S5E15: Daniel Nalesnik - Founder of HackChinese and Core Graduate

Launch School Podcast

In this episode, Chris interviews Daniel Nalesnik, the creator of Hack Chinese and a core curriculum graduate. Daniel used the fundamentals learned in the core program to build his own business.

They spend the first part of the episode discussing Daniel's winding journey to Launch School in which he left a successful career behind. Daniel quit his job to pursue Launch School full-time, driven by a long-held vision to create an application that would later become Hack Chinese. Unlike many students who pursue Capstone, Daniel was focused on the mastery-based core curriculum to build a solid foundation, equipping himself with the skills necessary to bring his idea to life.

During the rest of the episode, Daniel shares the process of developing Hack Chinese, a language-learning platform designed to help users master Chinese characters through spaced repetition. Daniel was determined to be the sole developer, choosing to forgo venture backing and take on the project independently, even though it meant several years of work before success. He explains his desire to maintain complete sole proprietary and the satisfaction he finds in personally crafting every aspect of Hack Chinese.

We hope you enjoy the episode!