I built my first AI startup completely solo. Here’s what happened.

🧠 The First Spark

I got into tech when I was just 11 years old. Back then, I wanted to become an architect - I loved creating things. But once I discovered the world of code, that creative spark shifted to the digital world.

I didn’t have mentors or expensive courses. I learned everything through YouTube, building real things, and failing - a lot.

The first thing I ever made?
A simple personal website where people could download open-source tools I curated. Nothing fancy. But it was mine. And that was enough to keep going.

🔥 First Burnout at 15

At 15, I landed my first real IT job.

That sounds cool, right? But honestly - I crashed hard. I didn’t know what burnout was until I started working 12-hour days trying to “prove” myself. I loved coding, but I was losing the joy.

That stuck with me. And a few years later, it became the seed for SereneAI.

💡 Why I Built SereneAI

Mental health is a silent battle - especially in places like Central Asia where no one talks about it.

After talking to a few people and doing market research, I realized:

• There are very few personalized AI mental health tools in my region.

• People are stressed, but don’t know how to take care of their minds.

• I wanted to fix that.

So I built SereneAI - a platform that uses AI to generate:

• Custom meditations

• Tailored affirmations

• A gratitude journal that doesn’t feel generic

Everything - code, design, logic, even the animations — was done by me in 2 weeks.

I launched it as part of the nFactorial Incubator, a high-pressure bootcamp where we have just one month to launch and scale a real product.

🧍The Loneliness of Building Solo

Honestly, the hardest part wasn’t coding.

It was marketing.
It was being a one-man army - trying to run ads, write posts, record videos, pitch the product, and do support - while also fixing bugs and writing backend logic.

There were days I felt like quitting.

There were even moments where I had a pitch event scheduled — and the product wasn’t even ready. I literally ended up presenting just the Figma design because the site wasn’t live yet.

But I pushed through.

Because I believe in this product. And I believe in what it can do for people.

🌍 My Bigger Vision

I’m going into 11th grade now. Still living in Shymkent. Still solo.
But I have a vision:

• To make mental wellness accessible.

• To use AI for something truly human.

• And to show that you don’t need a Silicon Valley badge to build something meaningful.

In a year, I want to be self-sufficient. Traveling. Building. Healthy.
And yes - I do want to build a team. People who care about this as much as I do.

🤝 Let’s Connect

If you’ve read this far - thank you.

If you’re:

• A marketer who wants to help,

• A founder who’s been here before,

• A builder who believes in AI,

• Or just someone who needs a moment of calm,

Let’s connect. Let’s talk. Let’s build together.

You can check out SereneAI (Live on Launchpad), or drop me a message here on Peerlist or anywhere else.

We might be strangers — but maybe we’re building the same future.

Stay Serene,
— Milan Gorislavets