The famous American computer scientist Alan Kay once said: “The only way you can predict the future is to build it."

And for me the future I’d like to help build is the one in which anyone can create an app or a website and solve a customer’s problem. With or without deeply technical expertise.

For that to happen, the No-Code movement has to continue to flourish. And even after 5 years of being involved, I am personally still energized by its power. Why?

Because it transformed my startup career in 2018. It turned me from being an incessant idea guy pitching every developer at a party to an actual permissionless founder with a portfolio of fully fledged products in the market.

As a non-technical founder, having an idea go from being just a hunch to a product to a launch to an eventual exit is such a thrill. I’ve been fortunate enough to have this experience multiple times and even more honored to have helped 100s while I was at On Deck achieve this exact feeling.

A few hours ago, I hunted No-Code miniAccelerator on Product Hunt because of the overlap in how much the team behind it and I believe in advancing this mission. Here’s my full rationale:

One of the most underrated opportunities that exist in this era of the Internet is being able to quickly turn ideas to reality with the help of powerful no-code tools. An even bigger opportunity is helping thousands become prolific builders who're capable of doing so.

There are so many ideas yet to be built and problems yet to be solved. Take Vertical SaaS in niches for example like "CRM for pharma sales reps" or "Project Tracking Tool for audio engineers" and so on so forth.

Having known Karlis for over 2 years now, I am aware of his relentless drive to help tons of people (in the Baltic region and of course around the world!) learn and leverage no-code to it's fullest potential.

He has built an impressive set of apps and websites himself without code and received great reception and awards during his On Deck No-Code Fellowship (the program I ran).

Now he's joined with Mikus on a mission to help advance the no-code movement and guide thousands towards fulfilling their dreams of building products and creating businesses.

As an online program, No-Code miniAccelerator's focus is to help you master no-code tools, discover business opportunities, and launch your product to the public. Here you will be a part of an amazing community that supports each other and share their learnings. The ultimate goal of the program is to help you achieve revenue.

What I love about the program:

✅ focus on marketing and not just the tech side of building products

✅ access to experts who're 4 steps ahead of you

✅ 3 hackathons so you can take rapid action

Check out the Product Hunt launch here and feel free to share your thoughts, feedback or comments.

Support the PH launch

In the below segment, I’ve asked Karlis to talk about their program, share their ‘why’ and the nuance of what they are building and how it can help people. The interview is curated and edited for brevity.

Who are you and what’s your background?

We are two guys - Karlis Kivlenieks and Mikus Losans, from a great country called Latvia, both passionate about entrepreneurship, technologies, and empowering others to succeed.

What are you building currently?

We are building a No-Code miniAccelerator. In 12-week program we help participants master no-code tools, discover business opportunities, and launch their products to the public.

What was the inflection point that led to starting this initiative?

I was just sharing too much of “no-code stuff” with Mikus and after he saw what it possible with it, we started to brainstorm how we could help more people build great things with no-code, by providing them these skills through miniAccelerator format. 

How did you all meet as a team? What prompted you to come together and work on this mission? 

Me and Mikus we are friends since 2016 and during this time we have been colleagues and business partners on different projects. But of course, we wouldn't be able to do No-Code miniAccelerator alone, which is why we have invited other mentors to join it. I am thrilled and excited that Mantas, Živile, and Roberta are joining us.

What’s a recent milestone you’re excited about?

Definitely the grant from Riga City Council. Without this grant, we probably couldn't launch the program at this price point . 

Who is an ideal fit for your current version? And who else do you aim to serve in the future?

The ideal participant would be someone with an idea for a product in mind, but he/she needs help either with building the product itself and launching it or this person is just looking for a supportive environment and someone who can guide him through the journey.

What features stand out to you as super beneficial to your customers/users? What makes your product better than the alternatives?

What sets us apart from other no-code programs is that miniAccelerator format always has been to not only give you the skills or knowledge but help you make money with them. In no-code case, we will focus on helping you launch your own products or earning as a freelance web developer. + we have commitments from multiple angels and early-stage investors, who will join our Demo Day to learn what our participants have built.  

What are some exciting trends you’re seeing in the no-code niche?

I personally like to see two things: news about other universities including no-code in their curriculums and startups who have built their product with no-code, raising money.

Where can people find you on the Internet?

On all your favorite social media platforms Twitter, Linkedin, and Facebook. Just search for miniAccelerator.

• https://twitter.com/MiniAccelerator

• https://www.linkedin.com/company/miniaccelerator 

• https://www.facebook.com/miniAcceleratorNoCode 

• https://www.miniaccelerator.com/

And of course, here’s our PH launch link where we’ll be answering questions and replying to your comments all day. Hit us up!

Go to PH

Shoutouts and Sponsors

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#3. Founder’s Foyer

• Enjoyed being on the Founder's Foyer, a brilliant podcast series by

  Aishwarya Ashok. We covered:

  • what BIP means to me

  • non-linear careers like mine

  • how to manage your community publicly

• Check it out and let me know what you think. Link here.

And that’s a wrap for now!

Thank you for giving your attention and checking this edition out.

Would really appreciate it if you can take 5 seconds and pay it forward to help someone else leverage these tips by sharing this article on Twitter/Linkedin and tag me (@thisiskp_). Feel free to DM me for cross-promotions or ad sponsorships.