I wanted to teach myself programming and build something I would find useful. I imagined this would take, at most, 3 months. But 5 years later, here I am
BrainXP started as a personal passion project with a simple goal: to solve problems I encountered in my own learning. Sometimes I needed a specific piece of information but struggled to locate it. Other times, I realized I wasn't fully absorbing or reflecting on the books I read. And the stark difference between structured learning in school and the unstructured nature of real-world learning left me feeling disorganized and inefficient.
Initially, I didn't have a target audience — it was just something useful for me. However, along the way, I discovered I have ADHD and I suspect that BrainXP is probably a symptom of my pyschology. I recognised this tool might resonate with others: people passionate about learning but struggling to manage their knowledge effectively.
This weird web app has consumed my life! So many times I thought - why not use Obsidian? why not get Readwise? Why not pay for RoamResearch? I tried using other note-taking applications, keeping a log of what I was reading but... I kept coming back to BrainXP - the other applications were just... not quite right.
Short answer - I do not really know what makes BrainXP unique. It is not a professional app designed to scale — it's an imperfect tool that probably only suits people with my particular psychology. It's not incredibly sleek or performant as it's me, a self-taught programmer writing the entire codebase.
Unique does not mean useful anyway! It probably won't work for you
This project is, at its core, personal. It reflects my values, challenges, and aspirations. I did not really have any users in mind when building it. BrainXP is here for anyone who sees themselves as a lifelong learner
I had serious reservations about releasing it; serious reservations about charging for it. But, in the end, I thought, if I find it useful, maybe someone else will. Maybe it will spark something in you too!