Back to Blog
opinions

BuilderAI was Builder: Actually Indians?

British corporation Builder AI just declared bankruptcy and word on the street is, their AI was just vibe coders in India. AI: Actually Indians because they were doing more work than the AI.

4 min read
By Andy

BuilderAI Was Builder: Actually Indians?

Or: How a British AI unicorn turned out to be a vibe-powered outsourcing shop with a fancy website

Let's set the scene: London's tech darlings, Builder AI, just declared bankruptcy. The headlines are all about "AI startup collapse," but the real story is way juicier. Turns out, the only thing artificial about their intelligence was the marketing. The real work? Done by a team of overcaffeinated coders in India, grinding out code while the execs in the UK were busy raising money and writing LinkedIn thought-leadership posts.

The Great AI Pretendathon

Builder AI promised the world: "No-code, AI-powered app development for everyone!" Investors threw hundreds of millions at them, convinced they were buying into the next OpenAI. But behind the curtain? It was less ChatGPT, more ChatGopi-and-Team. The so-called "AI" was a thin wrapper over a Slack channel full of real humans, frantically building apps to meet deadlines the sales team had already promised.

The receipts:

  • $250M+ in funding, zero working AI products
  • 90% of code shipped by humans, not machines
  • "AI-powered" features = a dashboard for Indian devs to pick up tickets
  • Internal docs literally called the system "Wizard of Oz mode"
  • Commit fraud (optional) (yes they really did that and got $25 million taken out of their bank account, which forced them to declear bankruptcy because they NEVER actually did the work)

The Outsourcing Rebrand: Now With More Hype!

Let's be real: outsourcing isn't new. But Builder AI's genius was slapping an "AI" label on the same old playbook and selling it to VCs who wouldn't know a Python script from a python snake. The result? A British company with a billion-dollar valuation, powered by the same talent pool that's been quietly running the world's tech for decades, just with more midnight standups and less credit.

Why this worked (for a while):

  • Investors are desperate for the next AI unicorn, everyone and their mom is pouring millions into startups that slap "AI" to their name. MomAI, DadAI, GirlfriendAI, you get my point.
  • Most buyers can't tell the difference between real AI and a well-trained team in Bangalore
  • The press loves a good "AI disrupts everything" story

The Collapse: When the Vibes Run Out

Here's where it gets spicy. As the AI bubble started to wobble (see: Microsoft Copilot, DeepSeek, and every other "revolutionary" tool that's just a glorified autocomplete), Builder AI's clients started asking questions. Why did "AI" need to schedule Zoom calls at 3am IST? Why did every "automated" feature break if the lead developer took a day off?

The warning signs:

  • Missed deadlines, buggy products, and "AI" that needed coffee breaks
  • Whistleblowers leaking screenshots of Jira boards with 100% human assignments
  • Clients realizing their "AI-powered" apps were just... apps, built the old-fashioned way

The Real Lesson: AI Hype Is Just the New Offshoring

Here's the uncomfortable truth: the only thing new about Builder AI was the marketing. The real innovation? Convincing the world that a team of talented Indian engineers was actually a sentient algorithm. It's the same story as the dot-com bubble, just with more buzzwords and less due diligence.

What this means for the AI industry:

  • If your "AI" startup can't ship a demo without a team of sleep-deprived humans, it's not AI
  • Investors are finally waking up to the difference between code and hype
  • The next unicorn pitch deck better have more than a Figma mockup and a Slack channel full of coders

My Hot Take: Give Credit Where It's Due

Look, I'm not here to dunk on Indian engineers, they're the real MVPs of the global tech economy. But let's stop pretending that "AI" is doing the work when it's actually just people, underpaid and overworked, making the magic happen behind the scenes.

The bottom line:

  • Builder AI's collapse isn't about AI failing. It's about the tech industry's addiction to hype, and the willingness to believe in magic over math.
  • Next time someone pitches you "AI-powered everything," ask to see the code—and the payroll lol.

Because sometimes, the smartest thing in the room isn't artificial at all. It's just a really good engineer with a laptop and a deadline.

Newsletter

If you like me and wants to stay in my loop, you can subscribe to my newsletter.

Get to know me, updates on my projects, insightful thoughts on tech, and random thoughts delivered straight to your inbox on how you can be more productive and just genuine content.

Unsubscribe at any time. I respect your privacy and won't share your email.