2023 — The Year Things Got Real

2023 was when things started getting interesting.

Until then I was mostly learning, experimenting, and breaking things quietly on my own. But this year some of those experiments actually turned into real projects.

And the timing couldn’t have been better.

Because suddenly ChatGPT exploded everywhere.

Everyone was talking about AI, prompting, and building tools with it. Naturally my brain went:

“Alright… what can I build with this?”

GeetaGPT

One of the first things I built that year was GeetaGPT.

The idea was simple: use AI to answer questions using teachings from the Bhagavad Gita.

It started as a small experiment, but surprisingly people actually liked it. Friends shared it, people tried asking random philosophical questions, and for a moment it felt like I had built something pretty unique.

Today there are probably hundreds of GeetaGPT-like projects out there.

But back then it felt like exploring something new, and that excitement was the best part.

Enter Hackathons

2023 was also the year I stepped into the world of hackathons.

My first one was Diversion 2K23.

We showed up with zero preparation and a lot of confidence we absolutely didn’t deserve.

But those chaotic hours taught me a lot: late-night debugging, team brainstorming, and trying to make a demo work right before submission.

Stressful, chaotic… and honestly really fun.

And Somehow… We Won

Later that year our team joined an MLH hackathon.

Through a mix of caffeine, teamwork, and last-minute fixes…

we won first place.

That moment was surreal. For the first time I realized the things I was building could actually compete with others.

Also, the swags were nice. Very important detail.

A Random Game Dev Phase

Another random chapter of 2023: game development.

Inspired by Dani’s YouTube videos, I decided to try building my own game.

It was messy, buggy, and full of experiments, but it reminded me why building things is so fun.

Looking Back

2023 was chaotic in the best way.

AI experiments.
Hackathons.
A random game dev phase.
And somehow a hackathon win.

Most importantly, it was the year I realized:

Building things is way more fun than just learning about them.