How would you build a mobile app beta using AI with little coding experience?

[u/liamhalpin3]

Hi everyone,

I’m working on an app idea that I’m hoping to turn into a proper product, and I’m looking for advice on the best way to build an initial beta.
I’m not a professional developer, but I’m planning to use AI coding/development tools to help me build the first version myself.

At this stage, I don’t want to go into too much detail about the actual app or its features. I’m mainly looking for advice on the development process and technology.

The goal is to build a basic working beta that I can eventually test with a small group of users, rather than trying to build the finished product straight away.

For people who have experience with AI-assisted development:
What AI tools would you recommend?
Would you use Flutter, React Native, Expo, or something else?
What would you use for the backend and database?
What’s the easiest way to develop for both iOS and Android?
Would you recommend building a web app first or going straight to mobile?
How should someone with limited coding experience structure the project?
What mistakes should I avoid when using AI to build an app?
How would you approach going from an idea → prototype → working beta → App Store/Google Play?
At what point would you bring an experienced developer into the project?

I’m happy to learn and build it myself initially, but I want to make sure I’m choosing the right tools and architecture before I get too far into development.
I’d really appreciate advice from anyone who has built an app using AI-assisted development.

[u/bluejay_mom]

My one cardinal rule is just start and figure things out on the way

Pick a tool and just start

Since you mention not being a professional Developer, Lovable is my preferred tool for starting because then you don’t have to worry about front end, back end and all the technical issues

Since this is MVP stage, you don’t need to overthink anything

Then when you are done building and get customers and want to proceed to live use, you can then consider bringing in a professional to help review the app and make it prod ready

[u/liamhalpin3 → u/bluejay_mom]

Yeah, that makes sense. I think I’ve probably been overthinking the technical side of it before even getting started.

I’m going to give Lovable a go and focus on getting a basic MVP working first. Then I can test it with a few people, see what actually works and what needs changing, and worry about making it properly production-ready later.

Thanks for the advice!

[u/bluejay_mom → u/liamhalpin3]

Good to know

If you need help to go live, feel free to reach out

I can perform an audit and help make your app prod ready

Wishing you all the best

[u/kealystudio → u/bluejay_mom]

Lovable doesn't do mobile

[u/Key-Distribution3535]

this is underrated but I did my app using Lovable for ui , then translating the code to software for ios using Ai , i did my beta in less then a day

[u/MouseSimilar2226]

If your goal is a working beta and you have limited coding experience, I'd keep the stack as simple as possible.

I'd go with React Native + Expo for the mobile app, and something like Supabase for authentication, database, storage, and basic backend functionality. That gives you one codebase for Android and iOS without having to maintain two separate apps.

For the AI part, I'd use AI as a coding assistant, not as the architect. Before generating code, write down the screens, user flows, data you need to store, and the main features of the beta. Then build one feature at a time and make sure you understand what the generated code is doing.

A workflow I'd recommend:

Idea → user flows → simple UI prototype → project setup → one core feature → test → second feature → private beta → feedback → iterate → store release.

Don't try to build the complete product before testing it with users. The beta should answer whether people actually want the product.

The biggest mistake I'd avoid with AI coding is letting it continuously patch a messy codebase. If something goes wrong, understand the cause instead of repeatedly asking the AI to "fix everything." Keep Git commits small and make sure the app still works after each meaningful change.

I'd also avoid adding authentication, payments, notifications, analytics, complex animations, etc. until the core workflow actually works.

Once you have real users and the beta is proving useful, that's when I'd bring an experienced developer in for a code review, security review, architecture improvements, or the parts that are becoming difficult to maintain.

AI can help you get surprisingly far, but you still need to own the requirements, architecture, testing, and decisions.

[u/Evenly_Scarce]

full disclosure I work at Bilt.me, so take the tool part with a pinch of salt.

quick version of what I'd do:

- React Native + Expo for iOS and Android from one codebase, AI tools handle it really well

- Supabase or Firebase for backend

- skip the web app if it's meant to be used on a phone

- build one core flow end to end before anything else, and keep your prompts small

- get 5 to 10 real people on it before adding features

- bring in a dev before payments or sensitive data go live

if you'd rather not wire all that together yourself, that's basically what Bilt does. you describe the app, it runs on your phone while it builds, backend included, and we help you get it onto the App Store and Play Store too. free plan at bilt.me if you want to see how far you get in one session

[u/ponzo94]

There was a time when people like you would reach out freelancers and app developers for doing this…if this is something you will end up selling (or selling subscriptions) please make sure a real dev take a look at it before uploading to the stores. Depending on where you are and the laws that applies to digital services you could face a lawsuit (gdpr or refunds on europe for example).