A 13-Year-Old Founder Building a Study App Because Existing Tools Weren't Enough

Nikita Volkov is a 13-year-old builder who has been creating products since he was seven. Now he is working on Ace, a study app designed by a student who understands the problems other students face.

Before starting Ace, Nikita built an online store at age 7, a recipe discovery and management app at 11, a dropshipping store at 12, an AI coding agent, an AI chatbot for education, and a faster macOS Spotlight-style launcher integrated with AI. Each project was an attempt to fix a real frustration he had at that age.

Ace follows the same pattern. Nikita found that most study apps were either slow, overly complex, bad at what they are meant to do or designed by adults who no longer experience school in the same way students do. Rather than wait for a better tool, he decided to build one himself.

Ace focuses on clarity, speed, and real learning. Nikita is building it publicly, sharing his progress as he refines features and tests ideas in real time.

For someone his age, Nikita’s output is unusual, but his approach is straightforward: find a problem, understand it deeply, then build something better. Ace is the latest step in a journey that has already lasted several years, and he is documenting the entire process for others who may be on a similar path.