How He Turned Looksmaxxing into $10 Million Dollars with ChatGPT
What do looksmaxxing, rizz, and ChatGPT have in common? All 3 helped this guy, Blake Anderson, make $10M from apps, all by the time he turned 23.
Oh. Just in case we need a reminder:
Looksmaxxing, (verb): Derived from a video game idea of statistics (stats) and a leveling system where looks is one of those ‘stats’, and ‘max’ means the stat has been filled to the limit set by ‘the game’.
Rizz, (noun): Short for Charisma, the ability to charm and woo a person. Another word for spitting game.
And, well, we all know what ChatGPT is.
Our social lead Austin flew to San Diego last month to link up with Blake, founder of apps RizzGPT, Cal AI, and Umax, as well as the Apex community here on Whop.
We wanted to figure out Blake’s story not only out of curiosity but also to inspire you guys.
And man, what a story it is.
Let’s jump in!
Building a viral app with just $200 in his bank account
“There’s nothing like a rejection to make you do an inventory of yourself.” - James Lee Burke
As human beings, we actively spend our time and effort avoiding rejection. In work, in friendships, in love. It’s always been this way – though something suggests it may be worse for Gen-Z than their predecessors.
A 2024 Hinge report found Gen Zers are 47% more likely than millennials to be nervous starting a conversation after the pandemic. We’re also 25% more likely to be less confident on a first date. Yikes.
In 2021, twitch-streamer Kai Cenat started using the term rizz in his streams, which caught like wildfire. Then Oxford announced it was the word of the year in 2023.
But Cenat says the real definition of rizz has some nuance to it. The main point is that being good-looking isn’t the same as having rizz. Rizz is game, it’s charisma, it’s swagger. And it could be the antidote to rejection.
Most things can be taught, so why not rizz? This thought prompted Blake to use ChatGPT to build an app to train guys to chat up girls, without fumbling.
“My father was a successful entrepreneur until I was 12 or 13. For reasons that I don't want to dive too deep into, he has some neurological issues, which affect the brain and body. By the time I was graduating college, we were pretty much out of money. My parents had to sell the house,” Blake tells Austin while sitting at his desk.
“I moved back home, my older brother was giving me loans for groceries and I'm like, ‘This is my last real chance’. I built RizzGPT,” laughs Blake.
“And it's funny, I kind of tell this story, I'm like, it was my last shot, whatever. And everyone's like, ‘Your last shot, and you built a f*cking app called RizzGPT!’”
With RizzGPT, users can upload screenshots of their conversations (yes, really) with people they’re trying to chat up, and the app can recommend phrases, pickup lines, conversation topics, and, well, general rizz, you know?
Blake found two relatively unknown, underrated TikTok creators and paid them $50 each to make promotional content. The videos went viral overnight, amassing millions of views – and hundreds of thousands of downloads for RizzGPT. Not too bad at all.
“The thing about these businesses is,” Blake says, referring to apps, “as you can see, they don't just die. RizzGPT is still doing 200(k) a month.”
RizzGPT was Blake’s first venture into coding and building apps (all self-taught, with a little help from AI).
“I spent about 12 hours a day for over a month just behind the computer coding, only coding. That was it. I'm not very good at coding, so there are other people to listen to,” Blake says.
“I started building RizzGPT when I graduated from school, senior year. I went to Tulane University and was torn between getting a normal full-time job, or trying to do something of my own.”
After the overnight success of RizzGPT, Blake realized he could easily rinse and repeat the same formula to build another app.
Enter Umax.
Hang on, isn’t looksmaxxing just a meme?
“If you want to become more attractive, Umax will help you get there faster than anybody else. We believe everybody deserves to be confident in themselves, but you have to work hard. We will provide you with the tools and information to begin your self-improvement journey. We are the looksmax AI tool to help YOU looksmax.”
- Umax Description, Apple App Store.
The term looksmaxxing originally cropped up on Reddit in 2014 among subreddits built by and for men exclusively – but before long it grew into something bigger.
Groups like Vindicta on Reddit started popping up, which describe itself as “a women-only community 100% dedicated to improving beauty, attractiveness, and allure.”
In 2020, looksmaxxing was a trending search term on TikTok, especially among teenagers.
So what exactly is behind our obsession to look good?
Love it or hate it, growing up online has had its effects on Gen-Z in particular, especially when it comes to body image. You could say the pressures of filters, editing, and impossibly high standards have made us care more than previous generations.
And you’d be right: 72% of teenagers state they feel pressure to look "perfect" due to the higher beauty standards set by social media. 74% of Gen Z employees even feel stressed getting ready for work, compared to just 14% of Baby Boomers.
Let’s be honest, you’d be hard-pressed to find somebody who doesn’t care about their appearance – and in a world where so many industries capitalize on our insecurities (fashion, beauty, fitness), it’s hardly surprising to see the success of Umax.
The app encourages users to upload a selfie and can then suggest physical improvements, working off an AI algorithm that factors in beauty standards across the globe, and the internet.
As Blake shows Austin the backend of his apps and his profits, he reveals Umax has made 4.2 million on the Apple App Store, alone.
“Umax is still doing 350 to 400(k) a month,” Blake reveals.
“Granted, Apple takes 30% of that. But the way that I look at it is if I were to stop working today, the amount of profit that would be attributable to myself would be at least in the range of 5 to 10 million.”
And then there’s Blake’s third app, Cal AI, which allows users to upload photos of their meals and uses AI to roughly count calories.
Notice a theme here?
This is a guy with an entrepreneurial spirit, that’s for sure. While some people develop this hunger as adults, for Blake, it’s always been there.
Blake’s backstory
“When I was growing up, I was always very entrepreneurial in nature,” Blake tells Austin as they cruise down a San Diego backstreet.
“Running lemonade stands every weekend, hustling on the internet from as young as I can remember. I wrote an ebook titled How to Make Money. Or I think it was called How to Make Money as a 7-Year-Old and I wrote it when I was eight or nine,” he laughs.
When Blake graduated college, he politely told his parents he didn’t see himself working a normal job. I mean, up until this point, he’d still never had one, making money through college instead with varying hustles and side gigs.
Luckily, having seen his own father’s success as an entrepreneur, Blake was pretty well set up for success, and he had something even more important: the support of those around him.
“When you told your parents you wanted to be an entrepreneur, was that ever a worry for them?” Austin asks.
“Not really,” Blake admits. “They just wanted to make sure that I was okay.”
“I've never had a real job in my entire life. I've always just figured out various ways to make money.”
You would be forgiven for expecting a 23-year-old who’s made $10 million to be somewhat conceited, but it’s just not the case for Blake.
“My dad's a little bit cuckoo, but he's smart and super f*cking hardworking, so I think that that combination was ultimately good for me. Though, I was super rebellious as a kid. I sold a lot of drugs.”
It’s a pretty amazing turnaround to go from that to being able to help support your family.
“I'm giving money to my parents as well as my older brother,” Blake says, referring to the brother who was giving him loans back in college so he could fund his dreams. If that isn’t the goal, I don’t know what is.
Why build mobile apps?
Well, as we’ve covered, mobile apps are cheap/free to code and build, with the right know-how.
As far as profits go, they can become a steady flow of passive income, so long as you keep downloads coming in with the right marketing.
“How are you getting people to these apps?” Austin asks Blake.
“It's primarily by influencer marketing,” Blake says.
“We also engage in internal UGC. We do paid platform ads, so Meta, TikTok, that sort of thing. So everything, but influencers are our most profitable strategy.”
I mean, it seems user-generated content has been the right strategy for Blake since the beginning. Remember earlier when we mentioned he was able to go viral with RizzGPT using 2 relatively unknown creators? All in 24 hours? Yeah. That’s pretty powerful.
IYKYK. And in case you don’t, UGC is one of the most potent forms of online marketing. A survey from EnTribe found that 77% of shoppers were more likely to buy a product they found through UGC.
As Blake proved, you don’t need to be able to afford to work with huge creators in the beginning, either.
Now, as Blake puts more focus on Apex, his profits from apps can keep funding his growth.
“They still cashflow like a couple hundred a month.”
“Wow, that's awesome,” Austin replies. “So that allows you to fund this whole bigger vision now.”
That’s the thing. With every feature we’ve done lately on Gen-Z creators making bank online, they share a common thread: a vision. A purpose bigger than, well, money alone.
“A lot of your story comes back to trying to just build a f*cking lore!” Austin laughs.
“Yeah, certainly,” Blake admits. “Yeah. I don't think about business in regards to how can I make $10 million. I think about it in regards to how I can maximize my impact in the footprint that I leave on the world.”
“It's nonsensical to think about money in the short term,” he continues. “You just need to think about how you can get the necessary resources to build out the long-term vision.”
So, is coding experience necessary?
No.
Blake had no formal education, training, or experience in coding. Just a desire to learn, and an understanding that AI is there to help us, not hinder us.
He essentially taught himself how to code by learning basic sequences, through trial and error, and with the help of more sophisticated apps as time went on.
“This is Cursor,” he says, showing Austin the backend of his current code editor. “It's like an AIIDE.”
AIIDE stands for Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment. Its roots were in the gaming industry but it has since grown to include many game-adjacent technologies, such as training simulations, educational games, and interactive art.
If you’re thinking of learning how to leverage AI to code mobile apps and make some serious cash just like Blake, you’re in luck. When you join the Apex community on Whop, you’ll get access to all the resources to not only learn quickly but also bypass the detours Blake encountered on his path.
Why Blake decided to start Apex
“I intend to put at least a few million into making Apex succeed. At this point, I think I've put about 1 million.”
So, why choose to teach others how to successfully copy his business plan? Because the truth is, there’s room at the table for all of us to eat, and Blake knows that.
“I think it sounds like what your North Star is is having an impact, a long-lasting impact, especially once you're gone,” Austin muses.
When you join Apex, you get access to 2 key courses that compile Blake’s experience and knowledge in building and marketing viral mobile apps: App Building 101, and the Web App Blueprint.
But even more valuable is the support you get from not only Blake himself but the other leaders of Apex who, by the way, just so happen to be his best buddies from college.
“What's that like bringing your boys onto that too? Obviously, you work with two of your best buddies from college?” Austin asks.
“I think that they have a lot of trust in me and my decision making and I have a lot of trust in theirs,” Blake says earnestly.
“We each have our primary domains within the company and the processes and stacks in which we own. I've learned lessons over my time in entrepreneurship and I just want to be able to transfer them to my co-founders as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
To me, this is something uniquely special about Blake’s community. While a lot of community builders and course creators go on to ultimately outsource internal roles within their company, Blake hired his best friends.
This gives Apex a more approachable, trustworthy, and genuine feel. I mean, if Blake can take his buddies along for the ride, why not you, too?
While his apps are making a steady, passive profit, Blake is investing a lot (I mean a lot) into growing Apex – meaning right now, he’s actually operating the community at a loss.
“How much are your expenses right now?” asks Austin. “Because realistically this is being funded essentially by you.”
“We mapped it out,” answers Blake. “We think that we're going to probably lose about 60 to 70K a month minimum for the foreseeable future.”
That’s the cost of paying your best friends a sturdy salary for their efforts, and it’s worth it to Blake. It isn’t said with any kind of regret or fear, just full conviction.
“I would rather live at the extreme with a 50% chance that it all crashes and burns.”
This is pretty unlikely, though, at the rate Apex is going. Plus, there’s something to be said about purpose. When you’re doing what you’re destined to, when you’re bringing value to others, failure is pretty much impossible.
What was it Winston Churchill said, again? Oh yeah:
“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give."
Why join Blake’s community on Whop?
If you’re looking for a side hustle that you can work on in your spare time, has huge potential, and requires no experience? You should consider coding mobile apps.
With the rise of AI applications that can help you for little to no cost and the earning potential that comes with downloads, it’s relatively low-risk for a potential big reward.
And the best part is? You don’t need to spend hours on Google, Reddit, or online forums trying to piece together information and figure it out on your own.
You can join communities here on Whop just like Blake’s to learn not only the basics but also the ins and outs of launching, marketing, and profiting from your apps. So what have you got to lose?
Ready to learn how to build and leverage web apps to make profit like a pro? Check out the Apex community on Whop for direct mentorship from Blake and his team.
