Pieter Levels

@levelsio · levels.io

Bootstrapped a portfolio of internet startups on his own: Nomad List, Remote OK, Hoodmaps, Photo AI, all coded on a laptop.

May 2013month

Starts levels.io and begins writing in public about building businesses and traveling the world.

Since 2013 I write here about building businesses, traveling the world, AI…
sourcelevels.io
1 Mar 2014exact

Publishes "I'm Launching 12 Startups in 12 Months", the challenge that defined his path.

breakout
1 Mar '14 — I'm Launching 12 Startups in 12 Months
sourcelevels.io
2014year

The 12-in-12 challenge is the inflection point: most attempts fail, but two of them become his durable businesses.

our read
Jul 2014month

Launches Nomad List (later Nomads.com), the community and data project for digital nomads.

2014-07 Nomads.com (formerly Nomad List)
sourcelevels.io/projects
Feb 2015month

Launches Remote OK, a remote-jobs board that spun out of the Nomad List job listings.

Remote OK … 2015-02
sourcelevels.io/projects
31 Mar 2017exact

Live-codes the first version of Hoodmaps, crowdsourced neighborhood maps, on a Twitch stream in about two hours.

First version of hoodmaps.io built on @twitch live in ⏰ 2 hours
sourcelevels.io/hoodmaps
Jul 2017month

Hoodmaps has been used by hundreds of thousands of people within months of that two-hour build.

Over 200,000 people used Hoodmaps half a million times
sourcelevels.io/hoodmaps
Jan 2018exact

On the Indie Hackers podcast, states Nomad List is at roughly a million users a month and $15k to $25k monthly revenue.

self-reported
The revenue ranges from $15,000 to $25,000 a month … it has almost a million users a month
sourceIndie Hackers
2018year

His bootstrapping book MAKE passes 10,000 copies sold.

self-reported
MAKE Book … sold 10,000+ copies
sourcelevels.io/projects
Mar 2019exact

Reports that Remote OK has overtaken Nomad List in revenue, the job board becoming his biggest earner.

self-reported
Remote OK now has higher revenue than Nomad List
sourceHacker News
Sep 2022month

Rides the generative-AI wave with Interior AI, which redesigns rooms from a photo.

Interior AI … 2022-09
sourcelevels.io/projects
Oct 2022exact

Interior AI reaches $1k monthly recurring revenue within weeks of launch.

self-reported
Interiorai.com – $1k/Mo MRR
sourceHacker News
Feb 2023exact

Launches Photo AI, "the first AI photographer", which grows into his flagship AI product.

The First AI Photographer | photoai.io
sourceHacker News
20 Aug 2024exact

Appears on the Lex Fridman Podcast.

20 Aug '24 — Lex Fridman Podcast
sourcelevels.io
1 Oct 2025exact

Launches levels.vc, his own investment fund.

1 Oct '25 … levels.vc - my investment fund
sourcelevels.io
Mar 2026exact

Discloses that Photo AI, running on a single large index.php file, is at $105k monthly revenue and $80k monthly profit.

self-reported
$105,000/mo revenue … $80,000/mo profit
sourcelevels.io
breakout moment self-reported figure inference