Turbo AI: How 20-Year-Old Dropouts Built a 5 Million User AI Notetaker

A Rapidly Growing AI Startup: Turbo AI

Reaching five million users and generating eight-figure annual recurring revenue, Turbo AI is demonstrating significant early success. The company is experiencing substantial growth, with twenty thousand new users joining its platform on a daily basis. This impressive trajectory began in early 2024, spearheaded by founders Rudy Arora and Sarthak Dhawan, both of whom are 20-year-old college alumni.

Recent Expansion and Profitability

The majority of this expansion has occurred within the last six months, according to the founders in a recent interview with TechCrunch. During this period, the AI-powered note-taking and study application increased its user base from one million to five million, all while maintaining profitability.

The Genesis of Turbo AI

The concept for Turbo AI originated from a common challenge faced by many university students: the difficulty of simultaneously taking effective notes and fully engaging with a lecture.

“I consistently found note-taking problematic, as it proved impossible to both listen attentively and write simultaneously,” explained CEO Dhawan. “Attempting to take notes invariably led to a lapse in concentration, and conversely, focusing on listening prevented me from recording notes. This prompted me to consider the potential of AI.”

From Side Project to University Phenomenon

Initially developed as a personal project, Turbolearn allowed the pair to record lectures and automatically create notes, flashcards, and quizzes. Sharing the application with peers led to its rapid adoption across Duke and Northwestern Universities, where they were previously enrolled. Within a short timeframe, the app’s reach extended to other prestigious institutions, including Harvard and MIT.

Core Functionality and Interactive Learning

The product enhances the traditional note-taking process—recording, transcription, and summarization—by integrating interactive study tools. These include study notes, quizzes, flashcards, and a built-in chat assistant capable of clarifying complex terms or concepts.

Addressing Recording Challenges

Recognizing that recordings in large lecture halls often suffer from background noise, the developers incorporated features enabling students to upload PDFs, lecture materials, YouTube videos, or other readings. This functionality has become a prevalent use case, often surpassing live lecture recordings in popularity.

“Students routinely upload extensive lecture materials, such as 30-page documents, and then engage with 75 consecutive quiz questions. This level of engagement indicates genuine value and effectiveness,” Dhawan observed, highlighting the time-saving benefits and improved information retention provided by the product.

Expanding Beyond the Student Market

Turbo AI’s user base extends beyond students, as evidenced by its rebranding from Turbolearn (a study application) to Turbo AI (an AI notetaker and learning assistant). Professionals, including consultants, legal professionals, doctors, and analysts from firms like Goldman Sachs and McKinsey, are also utilizing the platform.

Some professionals, for example, upload reports to generate summaries or convert them into podcasts for convenient listening during commutes.

Founders’ Background and Collaboration

Arora and Dhawan have a long-standing friendship dating back to middle school, and have consistently collaborated on various projects throughout the years.

Dhawan previously developed UMax, an advice application that achieved the No. 1 ranking on the App Store, attracting 20 million users and generating $6 million in annual revenue. Arora, on the other hand, possesses expertise in leveraging social media strategies to drive rapid growth and attract substantial user bases.

A Strategic Approach to Growth and Funding

While possessing a proven track record of creating viral applications, the founders made a deliberate decision to postpone dropping out of college until they identified a viable opportunity to establish a sustainable business.

Unlike many rapidly expanding AI companies, they are exercising caution regarding fundraising, having only secured $750,000 in funding last year.

“We secured that funding prior to achieving significant traction. Since then, we’ve received considerable inbound interest, but we are proceeding deliberately because we are currently cash-flow positive and have maintained profitability throughout our company’s existence,” stated Arora. He further noted that their team of 15 is based in Los Angeles and focused on maintaining close ties with student and creator communities at universities such as UCLA.

Pricing and Future Development

Currently, students subscribe to the product for approximately $20 per month. However, the founders are actively exploring alternative pricing models to accommodate the price sensitivity of students, even as the application’s reach expands beyond its initial target demographic.

“We are presently experimenting with various pricing structures and conducting extensive A/B testing to determine optimal strategies,” Arora added.

Positioning in the Market

Turbo AI occupies a unique position between entirely manual tools like Google Docs and fully automated note-takers such as Otter or Fireflies. Users have the flexibility to allow the AI to take notes independently or to collaborate with it during the note-taking process. This approach has enabled Turbo AI to differentiate itself from competitors like YouLearn, which also targets student audiences.

Brand Recognition and Future Outlook

“Currently, Turbo AI is the first application that comes to mind for students seeking an AI notetaker or study tool,” Dhawan concluded.