Hi Product Hunt, I’m Arda — I built mvpAI so early founders stop wasting time on bad startup ideas
For years I watched early-stage founders spin their wheels for weeks or months trying to test ideas—only to hit a wall or pivot too late. I did it myself. It drained time, cash, and energy.
That experience drove me to build mvpAI, a lightweight tool that simulates investor feedback and user reactions in days—not months. I’m designing mockups and persona-driven tests so founders can avoid burnout and know whether to pivot, proceed, or pause before writing code.
I’d love to hear:
How have you validated your startup idea, especially before coding anything?
What worked, what failed fast, and where did you waste the most time?
Which tools or approaches helped you decide sooner?
I’m building this to crack a common pain point, rooted in my own journey.
Would love to connect with fellow makers who’ve been there—and learn from what didn’t work for you.
Replies
I’ve made that mistake.....built for months before talking to anyone. What helped me later was quick chats with potential users (even trying to find some "customers" before starting to build), simple Figma mockups, and fake landing page to test interest (you can use Google Ads to check if there is interest and understand how competitive the industry is). Biggest time sink? Building stuff no one asked for.
mvpAI sounds very interesting!! would love to try it
@borja_diazroig Thanks for your comment, Borja! You're absolutely right—building without validation is one of the biggest time sinks. At mvpAI, we designed the process specifically for situations where it's hard to reach enough real users, especially in niche markets. With mvpAI, founders can test their ideas using AI-powered personas that mimic real customers, complete with unique pain points, behaviors, and personality traits. It's a fast and structured way to simulate early validation—before investing time or money into building. We'd love for you to give it a try!
Really interesting concept, but isn't the whole idea behind validating directly with end users that their needs and experiences are unique and a black box, how exactly can you simulate something so perspectival?
@dheerajdotexe Thank you for your thoughtful comment. You’re absolutely right that user insights are deeply personal and nuanced. That’s exactly why we created the mvpAI system.
Here’s how it works: when someone shares their idea with us (just a few sentences is enough), our AI assistant first identifies the target audience. Then, it generates five AI personas that represent different segments of that audience.
Next, we create a simple prototype — this could be a static mockup or a clickable Figma design. We then simulate a Zoom-style focus group where these AI personas interact with the prototype, share detailed feedback, and discuss their perspectives.
All insights are compiled into a structured report and delivered to the idea owner — giving them early-stage user feedback before spending serious time or money on development.
It’s not a replacement for real users, of course, but it’s a powerful, low-cost starting point to uncover blind spots and validate assumptions in the earliest stages.