👨💻 I coded and released a profitable SaaS in 2 weeks with ChatGPT+ and GitHub CoPilot - Ask Me Anything 👇
In October 2022, I started coding in Python/Flask, HTML/CSS and Vanilla JS, one month before the release of ChatGPT.
I've been using the OpenAI APIs and a bunch of other APIs for more than a year now, coding dozens of backend scripts for various purposes, both for myself and for clients.
This year, at the end of the summer, I decided to explore the possibility to code and ship my first SaaS, assisted by ChatGPT+ (Code Interpreter) and GitHub Copilot (in PyCharm). I used Railway (MySQL) + S3 to deploy the project.
Two weeks later, I released the AI Jingle Maker (https://www.aijinglemaker.com/).
So far, in 3 months, it has attracted close to 5,000 signups, mainly through some outreach to indie radio stations (I've been a radio DJ for the past 25 years 🎙).
I've also seen several small businesses, including coffee shops, hotels, and apparel brands, create audio ads through the platform. Additionally, podcast owners are using it to create their intros and various types of jingles.
I've been adding new features on a weekly basis since launch (readymade jingle packs, a voice recorder incl. FX presets, a promo maker for longer recordings, etc.).
At this stage, the AI Jingle Maker is for me a nice little side project.
I wouldn't have been able to launch this SaaS in such a short time without the help of my AI assistants. The approach has of course some limitations but it's pretty satisfying to finally be able to ship more than a simple website.
I think we're living in a pretty exciting time for indie makers.
And it's just the beginning.
Ask me anything, I'll do my best to answer your questions.
Cheers,
Frédérick
👉 PS: If you'd like to co-create your own SaaS following the same process, read this offer: https://www.indiehackers.com/post/pitch-me-and-well-create-your-saas-together-for-free-d2369b89a4
Hi! How do You market it? I think that's one of the most important questions for us to know.
Well, in this case the creation process is definitely more sophisticated than the marketing efforts.
Most of the signups (north of 50%) are from Google Search, 30% are from AI-related directories (theresanaiforthat, etc.), via free featuring. Roughly 10% from direct traffic / referrals and the rest from FB groups and some outreach.
Hey Frédérick,
Congrats on the launch! Could you share more details about your revenue or business model? I noticed that instead of subscriptions, you sell credits for platform usage. Regarding your customers, are they all on a paid plan, or do you offer a free tier as well? Also, you mentioned having around 5,000 signups. Could you elaborate on how this number translates into profits for your company?
Yes, indeed, it's credit-based.
Users buy credits to generate AI voiceovers or unlock pre-made packs or special features (like the voice recorder).
Some of them come back when they run out of credits.
It's a side hustle, not my main focus.
It has generated a few $1,000 since launch.
It's still a pretty niche market segment.
The main channel of acquisition is organic and some proactive outreach.
The goal is to try to bring revenues to $5,000 to $10,000 MRR (without subscriptions) while adding new features.
There's no free tier, I offer credits to new users on a discretionary basis.
This approach converts better than freemium (which tends to attract a category of people who want to game the system with multiple emails ;-)).
Very Informative and helped me clearing my views.
Great, glad to read it.
May I ask: in what way did it clear your views?
What wasn't clear to you?
The current potential of AI-assisted coding?
Hello Fred,
Your story is quite inspiring. Did you have spend any money on marketing?
I didn't (even if time can be considered as money).
Most of the traffic came from AI Directories, Search and some outreach.
Awesome! I'm looking for stories like this for my newsletter, zeropaidmarketing.substack.com. Would you mind throwing it more details via a form?
Moreover, I'd like to invite you to add AIjinglemaker to my directory here: switbai.com/submit-ai-tool.
Thank you for inspiring the community!
I'm interested in helping you scale this in marketing. Payment would be entirely performance-based or equity.
Thanks but that's typically my daily practice ;-) Cheers.
My bad, I should've investigated more. Now that you mention it, I can tell from your writing that you're a skilled marketer.
I currently have and use chat gpt premium version and use it all the time at work. And I debated if I should also use GitHub copilot also for building my Saas.
How does is it still worth getting GitHub copilot when it uses chat gpt 4 also ? Or how does the combination of using both helped you out and build faster?
I like having GitHub Copilot in PyCharm for smart on-page predictive suggestions when I modify some details or when I comment the code.
Great story! I've also started learning how to code and looking for a similar approach to leverage AI at some point (ChatGPT and Github CoPilot), thereby speeding up the process of building my first working product.
I'm wondering:
Thanks for your questions.
I was good enough in Python to code backend scripts on my local machine or on Replit (mostly workflow automations) but I had never coded any multi-tenant application (with authentication, etc.) and had never coded anything substantial in Javascript (which is used for the frontend of the app).
I think it's worth spending at least 2 to 3 months learning the basics of coding before leveraging GenAI to create your code.
Also, I had years of experience in product design, which definitely help in terms of overall architecture.
I consider launching a course explaining the details of the approach, which is a nice alternative to no-code, much more flexible (and satisfying).
Would defo be interested in that course once you put out!
I think I'll start working on it in January. Will try to make it as practical as possible.
What's your current experience in terms of coding?
I'm fairly proficient in the backend assuming I haven't gotten rusty after a year of not being super hands on (can't touch front tho).
It's like cycling or swimming, you don't forget how to do it ;-) You'll just need some practice. Front isn't that hard in JS/HTML/CSS, I'll cover the basics in the course, along with my AI Assistant.
waow can you sahre the prompt please
Hi, it's not a single prompt which gave birth to the whole product (we're not in 2030 yet ;-)) but a process. The key is to have a clear view of the architecture you're expecting from the AI. You can have a sense of what I mean by watching this short video I posted 2 weeks ago: https://youtu.be/4Xh6vAz-39s
Great job, Fred! This is absolutely incredible – releasing a profitable SaaS in only two weeks is an extraordinary feat and a perfect demonstration of your hard work and skill. Congratulations on this fantastic accomplishment!
Thanks for your kind words. I'd love to have your opinion about the product itself if / when you test it. Cheers.
Congratulation On the Launch
But understand that Commodities like just integrating chatGPT with your WebApp is not going to Scale
Because its something very common and not refined Enough
Even LLMs Consume a Huge computational Power
Hi, the web app isn't "integrated with ChatGPT".
ChatGPT was just used to code it. The app itself isn't using ChatGPT.
It's mostly coded in Python.
Cheers.
How are you creating new jingles if not gpt. Very curious. Is there any python library?
All the backend scripts (and front end code) are 100% custom, that was the whole point of the endeavour.
As I said in other replies, don't expect prompting to be as simple as "Create me an app which does xyz." You need a clear understanding of the structural aspects of the inner workings of the app you want to create to make it happen (e.g. you need to understand the principles of how a database is working or how JS interacts with Flask, etc.)
I get it.
What I am asking is: how the new jingles are created?
For example if I am a user and need a jingle for my clothing brand.
I will feed in some data about my brand and your app will give me a brand new jingle. Right?
You must be using the gpt api to create new jingles. If yes then ignore this, but If not then how are you doing it?
Was not talking about how u created the app. That is for sure, u need strong fundamentals to make something like this even with gpt.
To have a clear view of the process, I invite you to
1° either test it yourself (it's easy and self-explaining)
2° or if you don't want to sign up, simply watch the demo, it shows it all: https://youtu.be/UOjmFItnUv0
Basically you generate your voiceover (with AI or record it yourself), then pick an intro, a background and an outro and click on "Generate Jingle".
You should share this product at The Radio Guild (radio Guild dot org). It's a radio station industry community.
Hi, thanks for the recommendation. I tried to access the site but it didn't work (DNS issues...)
not sure why. I use it all the time.
Hi, your story is truly inspiring. Thanks for sharing it along with the video! I have a couple of questions if you're open to answering them.
Yes, with pleasure. Let me know.
Hey Fred, That's very inspiring. Do you think ChatGPT can also help in a revenue growth?
It can help you brainstorm opportunities, for sure.
Kudos on this remarkable achievement! 👏 Your story serves as an inspiration for what can be accomplished with hard work and creativity.
Thanks for your kind words.
Hey Fred, this is very inspirational, thank you for sharing this and the video! I have a few questions if you don't mind.
Hi, most of the signups (north of 50%) are from Google Search, 30% are from AI-related directories (theresanaiforthat, etc.), free featuring. Roughly 10% from direct traffic / referrals and the rest from FB groups and some outreach.
I had less than 1 year of coding experience I would say. I had mostly coded local backend scripts in Python, running in PyCharm (some ported to Replit). Re: prompting tips, you can have some idea about the process via this video https://youtu.be/4Xh6vAz-39s
this is awesome, great story.
it looks like a lot of the value is in all of your samples/preset FX. Did you already own those ready to distribute? I take it they weren't AI-generated?
Some are AI-generated (mostly in backgrounds).
The others are self-produced.
cool, well great job
FYI, I'm using mainly FL Studio and BandLab to craft my sounds.
Thanks so much for sharing this inspiring story! I have been working now for months building something and I’m just about to launch. Reading a story like this gives me extra motivation to just go for it and don’t hesitate. Just keep on launching.
Yes, go for it and iterate along the way! Best of luck in your project.
Hey, How did you market this product? Did you use Google ads or facebook ads or something else?
I've just started testing Google Ads but there's not enough search volume on the relevant queries.
99% of the users came from a mix of AI Directories, Search and a limited outreach campaign.
That's incredible! Congratulations on your rapid success with building and releasing a profitable SaaS (Software as a Service) in such a short timeframe. Utilizing tools like ChatGPT+ and GitHub CoPilot seems to have been a winning combination for your development process.
Would you mind sharing some insights into how ChatGPT+ and GitHub CoPilot specifically contributed to your development speed and overall success? What were some key features or functionalities that significantly helped you in building your SaaS product?
Hi, actually all the code was basically written in a conversation with ChatGPT.
Every single line (now 15,000+).
You can see a simple example of the workflow on https://youtu.be/4Xh6vAz-39s
This is brilliant! Loved how you used chatgpt to get the coding done. Obviously you seem to know flask and python well as otherwise it won't be possible to guide your friend and coworker - chatgpt
Well, let's say that I spent 2 to 3 months coding some backend stuff in Python before exploring frontend (which also requires to use HTML, CSS and JS).
I've been leading product teams for years (web & mobile), so I have a conceptual understanding of what code should achieve but I had never truly coded myself.
Now I can transform structured briefs into code, which is life changing.
The key is to have an understanding of the overall architecture.