Undisclosed Makerpad exit to Zapier (2021). Ben's Bites reported past $1M in annual newsletter revenue at peak in 2023-2024.
Makerpad: Ben solo + rotating contractors. Ben's Bites: Ben solo with occasional help at the writer tier, entirely AI-augmented by 2024.
No-code education → AI newsletter
Ben Tossell (@bentossell)
Timeline
2018-2019Ben launches Makerpad — a community and education platform for no-code builders, positioning before Bubble, Webflow, and no-code-native movement went mainstream.2019-2020Makerpad grows through courses, directory, and a strong community. Becomes the reference point for no-code education. Ben runs it primarily solo.2021Zapier acquires Makerpad. Undisclosed deal size but widely reported as a strategic acquisition reinforcing Zapier's no-code positioning.2022Ben leaves post-acquisition transition. Starts experimenting with AI-focused newsletter. Ben's Bites launches as a daily email summarizing the most important AI news, tools, and prompts.2023Ben's Bites scales to 100K+ subscribers within 12 months driven by the AI category explosion. Revenue from sponsored placements and classified ads crosses six figures.2024Subscriber base reaches 500K+. Ben runs daily publishing with heavy AI assistance — curation, summarization, and distribution automated; editorial voice remains Ben's.2025-2026Adds Ben's Bites Pro (premium tier), classifieds marketplace, and courses. Revenue mix diversifies. Continues solo operation.Key insights
- 01Two distinct bets, both solo. Makerpad was a community + education play; Ben's Bites is a media play. Same operator, different patterns.
- 02Timing matters as much as quality. Makerpad caught the no-code wave pre-mainstream; Ben's Bites caught the AI wave in week 1 of ChatGPT. Both times Ben was early in the channel.
- 03Daily publishing is the moat. In a space with hundreds of AI newsletters, Ben's Bites won on cadence and curation discipline, not on exclusive sources.
- 04Exit to strategic acquirer is often the cleanest result for community-led businesses. Zapier absorbed Makerpad's positioning faster than Zapier could build it organically.
- 05Newsletter economics favor solo operators with heavy AI. Sponsorship revenue, classified marketplaces, and premium tiers all scale without proportional headcount.
- 06Build in public compounds. Ben's transparent sharing of metrics, experiments, and failures across both projects built the network that funded the next launch.
- 07Second-time solo founders are a pattern. Ben's trajectory (one exit, one post-exit creator business) is the same arc as Arvid Kahl, Daniel Vassallo, Ryan Hoover, and others.
Stack used
Ghost for the original Makerpad siteCircle / Slack for community tierGumroad and Teachable for course deliveryBeehiiv for Ben's Bites (reportedly moved off Substack for better monetization)Sparkloop / Passion.io for newsletter referralsStripe for all payment processingTypefully for X / LinkedIn schedulingNotion for editorial calendar and content backlog
What this means for you
- Ride the wave when you see it. Ben launched Ben's Bites within weeks of ChatGPT going viral. The 6-month window is when first-mover advantage actually exists.
- A newsletter is a business, not a side project. At $1M+ ARR with high margin, Ben's Bites is more profitable than most seed-stage startups.
- Sell the exit when the strategic is hungry. Zapier wanted no-code legitimacy; Makerpad was the cleanest acquisition target. Don't wait for a better offer when the strategic need is now.
- Cadence over quality in curation. Daily slightly-okay beats weekly excellent for newsletter growth. Ship every day or give up the channel.
- AI newsletter economics are brutal without leverage. Manual curation at 500K subscribers is a 3-person team. AI-augmented, it's one operator.