How to Build an App with Claude Code · Part 1 of 6All parts
- The seriesI Built an iPhone App in 5 Weeks of Evenings. I Don't Know How to Code.
- Part 1The AI Built the App I Actually Pictured. The Trick Was One Plain-English File.You are here
- Part 2Turn One AI Chat Into a Tireless Build Team
- Part 3I Built a Hard App Feature Without Code. I Just Described It.
- Part 4My App Went Live Four Days After I Hit Submit. Apple Rejected It Twice in Between.
- Part 5I Built a Zero-Budget Marketing Machine for My App: 820+ Hooks, 122 Videos, One Rule
- Part 6What It Really Takes to Build an App With AI. I Kept Score.
Key takeaways
- Before you build anything, write one plain-English recipe file: what the app is, the exact look, the rules it must never break, and the core logic it runs on.
- The AI starts every conversation with a blank memory. The recipe file is the memory: it re-reads the file every session, so the app never drifts.
- Keep a running list of bugs that kept coming back inside the file. Fixed mistakes stay fixed, and the app gets more bulletproof over time.
- Be specific about what, stay vague about how. You bring the taste, the AI brings the engineering.
- You don't write the file alone. The AI interviews you, writes it up, and you correct it. Twenty minutes gets you a first recipe.
- The real CloseUp file runs 241 lines of plain English, written by someone who can't code a word of Swift.
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Questions people ask
What is the first step to building an app with AI as a beginner?
Write one plain-language file before you build any features. Describe what the app is, who it's for, the exact look, the rules it must never break, and how it should behave. You're not coding. You're writing down what “good” means so the AI builds the right thing instead of guessing.
Can I build an app just by describing what I want in plain English?
Yes, and that's exactly what I did. I can't write code. I described what I wanted to Claude in plain words, it built the code, and I tested the result and gave feedback on the feel. The clearer your description, the closer the first version lands to what you pictured.
How do you get AI to build the app you actually pictured?
Be specific about what and vague about how. Nail the look, the feeling, the rules, and the exact behavior, then leave the engineering to the AI. Most people do the reverse: they half-describe the “how” and end up with something technically correct but nothing like what they meant.
What should you set up before an AI starts writing your app?
One recipe file that captures the whole point, the visual style, the rules the app must never break, and the game math. Add a running list of bugs that keep coming back as you go. It becomes the single source of truth the AI checks before it touches anything.
How does the AI remember your project between sessions?
It doesn't, on its own. Every new conversation starts fresh, so an unguided AI drifts a little every day. The fix is a file the AI re-reads at the start of every session. That file is the memory: it reloads your rules and your look each time, so Monday and Friday produce the same app.
How long should an app spec for AI be?
Long enough to hold your decisions and no longer. The real CloseUp recipe file is 241 lines of plain English, but it didn't start that size: it grew as the app grew, one hard-won lesson at a time. A first draft that covers the point, the look, and the rules can fit on a page.
Written by Ronnie Nijmeh
Ronnie spent 18 years building a SaaS with a team of 20 that served over 650,000 customers, generated over $14M in sales, and sent over 550M emails. Now he's solo, solving real business bottlenecks and turning them into working AI skills, workflows, and automations. He teaches all of it, with direct access to him, inside the Solo Creators AI Studio Skool community. See what he's built →
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Case study · Part 2 of 6
Turn One AI Chat Into a Tireless Build Team
The four-piece system that made one AI chat reliable enough to ship 60,000 lines of Swift.
Case study · The full series
I Built an iPhone App in 5 Weeks of Evenings. I Don't Know How to Code.
How I shipped a real App Store app in five weeks of evenings, writing zero code.
No-Code, No-Terminal
Use Claude Code Without a Terminal: The Desktop App That Builds for You
The desktop app that builds real things from a chat box, no terminal.