revenue in the future. Or was this paragraph a different topic?
Again, it's unfair to assess from just a couple paragraphs, but it *seems* that there some issues on your part that span communication, leadership, trust and control. Communicate the vision, make it clear what needs to happen to achieve it, define their role(s), and define their compensation. Allowing someone to float around, thinking that they're a cofounder whereas you appear to think that they're barely functional is unfair and is your own doing.
[Slightly exaggerated and one-sided for effect.]