Founder stories
$10K MRRin 1 year
3 milestones
Open Source Email Assistant: Scratch Own Itch to $10K+ MRR
Founder
Elie Steinbock
Solo Founder•Technical•USA
Commitment
Full-timeExperience
ExperiencedProduct
AI email assistant for productivity.
Type
SaaSIndustry
ProductivityModel
SubscriptionMarketing Strategy
How Elie acquired customers
Primary Channel
SEO / Content
Tech Stack
Tools used to build Inbox Zero
Next.jsOpenAI APIVercel
The Full Story
When running a previous business, Elie spent way too much time on email. He thought, 'Why can't an AI do this for me?'
First Mover
Elie was a first mover in a market that quickly became crowded, so he niched down and gained a foothold.
Distribution Masterclass
The combination of open source + Product Hunt + SEO has been described as a masterclass in early-stage distribution.
- Time to $10K+ MRR: ~1 year
- Strategy: Open source + SEO
- Focus: Niched down when competition arrived
Key Takeaways
1
Build for your own pain point - you understand the problem deeply
2
Open source can be a powerful distribution and trust-building strategy
3
When competition arrives, niche down instead of trying to out-feature them
4
Clear problem-solution fit beats broad, shallow offerings
Originally published onIndie Hackers
Inspired by Elie's journey? Generate a business idea in the Productivity space using AI and real founder data.
Milestone Journey
Elie achieved 3 milestones on the path to $10K MRR
First Customer
$10
1 month
July 2023
69% faster
vs avg 3 months+5 months to next milestone
$1K MRR
$1,000
6 months
December 2023
46% faster
vs avg 11 months+6 months to next milestone
$10K MRR
$10,000
1 year
June 2024
43% faster
vs avg 1 year1 year
Total journey time
3
Milestones achieved
Elie's Path to $10K MRRPremium
The journey, decisions, and context behind this milestone
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