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Build Theory Cohort 01: what 24 fellows built in 14 teams

By Thakur Prashanth · October 15, 2026 · 9 min read

Build Theory Cohort 01: what 24 fellows built in 14 teams

Build Theory Cohort 01 (BT-01) had 24 fellows working in 14 teams. Most of them had never used GitHub or written production code. In 30 days, with 1:1 mentorship and AI tools, they went from a real problem to a working product. Several are live and used every day: Tuition OS runs a real tuition centre, Monetiq is used by at least 10 students, and Madli shipped in 24 days with users in the US and India.

Cohort 01 at a glance

  • Fellows: 24 (fellow codes BTF-001 to BTF-024)

  • Teams: 14, of which 8 built in pairs

  • Who joined: first-year to final-year engineering students from MVSR, CVR, Geethanjali, KLH, GITAM, Sanjay Ghodawat and Matrusri, plus founders and working professionals

  • Starting point: most had never used GitHub; several came from mechanical engineering

  • Format: 30 days, online, 1:1 mentorship, AI tools such as Claude and Claude Code

Every team and what they built

1. Rethink OS: Dhananjaya Nair (BTF-001)

A founder with no coding background built a client logging and reporting tool for his consultancy. Read the Rethink OS story.

2. Rethink Flow: Shruti Sharma (BTF-002)

An educator built a school operations MVP and is in pilot talks with schools. Read the Rethink Flow story.

3. Unified inbox: Singarapu Prachothan (BTF-003)

One interface for Gmail, LinkedIn, WhatsApp and other inboxes, built for a director's own workflow. Read the story.

4. Tuition OS: Ch Sreemayee (BTF-004) and Sanjana Labishetty (BTF-005)

Two first-year students built software that went live on Day 29 and runs a tuition centre of about 100 students every day. Read the Tuition OS story.

Tuition OS admin dashboard

5. Monetiq: Ch Srikar (BTF-006) and Paarthu Bandi (BTF-007)

A student finance app with OCR bill scanning, used by at least 10 students. Read the Monetiq story.

6. Madli: Madhupriya Allam (BTF-008)

An AI food and travel discovery app, validated with 20+ people and shipped in 24 days. Read the Madli story.

7. Orbit for Students: A. Prashanth Reddy (BTF-009)

An AI accountability app with Telegram nudges, built by someone who had never opened a GitHub repository. Read the Orbit story.

8. Cue: G. Divyasree (BTF-010), K. Rishitha Purna (BTF-011) and Keshamoni Nikhila (BTF-012)

AI smart glasses for visually impaired people, built after field research at Sri Matha Foundation for the Blind and now in pilots. Read the Cue story.

Cue smart glasses

9. Boutiqo: C. Siddarth Ram (BTF-013) and Katukuri Rithvik (BTF-014)

Order and delivery software for small boutiques, used by a boutique owner with five more in pilot talks. Read the Boutiqo story.

10. SignMate: Siddharth Sadu (BTF-015) and Naga Nidesh (BTF-018)

A two-way Indian Sign Language translation app on a self-trained ML model, used at a school for deaf children. Read the SignMate story.

11. Diagnosis: Kunamaneni Tanusree (BTF-016) and Pavani Yejarla (BTF-017)

An AI career tool that finds skill gaps and gives next steps you can start tonight. Read the Diagnosis story.

12. Mock2Pitch: Dubbaka Sathwik (BTF-021) and Sahithi Eshwaroju (BTF-022)

Presentation practice with AI feedback on speech, timing and filler words. Read the Mock2Pitch story.

13. SynapsN: Mir Ataul Mohsin (BTF-020) and S. Rohith (BTF-019)

A live AI study tool that turns a syllabus into notes, flashcards and quizzes for last-minute exam prep. Read the SynapsN story.

14. Interview OS: Kathula Sreeja (BTF-023) and Padigela Swathi (BTF-024)

Personalised interview practice for freshers, in build. Read the Interview OS story.

What the cohort shows

  • Start from lived experience, then validate it. Tuition OS, Boutiqo, SignMate and Orbit all began with a problem close to the fellow, and interviews showed what to actually solve.

  • Talk to users before building. Teams interviewed parents and tuition centres, visited boutiques, spent time at a foundation for the blind and spoke to 20+ potential users.

  • MVP scope is a skill. Fellows learned to cut broad ideas down to a first version that works.

  • Hard technical problems became learning. OCR bill scanning, Google Maps and LLM integrations, object recognition and Indian Sign Language models.

  • A product is not a repository. The proudest outcomes were products people use every day, not code alone.

Frequently asked questions

How many fellows were in Build Theory Cohort 01?

24 fellows in 14 teams, with fellow codes BTF-001 to BTF-024.

Did the fellows know how to code before Build Theory?

Most did not. Many had never used GitHub. They built with AI tools, guided by 1:1 mentorship and the Build Theory frameworks.

Which Cohort 01 products are live?

Tuition OS (live at a real tuition centre), Monetiq, Madli, Orbit for Students, Boutiqo and SynapsN are live, and SignMate is in use at a school. Cue, Diagnosis, Mock2Pitch and Interview OS are in pilots or in build.

How can I join the next cohort?

Cohort 02 is open to any year and any branch. Check your readiness score in 2 minutes, or apply for Cohort 02.

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