emergent raises $23m from lightspeed to let consumers build apps

The Rise of No-Code App Creation and Emergent's $23 Million Funding

Over the past ten years, the increasing quality of smartphone cameras has fueled the growth of platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, transforming many users from casual content consumers into revenue-generating creators.

Now, Emergent, a company founded by twin brothers Mukund and Madhav Jha, is aiming to replicate this shift within the realm of application development, empowering everyday users to build apps without needing coding expertise.

Emergent's Approach to App Development

While the concept of no-code app building isn't novel in 2025, Emergent differentiates itself by providing comprehensive support throughout the entire development process.

The platform handles complex tasks like API management and deployment, shielding users from intricate technical details.

Recent Funding and Key Investors

On Wednesday, Emergent announced the successful completion of a $23 million Series A funding round.

Lightspeed led the investment, with additional participation from Y Combinator, Together (the fund established by Freshworks’ founders), and prominent angel investors.

These investors include former a16z GP Balaji Srinivasan, Google’s Jeff Dean, and Devendra Chaplot, a founding member of Mistral.

To date, the company has secured a total of $30 million in funding.

The Founders' Background and Vision

Mukund Jha, previously the CTO of Google-backed quick commerce startup Dunzo in India, relocated to the United States and began collaborating with his brother, Madhav, who had experience at Dropbox.

“Having both been deeply involved in programming since the age of twelve, we observed the potential of AI-powered coding after engaging with various AI labs in late 2023,” Mukund explained to TechCrunch.

“We recognized that the advancement of AI would lead to agent-based app development becoming a significant component of the economy, and we determined that this was the challenge we wanted to address for the next two decades.”

Focus on Non-Technical Users

Emergent explicitly aims to serve a different market than developer-centric tools like Claude Code and Cursor.

The platform is designed to abstract the complexities of the software development lifecycle, making it accessible to individuals without a technical background.

The company has invested in building robust infrastructure to support app development, and utilizes AI agents to automatically identify and resolve errors, eliminating the need for users to understand underlying code issues.

Hands-on Testing and Initial Results

A test of the platform involved creating a vaccine and medicine tracker for pets.

The AI agent proactively asked clarifying questions regarding pet types, user scope (individual or multiple users), and preferred reminder scheduling options.

Furthermore, the agent autonomously added features like a dashboard and streamlined pet/vaccination entry, even though these weren't explicitly requested.

The entire process, including app building and automated testing, took less than 30 minutes, resulting in a functional initial version.

This performance surpasses many other "vibe coding" applications that struggle to even generate apps based on their own prompts.

User Growth and Platform Maintenance

Since its launch in June, over 1 million users have created more than 1.5 million apps using the platform.

While experimentation with vibe coding apps is popular, sustaining user engagement and app maintenance are crucial.

Emergent simplifies app maintenance by handling deployment and back-end infrastructure.

Technical Infrastructure and Future Development

Currently, the startup utilizes Expo as a mobile client for app deployment.

However, plans are underway to launch a native mobile app for building applications directly.

To facilitate integration with various platforms, Emergent employs a universal API key with shared usage, reducing the need for users to create separate accounts for different services.

Bridging the Gap Between No-Code and Technical Understanding

Despite the promise of building apps without technical expertise, users often encounter technical terminology and systems.

Emergent intends to address this by educating users on fundamental concepts like APIs and component selection (e.g., email sending mechanisms).

A new brainstorming mode is also being developed to assist users in refining their app ideas and defining their scope.

Monetization and App Discovery

For a sustainable app economy, developers need a means to showcase their creations and generate revenue.

Currently, Emergent features a limited selection of apps on its homepage.

Developers can integrate payment options like Stripe, but they must provide their own API keys.

Future development will focus on streamlining both app discovery and monetization processes.

Competitive Landscape

Emergent operates in a competitive space, facing competition from companies like Canva and Figma, as well as browsers like Perplexity, Comet, and Opera Neon, all of which are exploring mini-app development.

Other startups focused on vibe coding solutions include Seven Seven Six-backed Vibecode and Rocket, which recently secured $15 million in Series A funding from Accel.

Lightspeed's Perspective

Hemant Mohapatra, a partner at Lightspeed, emphasized the firm’s search for a startup with strong technical capabilities in democratizing app creation.

“We were seeking a company that could lower the barrier to entry for coding to near zero, making app development a function of intent,” Mohapatra stated.

He highlighted Emergent’s unique ability to manage the entire app lifecycle – from deployment and sharing to bug fixing and support – using AI as a key differentiator.

This article has been updated to reflect the app’s launch in June.