If you want to make your first $10,000 with AI starting from scratch, with no audience, skills, or customers, this is how to do it.
It's the same plan a lot of our students at Founders School are running right now.
There are four steps to doing that. https://x.com/i/article/2117716340572131328
How To Make Your First $10k With AI
If you want to make your first $10,000 with AI starting from scratch, with no audience, skills, or customers, this is how to do it. It's the same plan a lot of our students at Founders School are running right now.
There are four steps:
1. Pick a skill businesses already pay for.
1. Practice it in public, every day.
1. Send proof pitches: high-effort outbound where you do the work first.
1. Delight your clients and ask for testimonials and referrals.
This guide walks through each step with the exact actions, scripts, and AI prompts. At the bottom, there's a prompt you can paste into your AI so it can coach you through the whole thing.
Why $10k, and why not just build an app?
Most people who want to make money with AI start by vibe coding a bunch of apps.
They spend months building, get zero customers, and then start building the next app. It feels productive, but if nobody's paying, you're just wasting tokens.
Pick a skill people were already paying for before AI.
Then you know there are customers, and you can get them quickly. You also get good at something that makes it easier to sell the apps you build later.
At Founders School, students move through revenue gates.
First $100 doing in-person, manual work for local businesses.
Then $1,000 selling websites through personal connections or social media.
Then the $10,000 challenge: use AI to learn a skill fast and build a digital service business around it.
$10,000 is a special milestone. Once you've made $10,000 online with a skill, you can usually repeat the process and grow it into a $10,000 or $20,000 a month business.
It used to take years to get good enough at these skills to charge real money. AI shrinks that a lot if you know how to use it.
One rule we use: only money that's actually paid counts. A "yes, let's do it," or an unpaid invoice equals zero.
Step 1: Pick a skill
The rule: pick a customer acquisition skill your future business will need
Companies are always happy to pay for customer acquisition, because what you're selling them is more money. It's easy to tie your price to the value. And the better you get at it, the better your odds with whatever business you start next.
- Want to build a consumer product? Get good at short-form video.
- Want to build B2B software? Get good at copywriting for X or LinkedIn.
Pick one and don't switch. Switching resets you to zero. If it's slow, find the step that's stuck (posts, outbound, the pitch or the skill itself) and fix that.
The three we recommend
Set your price at $2,000
Charge $2,000 a month for copywriting or video, or $2,000 for an SEO/AEO audit. It's an approachable price for a lot of businesses.
You can get good enough to charge it fairly quickly, and it's not so expensive that you end up in a long negotiation. Don't go under it.
How AI gets you 80 to 90% of the way
You don't have to do every part of these jobs by hand anymore. You still have to do the last pass. That last pass, and the taste to know whether the AI output is good, is the skill you're building.
Copywriting. Grab the transcript of a founder's podcast or talk (on YouTube, click "...more" under the video, then "Show transcript").
Ask Claude to pull the best moments:
Then ask Claude to rewrite a section in the founder's voice, formatted for X or LinkedIn, giving it a sample of their writing. You'll get a decent first draft. Now make it yours: type the hook yourself, read it out loud, rewrite anything you stumble on, and change at least a quarter of it. Search the transcript for every quote to make sure it's real.
Short-Form Video.
AI tools can find the moments and do a first cut from long interviews. Our students use Claude to find the moments and Claude Code with free tools (ffmpeg and Whisper) to cut, crop and caption. To find moments:
You pick the moment, the opening line, and the on-screen hook.
If you can't finish the sentence "Someone would stop scrolling for this because...", pick another moment. Proofread every caption, since auto-captions get names and numbers wrong.
SEO / AEO.
Write down 5 questions a customer of the business would type into Google or ask ChatGPT, at least 3 without the business's name.
Ask ChatGPT and Perplexity those questions and note who gets named.
Then check the basics on their site: can Google and the AI search crawlers reach it, do the key pages have clear titles and descriptions, does the site match their X profile?
AI can pull the data.
You decide the 3 findings that cost them the most customers, check each one with your own eyes, and explain the fix in plain English.
Use AI as your coach
Paste this into a new Claude chat to build your study plan and get graded every day:
Step 2: Practice in public
The only way to build taste is a lot of reps. Doing those reps in public gets you better at the skill and can bring you customers without doing any sales.
Set up (do this once)
- [ ] Pick one channel where your target customers hang out. We usually recommend X. LinkedIn or Instagram work too.
- [ ] Write a bio that says exactly what you do. "I write X posts for founders." "I turn podcasts into clips." "I fix websites for Google and AI search."
- [ ] Link to a personal site with five things: a headline that says what you do, who it's for, your offer with a price, proof (your best work), and how to hire you.
The daily loop
Run this every day until you hit $10,000.
1. Study the craft for 30 to 60 minutes. Watch videos on it, do exercises, rewrite a founder's copy, edit a clip. Look at viral work in your niche and figure out what they're doing that you're not.
1. Post what you learned or made. One proof-of-skill post a day, plus a couple of other posts. Share the lesson so other people can use it. Skip the "look how amazing I am" posts, nobody responds to those.
1. Reply to your dream clients. Our students aim for 10+ thoughtful replies a day on posts from the people they want to work with. Add a real point, a number or a question. "Great post" doesn't count.
What a proof-of-skill post looks like
- Copywriting: take a talk by a founder you admire, write a post on the best lesson, tag them, then reply to yourself: "If you want posts like this written in your voice every week, DM me."
- Short-form video: clip a strong moment from a founder or creator interview, post it, tag them, then reply: "I make clips like this for founders. DM me."
- SEO / AEO: audit a company with an active X account, post the 3 biggest fixes, tag them, and reply with your site link.
Post your first one today, even if it isn't perfect.
Why it works
Two things happen. You build a network of people interested in what you're learning. And every day there's a chance someone reaches out to hire you, especially when you share work on influential people's content where it might show up on their radar.
That's what happened to one of our students. He posted every day about the cinematic websites he was building. One day, someone DMed him on X asking to hire him for a website. That was his first $1,000 contract.
Step 3: Send proof pitches
Don't sit around hoping someone DMs you. Most people think cold outreach means high volume: 100 phone numbers, call them all, repeat. That can work for some businesses, but it's a bad way to get one of these businesses off the ground.
A proof pitch is reaching out to someone you'd really love to work with, having already done the work you want to sell them.
Five good proof pitches a week beat 100 lazy DMs.
Two real examples
My agency.
When I ran a marketing agency, I'd skip the "I'd love to do content for you" email. Instead I'd plan a company's first three months of content: keyword research, social research, a weekly calendar, a few sample articles from writers I knew would do a good job, and articles we'd written for companies in related niches. Then I'd send a very short email:
Hey [name], I think you have a huge opportunity to get more search traffic. I already planned out your first three months of content and wrote a few sample articles for you: [link]. Here are the results we've gotten for other companies: [link]. Let me know if you want to get on a call.
There's barely a pitch in there. If they say yes, I send the invoice and we start.
Martin.
Martin saw I was posting a lot on X but wasn't active on LinkedIn.
He didn't DM me asking to do my LinkedIn. He rewrote a few of my X posts for LinkedIn, designed a new LinkedIn banner, and wrote a long post on X explaining exactly what he'd do if he got the chance: why LinkedIn mattered for my goals (parents, hires and mentors are there) and a content plan.
It got tens of thousands of views. I reached out, and we've been working together ever since.
Our students are doing the same thing now, making clips of big influencers from their podcast appearances and getting in touch with them because of it.
How to send one
1. Pick a target. Someone active on X who clearly makes money and has a gap you can name. The best gap is strong on one platform and missing on another: a great podcast with no clips, or big on X and quiet on LinkedIn. If you ask AI for target ideas, check every name and handle yourself. AI makes these up.
2. Research them for 30 to 45 minutes. Read 30 of their recent posts and skim their latest podcast or talk. Write down what they're trying to do right now and what's missing.
3. Make the asset (1 to 2 hours). Something only they could receive:
- Copywriting: 3 posts in their voice from their latest talk.
- Short-form video: 3 clips from their latest episode, ready to post.
- SEO / AEO: a short audit with 3 to 5 real findings, including what ChatGPT says when you ask for the best tools in their category.
4. DM it with your price. Send it on X (or wherever you post your work), so they can click your profile and see everything else you've made. If you email them, it's harder for them to check you out. Email only if their DMs are closed, and link your profile.
5. Follow up once after 3 days, then move on.
Scripts
Proof pitch DM:
Hi [name]! I'm [your name]. [One specific line that shows you did the research.] So I made you [the asset]: [link]. It's yours to keep. If you like it, I can [the offer] for $2,000 [a month / fixed scope].
By skill:
- Copywriting: "Hi [name]! I'm [your name]. I loved your talk on [topic], so I turned it into 3 posts in your voice: [link]. They're yours to post. If you like them, I can write 12 a month like this for $2,000 a month."
- Short-form video: "Hi [name]! I'm [your name]. I made 3 clips from your latest episode, ready to post: [link]. They're yours to use. If you like them, I can make 12 a month for $2,000 a month."
- SEO / AEO: "Hi [name]! I'm [your name]. I ran a quick SEO and AI search check on your site and found 3 things that could bring you more customers: [link]. It's yours to keep. If you want, I can do the full audit and fix the top issues in a 2-week sprint, fixed scope, for $2,000.
Follow-up (once, after 3 days):
Hi [name], just making sure this got to you: [link]. Happy to answer any questions.
Warm intro ask (send to people you know):
Hi [name], I've started a business [writing X posts for founders / making clips for creators / fixing websites for Google and AI search]. Here's my site with examples: [link]. Do you know a founder or business owner who could use this? An intro, or just forwarding this, would mean a lot. Thank you!
Before you hit send
- [ ] They're active on X (or their DMs are closed and you're emailing with your profile linked).
- [ ] You can name their gap in one sentence.
- [ ] The asset is finished, usable today, and made only for them.
- [ ] One line proves you did the research.
- [ ] The price is in the message.
- [ ] The follow-up date is on your calendar.
Step 4: Close it, delight them, ask for referrals
The sales call
When someone's interested, get on a call.
1. Ask questions first. Copywriting: "Where do you post now, and how often? Who writes it?" Video: "How much long-form do you make? Who clips it now?" SEO/AEO: "Where do your customers find you now? Do you show up when people ask ChatGPT about [category]?"
1. Tie your offer to their answers, then say the price.
1. Close on the call: "I'll send a Stripe link now. The first month starts as soon as it's paid."
1. If they say it's a lot: "One new customer from this pays for the month. Want to try one month?"
1. If they say "let me think": "Sure. What would help you decide? Can we talk [day]?"
Lock the scope, get paid first
Saying yes to everything and doing extra work for free is how you get burned.
- Put it in writing before you start: what's included (how many posts, clips, or fixes), which platforms, how many revisions, the timeline, and the price.
- Get paid (or at least a deposit) before you start.
- When they ask for more, say yes warmly with a price: "Happy to help with that. It's outside our 12 posts a month, so I can add it for [price] or quote it as a separate project."
- When they ask for a discount: "I keep my price at $2,000 for everyone. Want to start with one month?"
Then over-deliver.
Under-promise and over-deliver. Do everything you said you'd do, then add extra on top. Whatever they're expecting, aim for two or three times that. It shows how good you are and makes them excited to keep working with you.
Ask for the testimonial and the referral
Right after the first month or first deliverable they're happy with, same day if you can and within 48 hours at most, ask for two things. Never before you deliver, and never if they're unhappy. Fix it first.
Testimonial ask:
I'm really glad you like it. Would you be up for a 2 or 3 sentence testimonial I can put on my site? It helps a lot when you're just starting. Happy to draft it from what you told me, and you can just reply "approved."
Referral ask:
Thank you! One more thing: do you know another founder who could use this? An intro would mean a lot. Here's a short note you can forward: "Hi [name], [your name] just did [the work] for us and did a great job. I thought of you. Their site: [link]."
Don't be shy about this.
People hiring a copywriter, a video editor, or an SEO person usually have peers who need the same help. A good recommendation makes them look good to their friends, so you're helping them be helpful.
Put the testimonial near the top of your site, pin it on X, and quote it in your next proof pitch.
The math to $10,000
At $2,000 a client, you need about 3 clients plus a repeat month or two. The pace our students aim for:
You want to avoid these common mistakes
- Vibe coding apps nobody asked for. Learn a skill people already pay for first.
- Switching skills when it's slow. It resets you to zero. Fix the stuck step instead.
- Waiting until you're ready. Basic skill is the floor. Post on day 1 and pitch in week 1.
- Posting what the AI wrote. It sounds like AI and people can tell. AI does the first 80 to 90%. You do the last pass.
- Inventing things. One misquote or made-up number in front of a founder and you're done. Check every claim against the source.
- Bragging instead of teaching. Share what you learned so other people can use it.
- Lazy outbound. "Hey, can I work with you?" gets ignored. Do the work first.
- No price in the pitch. A free sample with no price is just a gift.
- Chasing. One follow-up after 3 days, then move on.
- Underpricing. $2,000 or more, every time.
- Doing extra work for free. Put the scope in writing. Extra work gets a price.
- Forgetting to ask. Every happy client gets a testimonial ask and a referral ask within 48 hours.
Here's the checklist you'd want to follow
Daily
- [ ] 30 to 60 minutes studying and practicing the skill.
- [ ] 1 proof-of-skill post, plus a couple of other posts, in your own words.
- [ ] 10+ replies that add something.
- [ ] Every lead answered, with a next step booked.
Weekly
- [ ] 5 proof pitches with finished work and your price.
- [ ] Follow-ups sent on anything older than 3 days.
- [ ] At least 1 warm intro ask sent.
- [ ] Money earned so far, the gap to $10,000, and how many $2,000 clients close it.
- [ ] Testimonial and referral asked from every happy client.
Want to do this with a team behind you?
At Founders School, high schoolers crush their academics and build real businesses, with the goal of making a million dollars by graduation. Students run this exact $10,000 challenge with guides, a cohort, and a scoreboard of real payments.
Learn more about Founders School
And if you're not in high school, you don't need to be to start. Pick your skill today and post your first piece of work tonight.