Rork’s founders were almost broke when a viral tweet led to $2.8M and a16z

From Broke to Breakthrough: The Rork Story

Levan Kvirkvelia and Daniel Dhawan’s journey reads like something straight out of a Hollywood script—but it’s real. Both founders have seen their fair share of struggles, from scraping together every penny to keep their dream alive to maxing out credit cards just to stay afloat. At one point, Dhawan was even couch-surfing at a friend’s place in San Francisco. Fast forward to today, and they’ve turned that desperation into something extraordinary: $100,000 in revenue in just five days. It all started with a single tweet—a seemingly small moment that would set off a chain reaction leading to a $2.8 million seed round. Backed by heavy hitters like Andreessen Horowitz’s Speedrun program, Hustle Fund’s Elizabeth Yin, ChapterOne, Founders Inc., and more, Rork has become the talk of the tech world. Rork itself is revolutionary. It lets anyone, regardless of technical expertise, build mobile apps using nothing but a simple text prompt. No coding required. Think of it as a game-changer for the app development industry.

The Journey to Virality

The road to success wasn’t easy. For months, Kvirkvelia and Dhawan worked tirelessly on their product, pivoting along the way. Their first attempt was a Cursor-like vibe coder aimed at non-technical users. However, when a competitor named Lovable launched and went viral overnight, the duo realized they needed to shift gears. Instead of chasing after Lovable’s success in web coding, they decided to double down on their roots and focus on mobile app development. “It’s like 10 times harder to build a native mobile app than a web app,” Kvirkvelia told TechCrunch. And yet, they dove headfirst into creating something unprecedented—a vibe coder tailored specifically for mobile platforms. Their timing couldn’t have been worse—or better. As they were finalizing their product, another rival, Bolt, entered the scene with its own mobile vibe coding solution. The founders braced themselves for another brush with failure, but fate had other plans.

One Tweet, Millions of Views

On February 12, they launched Rork with a humble tweet. It gained traction, but it wasn’t until February 24 that things truly exploded. That’s when Matt Shumer, an angel investor and co-founder of OthersideAI, took notice. In a viral X post, he praised Rork over Bolt, calling it a game-changer for app development. His post received over a million views, sending traffic—and usage—to Rork skyrocketing. But here’s where the story gets wild. Despite the sudden influx of interest, the founders were strapped for cash. Each had accumulated $15,000 in credit card debt just to keep the lights on. “We were paying for AI out of our own pockets because we hadn’t raised much funding,” Dhawan recalled. “We were almost out of money. Then, 15 minutes after Shumer’s tweet, Austen Allred invested $100,000.” By the end of the day, they’d secured $350,000 in commitments from various investors. It was a lifeline they desperately needed.

A New Beginning

The breakthrough didn’t stop there. Following the viral buzz, Andrew Chen from Andreessen Horowitz reached out. Initially, Dhawan hesitated due to a pre-existing term sheet from another firm. Undeterred, Chen crafted a competing offer within weeks, sealing the deal. The founders joined the Speedrun program, which offers valuable resources like $5 million in credits from AWS, Google Cloud, OpenAI, and others. For Dhawan personally, the financial turnaround has been immense. Just two months after Shumer’s viral tweet, the team hit $550,000 in annual recurring revenue (ARR). He’s moved out of his temporary accommodations and now lives in his own place.

Looking Ahead

Rork isn’t just about survival—it’s about redefining what’s possible in app development. With its unique approach and growing user base, the future looks bright. For Kvirkvelia and Dhawan, this is only the beginning. As they continue to grow and innovate, one thing remains clear: their grit, determination, and ability to adapt have turned adversity into opportunity.

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