![Cover image for Building with Bolt-The Journey of making "Bubblin"-Where Every Voice Finds Its Light. [Built this in 48hrs]](https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=1000,height=420,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fqi9sr6wz6bwf1zvg0wo7.png)
This is a submission for the World's Largest Hackathon Writing Challenge: Building with Bolt.
My Hackathon Journey: Building an App in 48 Hours
Hello everyone! I'm excited to share my experience from the world's largest hackathon by Bolt, an event that truly united over a million participants. For me, it was a wonderful, truly eye-opening experience – my very first time diving into the world of no-code tools. I actually started working on the competition after June 12th, but I sadly realized I couldn't use the initial app idea I'd developed during that time. It was simply too ambitious; with limited tokens and potentially high LLM costs, I knew an app requiring extensive back-and-forth interactions would likely hit its usage limits during the judging period, or even before. So, reluctantly, I decided against that idea. However, the process of brainstorming and researching for that initial concept consumed so much time that I found myself with only four days left until the deadline.
I was incredibly disappointed that I wouldn't be able to submit a fully functional app. With time running out, I pivoted to coding a simpler, "one-shot" prompt app and immediately began testing it.
It was during this rapid development, however, that an entirely new idea truly sparked – a concept for an app like 'Bubblin', directly inspired by the pervasive issues of toxic work culture I'd been seeing in the news and believing offered a genuine solution. Then, to my immense surprise, Bolt announced a phenomenal opportunity:"free 20M tokens for the weekend" on 28th June 2025,just two days before the June 30th deadline.😅😆
I decided to seize the opportunity to truly test out my new idea. With those tokens set to vanish into thin air after just 48 hours if unused, there was absolutely no excuse not to dive in and make the most of them.
The problem:
Lately, I've been seeing a lot in the news that really highlights a big problem in the modern workplace: this toxic work culture that's just become, well, normal. Reports I'm reading often talk about things like performative dedication, where people just put on a show of being busy instead of actually being productive. Then there's the manufactured urgency – you know, those "emergencies" that pop up out of nowhere, completely trashing your personal time. And honestly, it seems like fear-based management is still a thing, creating environments built on guilt and overwork.
A particularly unsettling story I came across recently was about a company that apparently fired employees who were honest about feeling stressed in a company survey. Can you believe that? It sparked so much outrage online and really makes you wonder how some places are handling employee well-being. And another common thread I'm seeing is this expectation to "stay until the manager leaves" – it might seem small, but it's a perfect example of how personal time and basic respect just get tossed aside.
In today's job market, just having a job can feel like a huge deal, and that often means employees' voices and needs get pushed down even further. But here's the thing: for any company to truly succeed long-term, they absolutely need to build a healthy environment that attracts and keeps experienced and loyal employees. So, there's a real and urgent need to create better platforms and strategies to smooth out the relationship between companies and their people. It's about building something that benefits everyone and drives sustainable growth.
The solution-Bubblin(App built using bolt.new)
Bubblin transforms anonymous employee feedback into clear, actionable insights. Empower leaders to truly understand their team's pulse and build a thriving, transparent workplace where every voice matters.
In every organization, there are thoughts that echo, ideas that spark, and feelings that resonate deep within. But often, those voices remain unheard, lost in the vastness of the unspoken. We all know the challenge. Traditional feedback can feel intimidating. The fear of judgment, the worry of being identified, the doubt that anything will truly change. It leaves employees feeling isolated, their valuable insights trapped inside. And for leaders, it means missing the true pulse of their team, relying on assumptions instead of genuine understanding. What if you could share your truth, without hesitation, knowing your identity is always protected? That's the power of Bubblin.
See Bubblin in Action!
Don't miss the Live app here ( how to access the app is provided in the video)
Our intuitive platform creates a space where your thoughts, your ideas, and your feelings can truly bubble up. With just a few taps, you drop your 'bubble' – your anonymous feedback, categorized by topic and mood. And as it leaves your screen, you see it. Your thought, taking form, gently ascending into the collective stream. Once sent, your bubble joins the vibrant 'Bubble Flow' – a live stream of collective insights from your team. You can scroll through, see what others are thinking, and truly feel the pulse of your workplace. And here's where the magic deepens: You can choose to 'listen in' on any bubble, in the language you prefer. Simply select your language, press play, and hear the collective voice come to life.
When a bubble resonates with you, give it a 'Spark'! And if you have a unique perspective or want to add a little more detail, you can anonymously contribute a short line or two. This isn't just a 'like'; it's how individual thoughts grow into a rich, multi-faceted understanding – a truly 'growing bubble' of collective wisdom".
For leaders, Bubblin' transforms this anonymous flow into actionable intelligence. It has _'The Bubblin' Monitor.' _Here, you'll find clear, aggregated insights: overall sentiment trends, the most discussed topics, and the 'hottest' bubbles gaining traction – all strictly adhering to your company's privacy threshold. And to make these insights even more accessible, you can 'listen to' an audio summary of your team's vibe at any time.
How this is possible in just 48hrs?
Okay, let's get into the nitty-gritty of how I powered through this! The very first thing I did was use Gemini 2.5 Flash (the free version, no less!) to create a detailed PRD – that's a Prompt Requirements Document – for the entire app concept. Instead of just dumping the whole PRD into the first prompt, I gave 'Bolt' the overall idea and specifically asked it to build the initial step: the hero section of the app. I also made sure to let it know that I'd be guiding it through the subsequent steps in my next prompts. To really bring the vision to life, I even provided some custom CSS files as inspiration for that hero section.
After setting up the initial design, I immediately jumped into Discuss mode in Bolt – it's incredibly useful and a real token-saver. My routine is always to start there, prompting it and then meticulously reviewing the response to ensure it's truly grasped the app's flow and functionality.
One of the trickiest parts, and honestly, the biggest time sink, was getting stuck on the user sign-in page. I opted for Supabase as my backend, which is generally super easy to integrate with Bolt, and it handles security policies seamlessly. My mistake, though, was not reading the documentation thoroughly enough. I also designed the sign-in process as interleaved because I had two distinct user types – employers and employees – which led to a bit of a mix-up. Thankfully, it all came together in the end, and that initial struggle was absolutely worth it for enabling secure sign-ins.
I used Supabase to store all sorts of data: user details, employee feedback (what I call "bubbles"), and even to track the "spark" for each bubble. It was surprisingly effortless to manage. Bolt and Supabase were perfectly in sync; I barely had to intervene. Bolt automatically took care of everything, even making necessary changes to the database when I introduced new features or updated existing ones. It would prompt me with the detailed database schema, and after a quick review, I'd simply approve the changes.
Bolt working behind the screen 😄
Beyond just the database, I also leveraged Supabase Edge Functions to seamlessly communicate with elevenlabs . This integration was absolutely critical for giving voice to the "bubbles"—my term for employee feedback—and I honestly can't stress enough how much of a breeze it was. Once I had the Edge Functions set up and provided the necessary APIs, a single prompt was all it took. And voilà! After clicking on a bubble, you could instantly hear it speak. Even better, it supported multiple languages right out of the box. All of this incredible functionality is truly thanks to elevenlabs.
You know, the days just kind of... vanished into nights. One minute the sun was rising, the next it was setting, but honestly, for me, it just meant a different kind of light in my room. My monitor was basically my best friend, glowing constantly, a real sign of just how much I was pushing. I was awake for two nights straight; it was testing both my body and mind.
Every hour was on the edge, a race against a ticking clock that left only 48hrs to bring a complex idea to life. There were moments, like wrestling with that stubborn user sign-in page – a true time sink, where my initial missteps with interleaved employer and employee types threatened to derail everything. Debugging became a dance between frustration and fierce determination, each solved error a small, hard-won victory in the grand marathon. I need to decide fast when to let go of some features or design and when to fight through to make it your way. It was a grind, a testament to working on the absolute limit, but with each hurdle cleared, the vision for the app grew clearer, fueled by sheer will and the dwindling hours.
Fun fact: When I first set out to design this fresh idea within a tight 48-hour window, I knew it would be incredibly challenging, and honestly, it might not even work. But there was this particular design that just clicked with me; it resonated so perfectly with my app's vision that I felt an undeniable pull to bring it to life.
🎨 Here's where the design credit goes for the awesome home page background:
- Inspired by konstantindenerz's design of Cosmic Dreams in CodePen
- Created by konstantindenerz
Breakthrough Moments:
Speaking of Bolt, I basically live in Discuss mode. It's usually brilliant, but there was one time it totally missed what I was trying to do and actually asked for my approval on something that was off-base. So, here's the key takeaway for Discuss mode: always, always read the response thoroughly before you hit that approve button. It can seriously save you a ton of time and prevent errors down the line.
Now, when it does throw an error (because it happens!), don't just blindly hit "Attempt to fix error." Instead, take a moment to really read the "potential problem detected" message. Then, in the writing area, where it says "provide more info to help Bolt fix it," drop in anything you suspect might be the issue. Maybe it's trying to reference a table or column in the database that doesn't exist yet, or perhaps it's hallucinating about features it hasn't even created. Giving it that extra context can make all the difference.
Another learning curve involved in Bolt was its occasional altering of perfectly working functionality when I was trying to fix a minor detail or add a new feature. My solution for this was straightforward: always revert to the last successful state immediately. This is where having my code saved in GitHub was a lifesaver, as it integrates seamlessly with Bolt and makes rolling back changes incredibly easy. For instance, I recall making a tiny adjustment to a background position, which unexpectedly threw the whole app off. Reverting to a stable point saved a lot of headaches. Sometimes, the best approach is to adapt your initial design or even pivot entirely from where you are, rather than trying to force a fix that might lead to more complications.
😄This is how you feel when coding using no code tools.😄
The Final Stretch: Crossing the Finish Line
This wasn't just about building an app; it was about the endurance of rapid development, the strategic pacing required to meet an impossible deadline, and the sheer grit to push through when disappointment loomed. Reaching this point, seeing the "bubbles" speak and the secure logins function, feels like that final surge of energy as you cross the finish line – a testament to the journey and the lessons learned along the way.
At the end of those intense 48 hours, I actually had a working app, and believe me, I was thrilled! But the journey didn't end there. Next up was publishing the app, securing a domain name, and making it public, not to mention creating and uploading the crucial presentation video for the hackathon.
It never fails to surprise me how many last-minute glitches and hurdles pop up. That's where a lot of the truly "interesting" stuff happens!_ Thankfully, publishing with Netlify was a breeze, but I lost precious time trying to get my domain name sorted and linked up. There were definitely some rough edges there – fellow participants, I'm sure you know the pain. While some folks managed it successfully, I, sadly, wasn't among them that day. But the app is public and working fine.
Then came the video creation and upload, followed by preparing all the necessary project documentation. And talk about timing! My Wi-Fi decided to completely give out just as I was trying to upload the app to the hackathon platform. I ended up having to use my mobile data to make the submission. My family even joked that I must have messed up the Wi-Fi by working non-stop on this hackathon! It truly felt like I was physically pulling myself across the finish line after navigating all those unexpected obstacles.
But ultimately, the end result and the profound feeling of accomplishing something significant are simply great. The learning and the sheer experience of going through it all? That's a lifetime experience in itself.
To everyone out there, I seriously suggest you dust off that idea notebook you've got stashed away and actually bring those ideas to life. Just dip your toes in; get your foot in the water and experience it for yourself. It's not just fun and exciting, it might even be life-changing. You just never know.
Credits:
A massive thank you to the hosts of this hackathon "Bolt", and to all the partners involved! Your incredible support and the platform you provided made this entire journey possible. It's truly inspiring to see such dedication to fostering innovation and creativity.
Special thanks to Netlify, Supabase and elevenlabs
Explore More Projects & Insights
For an even deeper dive into Bubblin, including detailed demos, development insights, and my other hackathon experiences, be sure to visit and subscribe to my YouTube channel: seizetheai
I'll be sharing videos about this project, along with other competition experiences and all my project presentations there.
💌 Want more bite-sized brilliance beyond the videos?
Join us on Substack, where we dive deeper into everything you love here—exclusive insights, fresh tips, behind-the-scenes peeks, and first dibs on new content.
👉 (https://seizetheai.substack.com/) seizetheai substack
Hit the link, subscribe, and level up your feed with all the extras you didn’t know you needed!
Top comments (0)