He Made $10M with 3 iPhone Apps | Starter Story

Blake Anderson taught himself to code with ChatGPT in May 2023. By July 2023, he had launched his first app. Within a year, his three apps—Riz GPT, Umax, and Cal AI—were generating nearly $20 million in combined annual revenue. He did this as a complete beginner, with no coding background, no design experience, and no marketing budget beyond $100.

Why Apps Are Lucrative Right Now

Anderson identifies two structural reasons the app market is unusually accessible. First, large language models have made it possible to solve problems that were previously impossible or prohibitively expensive to address with software. His dating advice app Riz GPT simply could not have existed before LLMs. Second, social media algorithms—particularly TikTok and Instagram—are now optimized to push content from new accounts. "They have to incentivize new creators," Anderson explains, "so they'll push more views to new accounts than they did previously." This means a founder with zero following can still reach millions of potential users.

The Validation Method