faq
Straight answers.
Ownership, timings, refunds, hosting, transfers and limits. If your question is not here, ask us directly.
Making an idea
What do I actually type?+
Two inputs. An idea name (1 to 60 characters) and a description (10 to 500 characters). No extra questions, no settings, no model choices, no style pickers. If you can write two sentences, you can run a build.
Is there any chat or prompting?+
No. StartIUP is a computer, not a chat and not a form. There is no conversation with an AI anywhere on the site. You type the two inputs, press Y, and the machine runs. That is the whole point: no prompting, no wrangling, no wasted credits.
What exactly do I receive?+
A hosted demo at its own URL (free for 7 days), the full app source files, the UX and brand files, a technical build spec ready for Cursor, Lovable, Claude Code or a developer, and a next-step prompt that walks from prototype to production, round by round. One email carries links to all of it.
How long does a build take?+
About two hours across six stages: business thinking (15 min), brand and UX files (10), technical build spec (40), building the app (45), deploying the demo (5), packaging (5). These are estimates, never promises. The build runs on our servers, so you can close the tab. We email you when it is done.
What does the build cost?+
69 credits, which is $69. One credit equals one dollar. Credits are reserved when the build starts and spent only if the build finishes. There are no subscriptions and no metered surprises.
What if my idea is vague?+
The pipeline makes reasonable assumptions and keeps going; it never asks a clarifying question. If an idea cannot be built as software at all, it produces the closest plausible software prototype and says so in the deliverables. If you want a different interpretation, run a NEW idea with a sharper description.
Are the prototypes perfect?+
No, and we say so plainly: small failures (a missing logo, a broken function) are normal. A prototype is a strong, ownable starting point, not production software. Everything it makes is disclosed as AI-generated.
Credits and payment
What is a credit?+
One credit is one dollar, bought up front in packs. Starter: 69 credits for $69. Builder: 200 for $180 (best value). Studio: 500 for $425. Payment is a hosted card checkout and receipts arrive by email. Your balance updates straight after any purchase.
Do credits expire?+
No. Credits never expire.
What if a build fails?+
The screen shows BUILD STOPPED. in red, with the reason, and your 69 credits are returned automatically. You never ask for it. RETRY runs the same idea again, NEW starts a fresh one. A build that keeps failing gets human attention from us, and you still lose nothing.
Can I get a refund on a pack?+
Build failures refund themselves, always. If something went wrong with a payment itself, write to us and we will fix it. Buy an idea purchases are final once the domain transfer code has been issued.
Is there a referral program?+
Every account has a referral code and link. When a new customer arrives through it, the new customer gets the credit.
Buy an idea
What am I buying, exactly?+
A complete, polished app already built with StartIUP, sold once, together with its premium domain. The listing shows a live demo, screenshots, and plain lists of what is included and what is not. You are buying a running start, not a plan.
When do I get everything?+
The app files download straight away after payment. The domain transfer code follows within 24 hours: you request the transfer from your purchases page, our team issues the code, and it appears there in a box you can copy. The demo on that domain goes offline once it is yours.
Can two people buy the same idea?+
No. Each listing is sold once. The first completed payment wins, and the listing locks while a payment is in progress. Sold ideas stay visible, marked sold.
Is a purchase final?+
Yes, once the transfer code is issued. Before that point, talk to us if something is wrong. Every purchase keeps a permanent proof record: payment, request, code issued, email, first view, downloads.
Demos and hosting
How long does the free demo last?+
7 days, with a small footer credit that reads "Designed and built by startiup.com". You get a reminder 2 days before expiry and on the day. After expiry the URL shows "this demo has ended". Your files stay downloadable either way.
What is premium hosting?+
10 credits. The demo stays live for 365 days and the footer credit is removed. Buy it from the build page any time before expiry.
Will StartIUP host my real product?+
No, deliberately. StartIUP does not host production apps, run payments for your app, or hold your customers. The demo is a showcase. The next-step prompt that ships with every build shows the road to real hosting, user accounts, payments and operations.
Privacy, ownership, limits
Who owns the output?+
You do, from day one. The source files, UX and brand files and the build spec are yours to take anywhere. Nothing in the generated code depends on StartIUP.
Will my idea stay private?+
Your ideas are private. They are never listed, sold or shown to anyone. Model providers work under zero data retention for training, intermediate work lives only in transient memory for the build, internal access is role-based and logged, and we audit this monthly. There are no third-party trackers on this site, and no fonts loaded from third parties.
Can I see the business thinking behind my prototype?+
No. The internal business blueprint the pipeline creates is never shown, sold or downloadable. You see progress and you receive the results: the prototype, the UX files, the build spec. The thinking is the machine's.
What ideas are not allowed?+
Anything illegal, hateful, violent, explicit, deceptive, infringing, malicious or harmful. Every idea is checked before a build starts. If an idea is refused, the build stops, the reason is stated, and your 69 credits are returned. Details live in the acceptable use policy.