Building in Public

The Real Numbers

No vanity metrics. No highlight reel. The actual numbers, decisions, and lessons from building solobuilder.ai as a solo founder — starting from zero.

Current Stats

Live
Subscribers
247
Started Jan 2026
+247 total
Open Rate
42%
Industry avg: 21%
2× industry avg
Monthly Revenue
$0
Pre-revenue
Launching Pro soon
Articles Published
6
Avg 18 min read
1–2 per week
Months Running
3
Since Jan 2026
Jan → Apr 2026
Growth Rate
~82/mo
Avg new subscribers
Organic only

Last updated: April 2026 · Updated monthly

Monthly Updates

April 2026

0 → 247 subscribers·Revenue: $0

✓ What Worked

  • Quiz lead magnet converted at 18% — best performing asset
  • APEX-researched articles averaging 12+ min read time
  • Twitter threads with data tables got 3× more engagement

✗ What Didn't

  • Cold outreach to Indie Hackers forum — 3 clicks total
  • LinkedIn posts — zero traction in first 2 weeks

Key Decision

Doubled down on the quiz as primary lead magnet. Added quiz CTA to every article page.

What's Next

  • →Launch Pro tier waitlist
  • →Publish 2 articles/week instead of 1
  • →Test Reddit participation in r/SaaS and r/indiehackers

March 2026

0 → 127 subscribers·Revenue: $0

✓ What Worked

  • First article (Claude Code vs Cursor) drove 89 signups from HN Show
  • APEX attribution in byline built credibility fast

✗ What Didn't

  • Product Hunt launch — 14 upvotes, minimal traffic
  • Generic AI newsletter positioning — too broad

Key Decision

Narrowed positioning from 'AI newsletter' to 'AI tools for solo founders.' Immediately improved email open rates.

What's Next

  • →Build quiz lead magnet
  • →Publish healthcare + AI content to differentiate
  • →Set up proper analytics

February 2026

0 → 47 subscribers·Revenue: $0

✓ What Worked

  • Personal network seeding — 47 subscribers from direct outreach
  • APEX research engine completed and operational

✗ What Didn't

  • Twitter account — 12 followers after 3 weeks
  • SEO — too early, no domain authority

Key Decision

Decided to build the site in public from day one. Transparency as a differentiator.

What's Next

  • →Publish first 3 articles
  • →Submit to Indie Hackers
  • →Set up Beehiiv newsletter

January 2026

0 subscribers·Revenue: $0

✓ What Worked

  • Validated the niche through 12 customer interviews
  • Built APEX v1 — autonomous research engine
  • Registered solobuilder.ai domain

✗ What Didn't

  • Tried to build the site before validating — stopped myself
  • Wasted 2 weeks on branding before having any content

Key Decision

Talk to customers before building. Ran 12 interviews in 2 weeks. Confirmed the gap: no AI newsletter specifically for solo founders.

What's Next

  • →Build the site
  • →Write first 3 articles using APEX
  • →Launch to personal network

Monthly updates are published in the newsletter first.

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