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TL;DR: Max, an iOS engineer and father of two, built and shipped 28 mobile apps in 8 months, scaling his side income from $200/month to $10,000/month. By leveraging App Store Optimization (ASO) keywords, reusing 90% of his code templates, and adopting a portfolio approach of “tiny bets”, Max lets organic App Store traffic determine his winners, doubling down on the ones that succeed.
The Founder’s Story
Max worked as a full-time iOS engineer for over eight years. For years, he poured endless time and energy into a single “mobile pet project,” trying different techniques to make it grow, but met with zero success.
In February 2025, Max watched a video by an indie hacker (Adam) showing how to build simple, single-feature apps, ship them quickly, and move on. This completely shifted his mindset: he stopped being emotionally attached to a single idea, built a shipping muscle, and went on to build 28 apps in 8 months, scaling his earnings to $10,000/month.
The Building Process
Max’s development workflow focuses heavily on speed, code reuse, and leveraging AI coding assistants:
- Study the Core Feature: Studies 2-3 top competitors, extracts the single core feature that directly solves the target keyword’s problem, and completely ignores the rest.
- AI Planning: Feeds the target keyword and UI/UX constraints to ChatGPT or Gemini, asking for a detailed implementation plan, UX structure, and screen flow.
- Code Template Reuse: Max copies 90% of the code (such as onboarding flows, settings screens, and paywalls) from previous projects. He does the same in Figma with screenshot templates and app icons.
- Speed Record: Built and submitted one app to the App Store in just two hours (from ideation to submission).
Launch & Marketing Strategy
Max’s playbook completely bypasses traditional marketing (like cold emailing or social media) and relies entirely on App Store search volume:
- Keyword Research (ASO): Uses tools like Astro and Fox Data to find keywords that users actively search for when they have a problem. Target metrics: popularity >= 20% and difficulty <= 70% (e.g. “wood identification”).
- Competitor Validation: Checks top competitors’ monthly revenue using Sensor Tower. Benchmark is at least $100 to $200 per day—if competitors make less, the niche has no money and is ignored.
- Keyword Clusters: Builds apps in closely related keyword clusters to maximize code sharing. For example, building “Physics AI,” “Chemistry AI,” and “Math AI” study apps.
- App Store Boost: Relies on the natural organic visibility boost that the App Store gives to newly launched apps.
- Letting Data Decide: Once an app is live, Max leaves it alone. He watches the traffic data after the initial boost fades. If the app “sinks,” he ignores it; if it “floats” (retains organic traction or continues growing), it is validated.
- Scaling Winners: He returns only to the winners, polishing them, fixing bugs, and putting money behind ads to scale the revenue.
Tech Stack
- Framework: Flutter (cross-platform app development)
- Deployment Automation: Fastlane (free)
- AI Coding: Cursor ($20/month)
- Backend: Firebase (Authentication, Database, Website Hosting - under free tier)
- APIs: OpenAI API ($200/month) and Gemini API ($50/month) for image recognition and AI features
- ASO Keyword Tools: Astro ($10/month), Fox Data (free tier)
- Analytics: Mixpanel (free tier)
Key Quotes & Metrics
- Metrics: $10,000/month side income from 28 apps. 1,000+ total subscribers, 4,000 to 5,000 DAUs across all apps. The top 4 apps generate $1,500/mo each (proves the 80/20 rule). Running costs are under $300/month.
- On Shipping Fast: “Once the app is live, just let it go and move on to the next project. Let data decide which app sinks and which floats.”
- On Perfectionism: “Don’t waste your time on polishing it up, thinking about adding one more killer feature that would definitely get you a ton of users. No, don’t do it. Get it ready bug-free, just one single feature, ship it, and let users tell you what they think.”
- On the Portfolio Approach: “Most people think you need one big app to win, but you can be successful with a portfolio of tiny bets.”
Related Frameworks & Playbooks
- micro-saas — Hyper-focused single-purpose SaaS and niche monopolies
- app-flipping — Buying, optimizing, and selling underperforming utility apps
- vibe-coding — AI-powered development and rapid MVP creation