The latest articles on DEV Community by Dima Polskoy (@polskoydm). https://dev.to/polskoydm https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3872162%2Fc0e0e971-d28d-4eb9-b1c9-8a7f7241d791.jpg https://dev.to/polskoydm en Dima Polskoy Fri, 10 Apr 2026 16:49:59 +0000 https://dev.to/polskoydm/how-i-built-a-free-ai-video-generator-5beh https://dev.to/polskoydm/how-i-built-a-free-ai-video-generator-5beh <p>I'm a mobile dev running a small studio in Israel. We ship React Native and Flutter apps — eSIM, delivery, VPN, VoIP. A few months ago I started building <strong>CreatorAI</strong> — an AI video editor that actually lets people try it for free.</p> <h2> The Problem </h2> <p>Every AI video tool charges $20-40/month before you even know if it works. Runway, Pika, Kling — all great tech, all paywalled. Small creators and businesses can't justify that cost to test an idea.</p> <h2> What I Built </h2> <p><strong>CreatorAI</strong> — a free video editor + AI video generator.</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Editor is 100% free</strong> — trim, captions, music, transitions, filters, export in HD</li> <li> <strong>10 free AI credits</strong> on signup — no card, no trial that auto-charges</li> <li> <strong>Text-to-video</strong> — describe a scene, get a clip</li> <li> <strong>Image-to-video</strong> — upload a photo, animate it</li> <li><strong>Web + iOS + Android</strong></li> </ul> <h2> Tech Stack </h2> <ul> <li> <strong>Frontend:</strong> React Native (Expo) for mobile, Next.js for web</li> <li> <strong>AI Models:</strong> Kling v2.1, Seedance Lite via fal.ai</li> <li> <strong>Backend:</strong> Node.js + Supabase</li> <li> <strong>Payments:</strong> RevenueCat + Paddle</li> <li> <strong>Hosting:</strong> Vercel (web), EAS (mobile)</li> </ul> <h2> How AI Generation Works </h2> <p>User submits a prompt → backend queues it → fal.ai processes with Kling or Seedance → video URL returned → user downloads.</p> <p>Fallback chain: if primary model fails, it tries the next one. Auto-refund credits on failure.</p> <p>Credit packs:<br> | Credits | Price |<br> |---------|-------|<br> | 10 | Free (signup) |<br> | 100 | $10 |<br> | 200 | $15 |<br> | 300 | $20 |</p> <h2> What I Learned </h2> <ol> <li> <strong>Free tier drives everything.</strong> 5% of free users convert to paid. But without free, nobody tries it.</li> <li> <strong>Model quality matters more than speed.</strong> Switched from PixVerse to Kling — generation takes longer but output quality jumped 3x. Nobody complained.</li> <li> <strong>Mobile-first wins.</strong> 70% of our users are on phone. Web is for discovery, app is for retention.</li> <li> <strong>Don't build your own model.</strong> Using fal.ai APIs saved months of infra work. Focus on UX, not GPUs.</li> </ol> <h2> Results So Far </h2> <ul> <li>56 App Store units this month (+700%)</li> <li>4 real external users generating content</li> <li>Running TikTok ads at $5/day targeting creators</li> </ul> <h2> Try It </h2> <p>📱 App Store: <a href="https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/creatorai/id6757284712" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/creatorai/id6757284712</a><br> 🤖 Google Play: <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.theholylabs.creator" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.theholylabs.creator</a><br> 🔗 Web: <a href="https://creatorai.art" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://creatorai.art</a></p> <p>10 free credits, no card. Would love feedback from the dev community — what would you build with free text-to-video?</p> <p><em>Built by <a href="https://holylabs.net" rel="noopener noreferrer">Holylabs</a> — we build white-label mobile apps. If you need a custom app, say hi: <a href="mailto:dima@holylabs.net">dima@holylabs.net</a></em></p> ai saas showdev startup