How I built Vibes ULTRA — an anonymous thought wall with Convex + React

Hey dev community! 👋

I just launched my side project — Vibes ULTRA — an anonymous thought wall where thoughts vanish in 24 hours.

The Idea

Social media today is permanent and performative. Every post is linked to you forever. I wanted a place where you can just drop what you're feeling and watch it glow, pulse, and fade away.

What I Built

• 8 emotion types — Happy, Sad, Angry, Love, Thoughtful, Peaceful, Anxious, Surprised
• 8 reaction types — ⚡🔥💜🌊🧠💀🫂✨
• 24-hour countdown — thoughts auto-expire
• Trending vibes — most reacted thoughts rise to the top
• Confessions mode — anonymous confessions
• Anonymous chat — talk to random strangers
• 6 ambient sounds — Rain, Ocean, Forest, Café, Lo-Fi, Wind
• AI mood analysis — collective vibe check
• Global wall map — 15+ cities pulsing live
• Personal stats — thoughts dropped, reactions given, streaks
• 16 achievements — unlock badges for activity
• Daily polls — ask the wall anything
• Thought templates — 12 starter prompts

Tech Stack

Layer	Tech
Backend	Convex
Frontend	React + TypeScript
Animations	Framer Motion
Styling	Tailwind CSS + shadcn/ui
Build	Vite

Why Convex?

Convex made the backend incredibly fast. Real-time queries, reactive mutations, and zero server management. For an anonymous app with live reactions and trending, it was perfect.

Key Learnings

1. Ship fast — I spent 3 months building, but could have launched in 1 month
2. Anonymous = freedom — people share real thoughts when there's no account
3. Reactions drive engagement — 8 reaction types kept users active
4. 24h expiry creates urgency — FOMO makes people come back daily
5. Ambient sounds = immersion — users spend 3x more time with sound on

Results

• Launched on Product Hunt today
• Built solo from Varanasi, India
• 50+ features, all free
• No tracking, no accounts needed

Live Demo

🔗 https://vibes-app-wall.vercel.app

What's Next?

• Multi-language support
• AI-powered thought suggestions
• Voice thoughts (audio drops)
• More ambient sounds

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Would love your feedback — what thought would you drop first? 💭

react #convex #webdev #sideproject #javascript