How Two Founders Built Calai Into a $2 Million per Month Business in Just One Year

By Douglas Yu•

In this article, we’ll explore the remarkable journey of Calai, an AI-powered calorie tracker app, from its inception to generating $2 million in monthly revenue within 12 months. We will analyze the founders’ strategies around conversion funnels, social media marketing, and influencer collaborations, and reveal how you can apply these techniques to your own business.

Introduction to Calai and Its Founders

Calai is a cutting-edge calorie tracking application that leverages AI to make nutritional tracking easy and seamless. Instead of manually logging meals, users simply take a photo of their food, which is then analyzed using AI (powered by ChatGPT) to estimate calorie content accurately.

The app was created by two young co-founders:

  • Blake Anderson, 23 years old

  • Zach Katagari, 17 years old and still in high school at the time of launch

Both founders brought experience from previous SaaS projects like Totally Science, Rich GPT, and UMAX, which helped them build Calai efficiently.

Despite stiff competition from established players like MyFitnessPal (operating since 2005) and other apps like Lifum and Bite Pal, Calai quickly rose to prominence. It is currently ranked #7 in the health and fitness category with nearly 800,000 downloads in the past month alone.

What Sets Calai Apart?

The key differentiator for Calai is its AI-powered food recognition feature. This innovation simplifies the calorie tracking process dramatically, solving a major pain point for users who find manual logging tedious and time-consuming. Users just snap a photo of their meal, send it to ChatGPT for analysis, and get an instant estimate of calorie intake.

This streamlined experience has driven both downloads and user engagement, helping Calai scale rapidly as a lean team of just a few people manages the operation.

The High-Converting Paywall Funnel

At the heart of Calai’s revenue success is its carefully crafted paywall and onboarding funnel. This funnel accomplishes three crucial goals:

  • Increases conversion rates

  • Improves customer lifetime value (LTV)

  • Reduces churn

Hard Paywall and Trial Offers

Calai uses a hard paywall model, meaning users must enter their credit card details before accessing the app. This is in contrast to a soft paywall, where users can use the app freely with limited features.

The paywall funnel consists of:

  • Free trial hook: Users are offered a 3-day free trial with the yearly subscription plan.

  • Anchoring pricing: Monthly plan is anchored at $10/month ($120/year). The yearly plan is presented with an 80-90% discount, making it very attractive.

  • Second offer: If users decline the yearly plan, they get a one-time offer for $20 per year, which appears as a $100 discount compared to the monthly plan.

This approach weeds out free-riders and ensures that the users who enter credit card info are genuinely committed, improving overall revenue and app quality.

Effective Onboarding with Quiz Funnels

Before reaching the paywall, users go through a long onboarding quiz funnel asking psychological and commitment-based questions. This process invests users more deeply in the app, making them more likely to convert when faced with the paywall. The quality of users entering the billing cycle is higher, reducing churn and boosting LTV.

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Sales-Optimized Social Media Strategy

Calai’s marketing strategy bridges the gap between discovery and conversion through an optimized social media presence on platforms like Instagram and TikTok.

Clean and Informative Profile Layout

Their Instagram profile includes:

  • Clear name and title

  • Simple bio with social proof (e.g., download stats)

  • Direct link to the app store

  • Pinned reels showcasing tutorials and how-to content

Use of Instagram Stories as a Sales Tool

They use Instagram stories smartly as a quasi-sales page featuring:

  • Testimonials and influencer endorsements

  • Customer reviews (including from external sources like App Store and Trustpilot)

  • Research explaining the app’s accuracy and science

  • FAQ videos to build trust by sharing founder insights

  • Reposts of user-generated content featuring food scans

Improvement Tip: Featuring video testimonials from influencers instead of just images or quotes would create more credibility and engagement.

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Influencer and Content Marketing Engine

Calai’s growth also heavily relies on a powerful influencer marketing engine, alongside heavy content posting.

Influencer Collaboration Process

  • Manual outreach through DMs, now handled by a dedicated team

  • Negotiation and bulk ordering to lower rates

  • Referral codes to track conversions and incentivize audiences

  • Ongoing campaigns with over 150 fitness creators on monthly retainers

Stealth Promo Strategy

Calai uses a subtle “stealth promo” approach where influencer videos mimic viral hooks but seamlessly integrate the app promotion mid-video without overt sales pitches. This keeps engagement high and avoids turning viewers off with direct ads.

Posting Consistency and Volume

  • Nearly 1,000 posts in 12 months

  • Approximately 2.6 reels posted daily on Instagram alone

  • Consistent daily posting maintains presence and algorithm favor

  • Posting peak times centered around midnight to maximize engagement

This relentless consistency beats out occasional viral hits and ensures steady follower growth and app installs.

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TikTok and Multi-Account Posting

Calai applies a similar short-form content strategy on TikTok:

  • Multiple accounts posting variations of content to maximize reach

  • Use of slideshow format videos that combine images and bait text to drive comments

  • Comment hijacking to answer app questions organically and promote downloads

  • No direct calls to action; instead, using intrigue and community interaction

The TikTok and Instagram strategies work hand-in-hand, each reinforcing the other.

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Once Calai had a large content library and tested winning influencer videos, they leveraged paid advertising for scale:

  • Spending around $7,000 per day on ads

  • Running about 61 ad creatives, largely repurposed viral influencer videos

  • Accurate tracking of conversions through pixels on ad platforms

  • Paid ads serve to retarget drop-offs from the funnel and reach wider audiences

This paid amplification allows Calai to rapidly expand installs while maintaining measurable ROI.

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The Growth Flywheel and Reinvestment

Calai’s success is a virtuous cycle fueled by:

  • A viral, easy-to-understand product that users want to share

  • Influencer-driven viral content attracting organic installs

  • Data-driven paid advertising for scalable growth

  • A strong paywall funnel that monetizes installs efficiently

  • High profit margins reinvested aggressively into more marketing and product development

Currently, Calai enjoys approximately 50% profits, enabling sustained reinvestment and expansion.

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The Road Ahead: Dethroning MyFitnessPal

MyFitnessPal, a veteran in the space since 2005, currently generates around $12 million monthly revenue and is valued at $345 million. Calai, within a year, has caught up to $2 million monthly without VC funding, which is an incredible feat.

Suggestions for Future Growth

1. Expand into Google and YouTube Ads:

Target older demographics through search and video ads to broaden the user base beyond Gen Z and millennials.

2. Build a Strong Brand:

Move beyond the novelty of AI photo scanning. Develop long-form content like workout tutorials, cooking guides, and motivational videos on platforms like YouTube.

3. Create a User Community:

Add social features in the app—group challenges, leaderboards, streaks—to foster deeper engagement and emotional attachment.

4. Develop Long-Term Marketing Campaigns:

Launch fitness challenges and educational courses that embed Calai into users’ fitness journeys, similar to how classic programs like P90X created lasting legacies.

5. Refine Paid Ad Strategy:

Move beyond repurposed viral videos to create customized creatives targeting users at different stages of fitness awareness for better conversion.

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Conclusion

Calai’s story is a masterclass in blending product innovation, sales psychology, influencer marketing, consistent content creation, and strategic paid advertising to create a rapidly scaling SaaS business.

The founders' bootstrap approach and razor-sharp execution have challenged incumbents in a billion-dollar space. Their high-quality onboarding funnel, hard paywall strategy, and viral marketing engine serve as valuable blueprints for any entrepreneur.

If you’re interested in adopting similar strategies for your SaaS or app, studying Calai’s approach offers immense insights. For personalized help scaling your business, consider joining communities of founders or working with experts who specialize in growth strategies.

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About the Author

Sebastian is an online business growth expert with multiple 6- to 7-figure businesses under his belt. He helps entrepreneurs scale their SaaS apps and mobile products through tested marketing and revenue strategies.

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