In an exclusive interview with CanadianSME Small Business Magazine, Kyle Bauder, Founder and Developer of Zelse, shares his journey of transforming a simple idea into an app designed to encourage exploration, connection, and community engagement. Combining his background in programming, business, and entrepreneurship, Kyle discusses how Zelse uses missions and rewards to motivate people to discover their surroundings beyond traditional screen-based experiences.
Interview By Maheen Bari
My name is Kyle Bauder. I am an app developer who has been working on my app Zelse this year. Zelse is an exploration app that gets people doing missions and earning points out in their city. I have a diverse educational background in education, programming, and accounting. I am a student at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in Edmonton, Alberta, where I have taken many business courses over the last few years. I did an entrepreneurial course called Project Blue Book in January of this year which gave me the skills to develop my own entrepreneurial vision. I am interested in the future of software development, particularly using AI models to streamline and develop applications quickly and effectively.
What inspired you to create Zelse, and what was your journey like from developing the idea to building your first business?
My first idea for an app was a friendship app, where people could connect with others based on shared interests. As I developed it though, it turned into an idea where people could go out and accomplish things to get them out of the house. I thought that a “gamified” element would be interesting, as people seem to love apps like Duolingo that allow you to earn points and improve your score. It ended up consolidating into an app where people get rewarded for doing missions in their city, visiting different attractions and locations.
Since this was my first business, it required me to research a lot on how to start a business, build a brand, do marketing, etc. Early this year I did an entrepreneurship course at my university, so that was my first taste of learning what it takes to go from creating an idea into putting it out in the world and building a business around it. It ended up being very fun, and I found a lot of enjoyment in taking a concept and turning it into something tangible.
Zelse encourages people to explore their communities through missions and rewards. How do you see technology helping people reduce screen time and become more engaged with the world around them?
I think that there is a massive untapped market in terms of technology that actually gets you away from technology. Over the last fifteen years or so, massive corporations have spent a lot of time and money perfecting ways of keeping people addicted to their phones and screens, and I believe that there is a large market for apps and programs that get people to limit this encroachment. I think of different apps like Pushscroll that only unlocks your social media apps after you do a set amount of push-ups.
I also take a lot of influence from Pokémon GO. Some people say that the summer of 2016 was the closest that we’ve gotten to world peace, because everyone was outside trying to catch Pokémon. I like the idea of technology that basically forces people to get outside and interact with others and their community. I think people are craving real human interaction, and wherever there is a need, the market can step in and facilitate that. Just like how tons of corporations can market unhealthy food to people, but other companies can then step in to promote health and fitness.
What challenges did you face while developing and launching Zelse, and what lessons have you learned as a first-time entrepreneur?
I think the biggest challenge when developing a concept like Zelse is the uncertainty that comes from taking an untested idea and trying to put it out in the market where people will actually use it. I believe that a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs get scared in taking the leap from idea into execution. Sometimes interesting ideas end up falling flat in reality because of a lack of market need, or poor execution. The biggest challenge is those few weeks where nobody knows what you are working on and you have to rely on your own motivation and discipline in order to develop a product that people can see and use.
A lesson I’ve learned over time is that you have to get to the point where you get feedback from the world. Whether it’s positive or critical, it’s important to keep going until somebody responds to what you are doing. Praise is awesome, for sure, but it’s equally important to hear things like “you could improve the design of this” or “this functionality isn’t working”. Hearing nothing from the world is what gets people to abandon their idea.
With AI transforming software development, where do you see the future of app development and how will emerging technologies shape the way entrepreneurs build products?
AI has massively opened up software development to non-programmers. There are so many options now for people to generate apps relatively easily with AI tools like Cursor. AI is still not perfect, and definitely creates some redundant code, but overall these programs make it so that you need very little programming knowledge to develop your own application. It used to be ten years ago that building an app would require hundreds of hours of intense research and practice.
Already there are programs that can seemingly build an entire app from scratch, but I don’t think we are quite at the level where this is usable for creating something to sell to the market. I do predict that in five years it will be possible to generate entire complicated apps with a single prompt. For now, I would recommend entrepreneurs embrace AI and use it in both the planning and implementation phases.
As a young entrepreneur, what advice, resources, or books would you recommend to others looking to turn their ideas into successful businesses?
My biggest piece of advice would be to start reading business books, as this can start to point you in the right direction for your goals. It helps to really get in-depth with another person’s perspective and immerse yourself in their thought process. The biggest influence on me is a book called The Millionaire Fastlane by MJ Demarco. This book really showed me that not all businesses are created equally, and that you want to try and create something that can massively scale and impact lots of customers. For marketing I would recommend Trust Me, I’m Lying by Ryan Holiday as an interesting look at how to use the media to your advantage.
As for turning ideas into a successful business, I would say to always be adapting and open to changing course. A business idea may evolve and change as you get more information from the market and what people want out of your product. It might end up being that you go in a completely different direction with your product because that’s what people respond positively to.
Disclaimer:
The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of CanadianSME Small Business Magazine. Our platform is dedicated to fostering dialogue and sharing insights that inspire and empower small and medium-sized businesses across Canada.
