Ifenna Arubaleze

I have a business idea I want to bring to life

One thing I’m particularly proud of creating is my first ever app. I used to see people on LinkedIn posting about building their third or even thirtieth apps, and I was always curious about how they actually did it. I remember searching online and learning that I would need strong skills in HTML, Java, and CSS to build one. At the time, however, I had already committed to learning Python, so building an app felt a bit out of reach. That changed when I participated in the Alabama Collective Hackathon. Through the program, I had the opportunity to build a safety tool using the Gemini API, a resource I discovered after completing a Generative AI course through Google and TMCF. Using the Gemini API, I developed an app with several features designed to enhance safety, including voice activation, audio-to-text transcription, and real-time location sharing. Building this app was exciting because it showed me that I could transform an idea into something functional even without mastering every programming language I initially thought I needed. It also strengthened my AI prompting skills, since I had to carefully structure prompts to help the AI accurately implement the app’s capabilities. Through this 8-week program, I hope to gain mentorship and better understand how Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) are built and what it takes to launch a product. Inspired by my first project, I’m already thinking about my next idea: an app designed for college students that stores and manages gift cards digitally, helping them track small remaining balances so those last few dollars aren’t lost or forgotten when the physical card is thrown away. Creating my first app showed me that curiosity and experimentation can turn an idea into something real, and it motivated me to keep building.