The challenge: from $105K dev quote to DIY solution

Jon Cheney knows the traditional startup playbook all too well. As a serial entrepreneur who previously raised $13 million for tech startups and worked with Fortune 500 clients like Meta, Google, and Nestle, he understood the typical path: raise capital, hire developers, and spend 18 months building an MVP.

When he wanted to build a travel-based social network, a development shop quoted him $105,000. But everything changed when he stumbled upon a tweet from a Bay Area VC: "I just saw someone build something crazy on Replit in like 10 minutes."

"I had just gotten that quote for $105,000 from a dev shop — people I knew and trusted," Jon recalls. "I decided to see if I could give Replit the same plan and see what happens."

Choosing Replit: The all-in-one advantage

What drew Jon to Replit wasn't just the speed—it was the completeness of the platform. "One of the things I like about Replit is that I don't have to leave the platform to build a fully functioning, full-stack app. Front end, back end, everything I need in between is all there."

As someone who teaches AI to people with no development background, Jon found this crucial. To have them try to connect to GitHub and Supabase and all these other things…it's very overwhelming. With Replit, you just type 'Start a database' and boom, you've got a database set up."

Customer login dashboard built into the database

Building with Replit: from idea to revenue-generating platform

In February, Jon set himself a challenge: build a business and get his first customer within 48 hours. While he missed his ambitious deadline by a day, the results were extraordinary. In just three days, he built the General AI Proficiency Institute (GenAIPI)—a comprehensive platform featuring:

• AI Proficiency Assessment: A sophisticated testing system that evaluates users' AI knowledge and skills
• Learning Management System: Complete with courses, modules, lessons, and quizzes
• Live Course Booking: Calendar integration for 16-person cohorts
• Certification System: Automated PDF certificate generation with unique IDs
• Admin Dashboard: Full user management, content management, and analytics
• Payment Processing: Integrated Stripe APIs for seamless transactions
• Complex Logic: Test scoring algorithms, progress tracking, and multi-tier access controls

"I built an admin section that lets me manage users, look at course content, change content, manage live course schedules, participants, course reviews," Jon explains. "Even viewing test results and the ability to generate certificates."

Value Realized: Transforming Business Creation

The impact extends far beyond Jon's own success. His platform now teaches others to replicate his results through courses like "How to Build a Business in a Weekend with AI."

"I have people that are CEOs of Fortune 500 companies that have taken this course. Billion-dollar CEOs come out of it mind-blown and ready to change their entire company based on it," Jon shares.

The traditional development breakdown for GenAIPI would have required:

• Multiple developers ($100,000+ salaries)
• QA engineers, project managers, UI/UX designers
• Marketing team and sales managers
• 18 months of cloud infrastructure costs
• Legal, compliance, and operational overhead

Instead, Jon built everything himself—despite having no coding background. "I am not a developer. I do not know how to code. Previously I had to raise $13 million to build my tech startup. Now I can spend $100 or $200 and build something that's more than good enough to put in front of paying customers."

The Bottom Line: Act Now or Get Left Behind

Jon's message to enterprises and entrepreneurs is clear: "If you don't act today on learning AI, you will get passed by those that do. AI is bigger than the industrial revolution, bigger than the internet, bigger than social media."

His success with Replit Agent proves that the barriers to building software businesses have fundamentally changed. What once required millions in funding and years of development can now be accomplished by a single non-technical founder in a weekend.

"Entrepreneurs, if you're starting and you're not using AI, you're going to get beat by those that are. They can whip something up in a weekend while you're still thinking about your idea two months in."

About GenAIPI

Setting the global standard for AI proficiency measurement and development.

At the General Artificial Intelligence Proficiency Institute (GenAIPI), our mission is to empower individuals and organizations with the skills needed for an AI-driven future.

We believe that AI literacy is becoming as essential as digital literacy was in the previous decades. Our goal is to make AI proficiency accessible, measurable, and achievable for everyone.

Ready to build your own success story? Visit genaipi.org to take the AI Proficiency Assessment or sign up for "How to Build a Business in a Weekend with AI" at genaipi.org/live-courses