I Created My Own Apps Using AI — Here’s What I Learned

Have you ever searched for an app with very specific features, only to find it doesn’t exist or hides needed features behind a paywall? I’ve been there. For instance, I always wanted a finance manager with custom graphs, a to-do list tailored to my workflow, or even a simple tool that cleans up messy text I copy from WhatsApp or websites.

Most tools I found were bloated with ads or required subscriptions. That’s when I thought—what if I make my own AI app that does one thing but does it really well? Can you make your own AI app? Here’s what I found.

Enter Vibe Coding

Thanks to AI, you actually can. A little programming knowledge helps, but it’s not required. All you need is an idea, some patience, and the ability to explain what you want—like you’re chatting with a friend. This method is called vibe coding. You describe your idea in plain English, and the AI writes the code. Then, you keep adding prompts to refine or fix things. I gave it a shot—and here’s how it went.

My First Attempt: A Text Cleaner

I often copy text from WhatsApp or websites and paste it into notes or emails. But it sometimes pastes weird symbols, emojis, and broken formatting. Something like:

“Hey � can you ⍰ check ▯ this out <?>”

This happens due to Unicode or font issues. I wanted a web app where I could paste any copied text and clean it up—remove emojis, fix line breaks, and get plain text I could use anywhere.

While platforms like ChatGPT can generate code, they often need a bit more technical handling. Tools like Lovable or Vercel v0 are better for beginners. They generate the full code structure in one go, and the interface is more intuitive. I started with Lovable (which offers 5 free prompts a day and is more non-developer friendly ). I logged in and gave it a detailed prompt.

The first version looked fine, but the button didn’t work. No matter how many times I clicked, it just sat without doing anything.

Here’s where vibe coding shines. I didn’t touch the code—I just told the AI, “The button isn’t working.” It fixed the issue. Then I noticed line breaks weren’t handled properly. I explained the issue, and it refined the logic. When I couldn’t copy the result text, I flagged that too, and it patched the problem.

This back-and-forth went on for a few rounds—maybe 7 or 8 prompts in total. Each time, I described what was wrong, and the AI did the fixing. Finally, it worked. A clean, simple web app that removes symbols, fixes line breaks, and lets me copy clean text—all without ads or subscriptions.

Lovable even lets you deploy the app for free using Supabase. Just link your account and publish it. Supabase handles the backend, and you can even add login support using Google, GitHub, or other accounts.

Here’s the text cleaner app – cleanify-text.lovable.app

Also Read:

• Best Code Review Tools for Individuals & Enterprises
• ChatGPT Canvas vs Claude Artifacts: Which One Is Better for You?
• Google IDX vs VS Code: How Google’s New Code Editor Stacks Up

Other Mini Projects I Built

Once I got the hang of it, I created more AI apps:

• A to-do list where I could set task priorities
• A finance manager who showed spending insights with pie charts
• My portfolio page with a design that matches my style

All of these were built using simple prompts. I didn’t write a single line of code manually.

What I Learned From Creating My First AI App

After trying out platforms like Lovable, Vercel v0, Claude, and ChatGPT, here’s what stood out:

1. Use the right AI tool: Not all AI models work the same. Apps like ChatGPT are all-in-one chatbots. Using a dedicated app like Vercel v0 or Lovable makes it easier to code apps without coding. Also, they generate apps with better UI from the get-go. 
2. Break it down: Do not try to generate a complex app with 20 features in one go. Start small, and make sure the layout shows up. Then add a button. Then make that button do something. If something breaks, fix it. Go one feature at a time. 
3. One prompt won’t be enough: The app may not work perfectly on the get-go. Provide feedback with enough context to the AI. That’s literally how I fixed bugs: “The button disappears when I type,” or “The numbers don’t calculate correctly.” An iterative process works best. 
4. It’s nowhere close to perfect: This is just the start of vibe coding. Also, you are not building a professional-level app here. The app has many bugs and sometimes I was not able to fix them even after multiple prompts. 
5. Just talk it out: Having programming knowledge helps. AI will not be able to solve all the issues. However, for the most part, you don’t need coding. Just describe what you see and what you want. The AI will figure out the issue most of the time. It won’t work the first time. But with a few tries, it will.  The clearer your instructions, the better the results. 

Each app I built took between 30 minutes to a couple of hours. They aren’t professionally polished, but they’re functional, personal, and free. Vibe coding won’t replace real developers. But if there’s a tool you always wished existed—something simple and specific—you can probably build it yourself over a weekend with AI. And honestly? It feels like magic. Way better than endlessly scrolling the App Store, hoping someone else made your dream app.