13-year-old earns Rs 2.2 lakh in 3 days after building AI study app with no coding

A 13-year-old student has turned a common homework problem into a paid AI app, earning around Rs 2.2 lakh from 90 orders in three days. With no programming background, she used AI tools to build a virtual parent that monitors study habits, issues reminders and generates concentration reports for students.

In Short

• With no coding background, a Chinese teenager used AI tools to turn a study problem into a paid app
• Zhu Shuhan's app won 90 orders in three days and secured third place among more than 50 participants
• She built the product in three to four days and wants to make it cheaper for more families

A 13-year-old student has turned her own homework struggles into an AI product that attracted 90 paying customers in just three days, despite having no programming background.

Zhu Shuhan, a Grade Two junior secondary student in Shanghai, began using AI only last year. She later created an app called Zai Chang, or 'On Site', to help parents supervise children while they study.

At a national AI product marketing competition in Hangzhou from August 21 to 23, the app generated 18,000 yuan in sales, worth around Rs 2.2 lakh, from 90 orders. That helped Shuhan secure third place among more than 50 participants. She also received a separate 5,000-yuan prize.

The contest was unusual because there were no technical judges. Participants were ranked based on the revenue generated by their AI-created products during the three-day event, according to the South China Morning Post.

SHE DID NOT KNOW CODING

Shuhan built the app despite having no formal programming skills. She described her idea to an AI large language model in ordinary language and used AI programming tools to deal with technical problems.

From designing the product to getting its core features working, the process took just three to four days.

The app works like a virtual parent. A user uploads a photo of themselves, after which the system displays that person while monitoring the child through a camera. If the child starts using a phone or leaves their seat, the virtual parent gives a voice reminder.

Once the study session ends, the app produces a “concentration report”.

HER OWN PROBLEM INSPIRED IT

The idea came from Shuhan's experience of studying without her busy parents around.

She said she often became distracted and secretly used her phone while doing homework. She also noticed similar problems among classmates and wanted to create a “digital parent clone”.

Interestingly, she removed an early feature that would have shown a “mother getting angry” alert when a child was repeatedly distracted.

“I dislike whistle-blowers. I want my app to be gentle and allow room for improvement for children,” she said, as per South China Morning Post.

Her younger brother, a primary school student, became one of the app's first users. Shuhan said he became more diligent while studying with the app.

She now wants to reach more users and lower the price. “If many people are willing to pay for this app, I will continue developing it,” she said.

- Ends