How I built GitHub Store to 12,500 stars in 6 months — I started at 16

Short summary

A 16-year-old in Uzbekistan built GitHub Store, an open-source alternative app store reaching 12,500+ stars in six months through rapid shipping and prioritizing real user feedback over vanity metrics. Key lessons: ship before full research, treat distribution as a core product feature, localize early for global audiences, and maintain direct communication channels beyond release notes.

• •Shipped GitHub Store in 1 week using Kotlin Multiplatform; reached 12,500+ stars and 250,000+ updates in 6 months
• •Success driven by shipping first without research, listening to actual users, and expanding distribution channels
• •Practical insights on cross-platform strategy, FOSS community dynamics, localization, and user feedback loops

Generated with AI, which can make mistakes.