When we first started building Snippai, it wasn’t a company—it was a weekend project. Today, it’s a cross-platform tool with real users who rely on it for screenshot-driven AI insights. This post shares the story of how we went from a scrappy idea to our first 100 users—without a marketing team or funding, but with a clear mission and persistent execution.
🎯 The Problem We Wanted to Solve
We constantly found ourselves juggling screenshots: math formulas, error logs, UI mockups, tables, and weird bugs. Copy-pasting was tedious. Manually extracting text or translating labels was painful.
We asked: what if taking a screenshot could instantly give you a useful response—from LaTeX to explanations, from data extraction to translation?
That question became the foundation for Snippai.
⚒️ Building the MVP in 10 Days
We started with:
- Frontend: Electron.js + React.js + TypeScript for cross-platform desktop compatibility (Windows/macOS).
- Backend: Supabase for rapid iteration (auth, database, file storage).
- LLM Integration to analyze screenshots.
The MVP let users hit a shortcut (Ctrl+Shift+A), take a screenshot, and get a smart response in seconds. No accounts, no fluff—just speed.
🔄 Iterating with Real Feedback
Our first testers were friends. We watched them use it:
- A CS major tried solving LeetCode math with it.
- A designer wanted it to extract text from Figma screenshots.
- A founder used it to localize app copy on the fly.
Their reactions helped us tighten our core feature set:
- âś… Formula recognition with LaTeX output
- âś… Markdown tables from charts
- âś… Code snippet understanding
- âś… Text translation
- âś… Instant context detection
📢 Getting Our First 100 Users
We didn’t buy ads. Instead, we:
Posted on Reddit and Medium
A clean demo video and link on r/alphaandbetausers got us 40+ signups.Cold DMed
We reached out to startup and AI communities, offering early access in exchange for feedback.Used our own tool
We shared screenshots processed by Snippai on X (Twitter) and LinkedIn—showcasing its usefulness visually.Applied to Microsoft for Startups
We received $1,000 in Azure credits, giving us validation and infrastructure.
By week 3, we hit our first 100 users.
🧠Lessons Learned
- Solve a pain point you experience yourself. It gives you intuitive product direction.
- Optimize for speed-to-insight. Our users loved that they could screenshot and immediately get value—no learning curve.
- Your community is your best launchpad. Talk to users early, often, and personally.
👣 What’s Next?
With our first batch of users, we’re now focused on:
- Supporting more screenshot types (e.g. charts, maps, equations in handwriting).
- Integrating with tools like Notion, Slack, and VSCode.
- Refining our UX to feel as magical as hitting
Cmd+Shift+A.
Snippai started as a weekend itch. Now it’s a product people love to use.
If you’re building something similar or curious about screenshot-based AI tools, DM us or try Snippai for yourself at https://www.snippai.de/. ✌️
đź’¬ Join Our Discord!
We’re building Snippai in public and would love to chat with curious minds—users, builders, and AI enthusiasts.
👉 Click here to join our Discord community
Top comments (1)
pretty cool seeing this go from a random project to something people use, tbh always makes me wonder if the real driver is just showing up every day or if it’s something deeper like timing or luck you think sticking with it matters more than the idea itself
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