Pieter Levels is an unconventional entrepreneur, not just for his remarkable success but also for his approach to both coding and business. With this unique philosophy, Levels has managed to carve out a highly profitable niche for himself online.
Born in The Netherlands, Levels is a self-taught developer and makes over $2 million per year hiring part-time contractors. The 37 year old has no degree in programming but has an MBA. The quirky coder is active on Twitter and has built a strong following online.
Levels’ journey into web development began as a teenager. His first online venture was an analytics service for YouTube, but it didn’t make any money. This was a pivotal moment for Levels, leading him to adopt his approach to business: build websites quickly and monetize from the beginning. He only adds more features when the idea is validated by the market.
One of Levels’ most successful ventures is Nomad List, a website that he started in 2014 as part of his goal to launch 12 startups in 12 months. Nomad List is a site dedicated to digital nomads, offering detailed data about cities around the world. It also has a paid membership where people can meet other nomads on their travels. RemoteOK is another cash cow for Pieter, the job board generates six-figures annually but revenue has pulled back recently with layoffs in the tech industry.
Rather than relying on modern frameworks such as React, Vue, or Angular, Levels uses a simple tech stack consisting of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, PHP, and SQLite. This eccentric choice of tech stack has been a point of critique but also of admiration, given Levels’ huge success.
His stack is driven by efficiency and pragmatism. He uses the simplest, least glamorous tools that get the job done, focusing more on the outcome than the process. Levels has faced his share of critics, however, his success speaks volumes. He has been consistently making six figures since 2014, and makes millions living the digital nomad lifestyle.
More recently, Levels has jumped on the AI trend, developing an AI photo-editing app, PhotoAI. It’s a novel product that offers AI-generated photographs through a virtual photo studio and photo-editing suite. Currently, the tools make around $53,000 per month. His other site, InteriorAI.com makes around $30,000 per month.
Levels’ career is a testament to the power of resilience, self-learning, and thinking outside the box. His success is a reminder that there is no single path to success. Going forward it will be interesting to see what new sites he launches!
