From Idea to Reality: Building the Onu App

Have you ever had an idea that refused to fade - something so clear in your mind that you felt you owed it to yourself to bring it to life? That was the Onu app for me. It began with a single, persistent thought: What if I could create a digital companion that helps people become more self-aware, while also managing their personal finances with confidence and clarity?

I wasn’t just building another productivity tool or budgeting app. I wanted something different - something more personal. The goal was to create an intelligent assistant that listens when you speak, understands your daily rhythms, and gives you feedback rooted in both your thoughts and your financial habits.

This is the story of how I built Onu - a project born out of curiosity, grown through AI collaboration, and shaped by trial, iteration, and persistence.

The Meaning Behind the Name

Onu means King. It also happens to be my last name.

Naming this app Onu wasn’t just a branding decision - it was a personal statement. I wanted the product to carry a sense of dignity, confidence, and presence. The name reflects both its Nigerian roots and my own desire to create something that stands tall, that people can rely on, and that leads with intelligence and clarity. Just like a good leader, Onu listens first and speaks with purpose.

The Idea: A Companion for Reflection and Clarity

The concept started as a simple question: What if your voice could guide your growth?

I imagined a tool where users could talk freely - vent, reflect, ideate - and the app would quietly listen, identify patterns, and offer guidance. But I didn’t want it to stop there. I also wanted it to connect those reflections with real-world behavior, especially how people manage money.

That’s how Onu’s two core pillars were born:

• Self-awareness through ambient voice reflection
• Financial awareness through smart analysis of bank transactions

I envisioned an app that could recognize when a user was feeling overwhelmed, check recent spending trends, and suggest insights like “You’ve made three impulse purchases this week. Is something bothering you?” The power of that type of interaction felt deeply meaningful - and something only AI could help unlock.

Laying the Groundwork: Planning, Stack, and Structure

Before I opened up a code editor, I planned everything. Structure mattered - especially as a solo builder juggling vision, execution, and learning.

I chose Flutter for the frontend because I wanted to build once and ship to iOS, Android, and Web. The backend was built with Node.js, offering flexibility and scalability.

The app was split into two repositories: onu-frontend and onu-backend.

On the Flutter side, I followed a feature-first architecture:

• lib/app/ handled app routing and global layout
• lib/core/ housed services like authentication and audio recording
• lib/features/ included modules like awareness, finance, audio_recording, and proactive_feed, with well-separated logic layers: data, domain, presentation, and widgets
• lib/l10n/ supported localization - an important feature I added after early testers outside the US asked for multilingual options

The backend was powered by Express, with MongoDB for storage. I used Plaid for secure financial data aggregation, and Stripe to manage future monetization and subscriptions. Configuration management, error logging, and API design were all set up to support long-term growth.

AI as My Co-Founder

I’m not a career developer. I’m a founder with a vision - and tools like AI were how I bridged the gap between idea and execution.

Most of the code for Onu was generated or assisted by Grok-4, an AI coding tool by xAI. It handled everything from voice activation modules to finance syncing logic. I subscribed to Grok-4 early on because I saw how much time and friction it could save. It delivered.

I also leaned heavily on ChatGPT. In fact, this tool played a role across every phase of the build:

• Refining the product scope and naming
• Conducting risk assessments around Plaid and Stripe integration
• Drafting privacy and compliance policies
• Creating pricing comparisons and competitive analysis
• Helping write this very blog post

If you’re building anything solo today, you owe it to yourself to treat AI as a collaborator - not just a tool.

Breaking, Fixing, and Learning

Onu’s first version was clunky but functional. Audio didn’t record properly on Android because I forgot to request microphone permissions. Once I added the fix using Permission.microphone.request(), it started working smoothly.

Plaid was another hurdle. My initial setup of link tokens failed silently due to misconfigured environment variables. I had to read the API documentation several times to understand the full OAuth handshake. It took a while, but it taught me how critical it is to slow down and read carefully.

Performance issues also cropped up. MongoDB queries lagged until I introduced proper indexing. The UI needed optimization to work well on budget devices. I tuned widget rebuilds and compressed assets to make the app snappy and stable.

Every fix was a small win. Every bug was a hands-on lesson. And every update made the app feel more real.

Git, Docs, and Feedback Loops

Even as a solo builder, I used GitHub daily to version control everything. Clean commits, feature branches, and a well-maintained README.md saved me more than once when I needed to retrace my steps.

Documentation wasn’t just for clarity - it was motivational. Writing down what I’d accomplished gave me momentum. It also made it easier to onboard engineers later when I began expanding the team.

I shared Onu’s progress with early testers, friends, and communities. One conversation led to the idea for a proactive feed that surfaces reminders or money insights based on voice patterns. Another tester from Europe pushed me to support multi-language UI. Real people shaped this product.

Privacy and Responsibility

Handling both voice data and financial data meant I had to take privacy seriously. I built a transparent and professional privacy policy, clearly stating how user data is handled. We never store credentials from financial institutions. We follow Plaid’s best practices for token exchange, and all data storage is encrypted.

We intentionally avoided features like net worth tracking or speculative investment advice. Onu focuses on daily finance - spending, subscriptions, savings triggers - and how those behaviors intersect with your state of mind.

It’s built to be supportive, not invasive.

Letting Go: From Solo to Team

Eventually, I reached my limits. I had gotten Onu to a usable stage, but turning it into a polished, scalable platform required help. I leaned on my network and hired experienced engineers to take over the heavy lifting.

That transition was humbling. It taught me that great products are built by teams, not martyrs. Starting solo doesn’t mean staying solo. Knowing when to hand off is part of growing the vision.

What I Learned and What You Can Take Away

Building Onu taught me a lot. About software. About people. About myself.

I learned that planning beats guessing. I learned that AI is a superpower when you know how to use it. I learned that feedback makes your product real. And I learned that it’s okay to not know everything - so long as you keep showing up.

If you have an idea that won’t go away, don’t wait for permission or perfection. Start building. Ask for help. Use the tools that are available. And share your journey. You’ll be surprised how far you can go.