Hi everyone,
Episode 3 of The New Build podcast just dropped, and this one’s for anyone who’s ever wondered if they can build something meaningful while keeping their day job.
Who we featured
Abhinav interviewed Vai Singh, who co-founded the Turing App — a platform that breaks down complex science topics into engaging audio content anyone can understand. In less than a year, Vai grew Turing’s YouTube channel from zero to almost 55,000 subscribers. Now he’s using that audience to grow the app, all while serving as head of strategy at one of Europe’s largest space services companies.
The whole idea started during parental leave walks with his newborn daughter. Vai kept looking for science content that struck the right balance — not too academic, not dumbed down — and came up empty. So he created what was missing.
Key takeaways from the episode
YouTube became Vai’s testing ground before he built anything substantial. Rather than guessing what people wanted, he put the content out and watched how the audience responded. The feedback shaped everything from episode length to topic selection, and the platform gave him confidence there was real demand for what he was building.
When it came to building the app, Vai taught himself Bubble from scratch and had a working prototype in just four weeks. But this version was built as a web app, so after testing his concept first, he rebuilt it as a native mobile app for better performance. The timing coincided with us launching Bubble Mobile, so he could rebuild the app himself.
While working on the Turing App, Vai found the biggest mindset shift was moving away from the corporate standards he’d been used to. His consulting background trained him to deliver perfect work, but entrepreneurship is different. He had to learn the value of quick iteration through MVPs so he could start gathering feedback from users and build upon it.
It’s not easy balancing a full-time career and a successful side project, so Vai has to be smart with his energy management. He leans heavily on AI tools for routine tasks and saves his manual effort for the work that moves things forward. Another ingredient that keeps him going is building something you care about, because then it energizes you instead of burning you out.
Where to listen
The episode is live now on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts:
What’s next
We’re releasing new episodes every two weeks. We’re always keen to hear what you think — share your thoughts in the thread. And if you have any ideas for future guests, share them below or submit here.
Emmanuel
