Breaking News:How ChatGPT became turning point for ex-Google employees earning over $2 million a year– What Just Happened

Former Google employees, both aged 33, took a calculated risk by moving beyond their profitable business — which was earning them over $2 million a year — because of artificial intelligence (AI). In this case, far from harming their earnings, AI helped increase their income by 50%.

Dhruv Amin and Marcus Lowe, after leaving Google, were building a startup that was “profitable from day 1.” However, with the advent of AI, the duo considered opening a new organisation, which is now valued at $100 million.

Dhruv Amin and Marcus Lowe, both 33, are the co-founders and co-CEOs of Anything, an AI “vibe-coding” startup valued at about $100 million following an $11 million funding round, according to CNBC Make It.

The company was earlier known as Create, a marketplace that connected startups with freelance software engineers and used AI tools to help build apps and websites. Create was profitable “from Day 1,” Amin told the outlet.

How did ChatGPT become a turning point for the company?

However, the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 marked a turning point. Amin said the rapid leap in AI capabilities made the founders question whether human software developers would continue to be essential in the future.

By early 2023, Amin and Lowe concluded that advances in generative AI could eventually automate large parts of coding. This posed a direct threat to Create’s business model, which depended on matching clients with developers.

After months of discussion, the founders decided to shut down the marketplace in October 2023. They laid off half of their seven-member team and ended ties with freelance developers. “Within two weeks, we were back to an empty office,” Amin recalled.

The duo then began rebuilding the company from scratch. They first launched an AI-powered tool that could generate app components such as forms and calendars. In April 2025, they introduced a more advanced product that could build entire online businesses — including backend systems and payment features — without requiring users to have coding skills. Around the same time, the company was rebranded as Anything.

“That was actually the moment where it felt like it really took off,” Amin said. Within two weeks of the launch, the company reached a $2 million annualised revenue run rate, he added.

Amin said the AI coding space is still “extremely early” and has received mixed reactions. Even so, non-technical users have already created practical applications on Anything, including AI hairstylist apps and oral health trackers.

Looking back, Amin described the decision to “go back to zero” as one of the toughest moments of his career, though he believes timing played a key role.

“It’s a useful founding story now: This company will stick through it, even if the technology shifts, even if the business model shifts. At the time, it was hard. Now, I can say with some pride: You don’t have to just take my word that we’re serious about what we’re trying to do here. We’ve painted it in blood, sweat and tears,” he said.

“I hope our hardcore pivots are behind us, at this point. Now, I think we’re just more in the [mindset]: Let’s execute, let’s take advantage of opportunity, and let’s really grow it,” Amin added.