I stopped looking for apps that do exactly what I want, and started vibe-coding the missing features

Published Nov 9, 2026, 6:00 AM EST Mahnoor Faisal is a tech journalist covering AI and productivity tools with bylines at XDA, SlashGear, MakeUseOf, Laptop Mag, and Android Police. She's been writing professionally since she was sixteen, and has since penned hundreds of articles. This includes in-depth coverage of AI tools like NotebookLM to breaking news across the AI space. Her passion for technology started when she received her first iPod Touch (4th generation) on her 8th birthday, and she's been deep in the tech world ever since. Currently pursuing a degree in computer science, Mahnoor brings both a journalist's eye and a technical foundation to her coverage of how AI is reshaping the way we work and learn. There's not all that much in common between apps, movies, TV shows, books, tech devices, makeup, fragrances, and even cars. Sure, you could categorize all of them as wants rather than needs, but the list of obvious similarities pretty much ends there. Think about how you go about finding a new product, though. Whether you're looking for a new fragrance, a phone, or an app to organize your life, the process is usually pretty similar. You do some research online, look at what people are recommending, scroll through Reddit threads, watch a few reviews, and eventually narrow down your options. That's largely been my approach, too. However, AI has added another option to the mix (no, I don't mean asking ChatGPT for recommendations): vibe coding. Instead of endlessly searching for an app that ticks every box, I've started building the features I wish my existing apps had. It's practically impossible for one app to tick every box Every app gets something right, but none get everything right I've tested countless apps across all sorts of categories, both for work and personal use, and if there's one thing I've learned, it's that no matter how good an app is, there's almost always something I wish it did differently. Even my favorite apps have had their flaws, and it'd be unfair to blame them for that. Take note-taking, for example. Some apps are unmatched when it comes to organizing notes, while others excel at handwriting, PDF annotation, or letting you jot down ideas quickly. For example, I'm a fan of both handwriting (well, Apple-Pencil-writing) and typing my notes. I jump between the two depending on the task at hand, and I'm yet to find a note-taking app that lets me do both seamlessly without compromising on other features I rely on. Plus, an app might have one specific feature I've been desperately looking for, but switching to it would mean giving up three other features I've come to rely on in my current setup. Ultimately, I have two choices: either compromise or keep jumping between different apps to get everything done. The solution now is the same as it was before Nothing's changed (except everything) Ironically, the solution to this problem is still the exact same as it was years ago, and hasn't really changed at all. If you want an app that caters to every single one of your preferences, the only way to realistically get there is to build it yourself. When you're the one building an app, you get to decide exactly what goes into it, which features you want to prioritize, and which ones you'd rather leave out entirely. You don't have to compromise on a feature you love just because the developer of your favorite app doesn't think it's worth adding. You can essentially mold the entire experience around how you want to use it. Of course, there's a reason most people haven't been doing this all along. Until fairly recently, building your own app meant learning how to code, spending a ridiculous amount of time developing it, and figuring out how to maintain it afterward. For most people, myself included, that was a much bigger commitment than simply putting up with a few missing features. What has completely changed, though, is the barrier to getting started. With AI coding tools, you no longer have to write every line of code yourself to turn an idea into something functional. You can describe what you want, iterate on the result, and gradually shape an app around your needs without having to build everything from scratch. All you need is an AI coding agent, an idea that you can describe clearly, and the willingness to experiment, troubleshoot, and refine things until you have something that works the way you want it to. Vibe coding lets me be as picky as I want Why compromise when I can customize? I've reached a point where, whenever I find myself wishing an app had a particular feature, my first instinct isn't necessarily to go looking for an alternative anymore. Instead, I start wondering whether I could just build it myself. Take Photoshop, for example. It's an incredibly powerful piece of software, but I don't need even half of what it offers. So, I've recently started working on my own Photoshop alternative that includes only the editing features I actually use. No overwhelming menus, no tools I'll probably never touch, and no unnecessary features cluttering up the interface. Just an editing app built around what I need it to do. I'm also working on a study app that combines the things I love about Notion, NotebookLM, and Quizlet. The interesting part, though, is that I'm not simply trying to recreate these three apps under one roof. I've spent countless hours studying with ChatGPT and other AI tools, so I asked them to analyze my study habits, identify what works for me, and figure out where my current approach falls short. I'm now using those insights to build a study app that's tailored to how I actually learn rather than having to adapt my learning style to the way someone else designed their app. Another excellent example is the note-taking scenario I mentioned above. After jumping between countless note-taking apps, I decided to take matters into my own hands and build one that combined all the features I'd been looking for. I wanted something that could handle everything from organizing my article research and annotating PDFs to handwriting notes with my Apple Pencil, without having to switch between different apps depending on what I was doing. So, I put Claude Code, Codex, and Google Antigravity to the test, gave all three the same list of features I wanted, and let them figure out the rest. Codex built an app that came very close to my ideal note-taking app, and I've been using it daily since. Sometimes, I don't even need to build an entire app from scratch. Other times, I can take the features I love from three different apps and combine them into something that works better for me. Either way, I'm no longer waiting for developers to add the features I want. I haven't completely given up on traditional apps (yet) All that to say, I haven't completely abandoned traditional apps, and I don't think I will anytime soon. Vibe coding comes with its own set of challenges, and building something that works is one thing, Maintaining it and making sure it continues to work is another! However, at least now, when an app falls short of my expectations, I know I have another option besides settling for less or endlessly hunting for alternatives.