Open-Source Side Projects: Bootstrapped Profit Fast

A weird truth about bootstrapped growth: the thing that makes you money is often the thing you treated like a toy.

In a recent Indie Hackers story, founder Sam Bhattacharyya spent ~18 months building an AI video editing product that reached 10 paying customers and about $200 MRR—respectable for “no marketing,” but not exactly a business you can breathe easy about. Meanwhile, a free open-source video upscaler he shipped during the holidays and basically ignored grew on its own to 30,000 monthly active users (MAU). After he finally fixed bugs and cleaned up the site’s SEO, it hit 60,000 MAU—and when he added a paid tier that ran stronger models on server GPUs, it produced ~10x the revenue of his main product and pushed him to (near) profitability.

This post is part of the “US Startup Marketing Without VC” series, so I’m going to be opinionated: open-source can be your strongest bootstrapped marketing channel because it earns attention instead of renting it. If you’re trying to grow without venture capital, you should take stories like this personally—not as inspiration, but as a playbook.

Why open-source is a marketing channel (not a charity)

Open-source works as bootstrapped marketing because it reduces trust and distribution costs at the same time.

Most early-stage startups fail at “marketing” for a simple reason: you’re asking strangers to believe you. Open-source flips that dynamic. People can:

• Try the product immediately (or inspect how it works)
• Share it without awkward referral mechanics
• Build on it, fork it, or recommend it without feeling sold to

In Sam’s case, the upscaler solved a clear, low-friction problem: “My video looks soft; I want it sharper.” That’s not a speculative future benefit. It’s an instant win. And instant wins spread.

Here’s the stance: bootstrapped startups should treat open-source like content that runs. A blog post persuades. A free tool proves.

The hidden compounding effect: trust + habit

The most valuable outcome isn’t traffic. It’s habitual return.

A video upscaler is the kind of tool people use repeatedly: new clip, new export, new problem. That repeat usage is a compounding advantage. Every time someone comes back, you get:

• Another chance to convert
• Another chance to learn what they want
• Another chance they tell a friend

That’s “marketing without VC” in its purest form: your product does the distribution.

The “ignored side project” pattern (and why it keeps happening)

This story isn’t rare; it’s just painfully familiar.

Founders tend to overvalue the project that feels ambitious and undervalue the project that feels obvious. The ambitious one has a big vision and a complex roadmap. The obvious one quietly racks up users.

Here’s the pattern I see over and over:

1. You build a “main startup” with a longer adoption curve.
2. You ship a small tool that solves a narrow pain fast.
3. The small tool spreads because it’s easy to understand and easy to share.
4. You ignore it because it wasn’t part of The Plan.
5. The market taps you on the shoulder with numbers you can’t explain away.

Sam’s numbers were loud: 30K MAU → 60K MAU after basic maintenance + SEO, then a paid tier out-earning the flagship product.

The lesson isn’t “always chase the side project.” The lesson is sharper:

Your roadmap doesn’t decide what’s viable. Distribution does.

Why “simple tools” often monetize faster than “big platforms”

Simple tools win early because they’re easy to evaluate.

An AI video editing app might be better long-term. But it asks for more from the user:

• Upload a long file
• Wait for processing
• Understand a workflow change
• Trust edits you didn’t make
• Integrate it into a production process

An upscaler asks for almost none of that. Upload. Enhance. Download. Done.

If you’re bootstrapping in the US, this matters because the market right now is crowded and impatient. In 2026, “AI” isn’t a differentiator. Time-to-value is.

What to do when your free tool beats your main product

When a side project outperforms your main product, you don’t need a dramatic identity crisis. You need a portfolio mindset.

A commenter on the thread nailed it: the upscaler solves a clear problem with low friction, while the editor has a longer path to adoption. That doesn’t make one “better.” It means they play different roles.

The Bootstrapped Barbell Strategy

Use the fast-growing tool to fund the slower, higher-upside product.

I call this a bootstrapped barbell:

• One product optimized for distribution and quick conversions (the “cashflow engine”)
• One product optimized for long-term differentiation (the “vision bet”)

This is how you avoid two common bootstrapping traps:

• Trap #1: Starving the vision because revenue is always “two months away.”
• Trap #2: Chasing novelty and resetting momentum every time you get bored.

The goal isn’t to pick your favorite. The goal is to stay in the game long enough for the big bet to mature, without raising venture capital.

A practical decision framework (use this next week)

If you’re deciding where to spend your hours, score each product 1–5 on:

1. Time-to-value: how fast a new user gets a win
2. Organic shareability: how often users naturally share it
3. Support load: how much maintenance it demands
4. Monetization clarity: how obvious the paid upgrade is
5. Strategic fit: how well it supports your longer-term mission

Then pick a default allocation like:

• 70%: the product paying the bills (or closest to it)
• 30%: the product you’re building for the long run

Adjust quarterly, not daily. Mood-based strategy kills bootstrapped companies.

Turning an open-source tool into leads (without feeling salesy)

If your campaign goal is leads, open-source can generate them—without turning your repo into an ad.

The trick is to separate “use” from “upgrade.” Let the free tool stay generous, but make the paid tier clearly better for specific users.

Monetization moves that fit open-source

For a tool like a video upscaler, common paid-tier triggers look like:

• Faster processing (server GPUs vs local)
• Higher-quality models / better outputs
• Batch jobs (multiple videos at once)
• Higher resolution limits
• Commercial usage, team features, or SLA

What worked in the story: a paid version with better AI models on server GPUs. That’s a clean value story. You’re not charging for access; you’re charging for results and convenience.

Lead capture that doesn’t tank conversion

Most founders get this wrong by gating too early.

If you want leads without killing growth:

• Let users complete one success loop before you ask for email
• Place upgrades at natural “pain moments” (speed, quality, limits)
• Offer an optional email for “processing finished” notifications
• Add a simple “Send me updates” checkbox instead of a pop-up wall

The point: earn the email after you delivered value.

SEO for free tools: the unsexy multiplier

Sam’s jump from 30K to 60K MAU after bug fixes and SEO is the part founders should copy.

For bootstrapped startup marketing, SEO is one of the few channels where time works in your favor.

A straightforward SEO checklist for free tools:

1. One page per intent: “upscale video,” “enhance video quality,” “AI video upscaler,” etc.
2. Show the result: before/after examples (even lightweight ones)
3. Performance matters: pages that load fast outrank pages that don’t
4. Fix indexing basics: titles, meta descriptions, canonical URLs
5. Answer-first copy: short explanations users can scan

If your tool is already getting organic traction, SEO isn’t a “growth experiment.” It’s maintenance on an asset.

How to connect the side project to your main startup (without derailing it)

Once your side project has traffic, you can use it to support the bigger product—carefully.

The cleanest approach is adjacent upsells, not forced funnels.

For example:

• Upscaler users care about video quality and production speed.
• Video editing automation users care about turning raw footage into publishable content.

That’s a natural bridge.

Three low-risk cross-promotion plays

1. Post-success suggestion: After export, show “Want this clipped for socials too?”
2. Use-case content: “From blurry Zoom recording to publish-ready podcast” (and feature the editor as the next step)
3. Audience segmentation: Ask one question: “What are you editing?” (podcast, course, ads). Use that to recommend the right product.

Do not slap a big banner on the homepage and call it strategy. Keep the free tool’s promise intact.

People also ask: should you pivot when the side project wins?

If the side project is paying you and growing, you should treat it like a real product. That means reliability, clear pricing, and a basic roadmap.

You shouldn’t automatically pivot your identity to it. Bootstrapping isn’t about romance; it’s about survival and optionality.

A good rule: pivot when the winning project also has a path to durable differentiation. If it’s a commodity, it can still fund you—but don’t bet your whole future on something that can be cloned in a weekend.

What I’d copy from this story (if I was bootstrapping in 2026)

If you’re building a US startup without VC money, here’s what to steal:

• Ship small tools that deliver an instant win. They spread faster than big platforms.
• Let open-source be your proof, not your pitch. Trust compounds.
• Do the boring work once traction appears. Bug fixes + SEO can double usage.
• Monetize with clear, user-driven upgrades. Better outputs, faster runs, higher limits.
• Use the cashflow engine to buy time for the long bet. That’s how you stay independent.

The reality? “Marketing without VC” isn’t about clever tactics. It’s about building assets—tools, community goodwill, search demand—that keep working when you’re not paying for ads.

If you’ve got a side project sitting in a repo that already has users, treat it like the market handed you a wedge. Are you going to pick it up—or keep pushing the boulder that nobody can see yet?