I got laid off in March this year, that's 2025. I got broke after exactly one month. I started looking for a job almost immediately, and for 6 months.
6 months was enough time to grieve, to be angry, to get working on my next bootstrap... Voklit.com
Working or coding while being angry is not easy. I was burned out, I was battling my own life, counting every penny to see how the month would go, and how the next month would be. I had no clue back then on how I will gather my rent, I sold old laptops, old gadgets I don't use. I vented with ChatGPT: Isn't it sad that I sell my stuff to survive? The answer gave me serenity; it's an asset, not a loss, use it to pay the rent.
I started building nevertheless, I started write the backend for voklit.com, line by line, step by step, I had a clear image of the end product, I just didn't know if it will sell, but I had to use the time.
I invested sweat, tears, and 11 years of experience in it, a digital phone number platform, for international calling, an alternative to Skype, you call it whatever you want. I was my first customer. I always wanted a roaming-less number that's affordable, something that connects me to official institutions.
How much AI is used?
70% of the code is handcrafted. I just started using AI (Claude code) to write the frontend and the mobile app. It accelerated the launch, which is already late by 7 months.
Skype shutdown was in May, 2025.
Don't get me wrong, AI is good, not the best. Not like a senior dev, but it's getting there. It accelerated the launch by months. It's still helping me write the mobile app. I think it's good to set the tone and review afterward.
I have many lessons to share, but I want the most to enjoy the moment, to enjoy the launch of Voklit. I promise to tell more about that period where I learned lessons that I never anticipated.
