Vibecode Brilliant
track this build5 steps, step by step0%A consolation build is possible, but the paid product's decisive value sits outside a solo rebuild. For Brilliant, build interactive practice around user-authored math and science lessons. The hard boundary is expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights, plus content, pedagogy, and network.
You are building a lean indie version of Brilliant. Create the following project files first, then implement the application by following them. Keep the files updated as decisions change. Do not collapse this into a single README or prompt. ===== README.md ===== # Brilliant indie build ## Goal Build the smallest trustworthy replacement for the core Brilliant workflow for one developer or a tiny team. ## Scope Turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. ## Quick start 1. Install the documented dependencies. 2. Copy `.env.example` to `.env`. 3. Run the development command chosen during implementation. 4. Complete the acceptance checks in `BUILD_PLAN.md`. ## Honest limits This build deliberately does not replace: - expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights - licensed course catalog - expert curriculum - human feedback - large learner network and certification If those capabilities are essential, use Moodle instead of pretending the gap is solved. ===== AGENTS.md ===== # Agent instructions - Optimize for a working, understandable weekend build. - Prefer the fewest moving parts that satisfy the brief. - Do not invent cryptography, security guarantees, APIs, or compliance claims. - Keep secrets out of source control and logs. - Add focused tests for destructive, security-sensitive, and data-loss paths. - Run the project checks before declaring the build complete. - Record any deliberate shortcut in the README under "Tradeoffs". ===== BUILD_PLAN.md ===== # Build plan ## Original build brief Build a closest honest personal substitute for Brilliant in an empty repository. Use Next.js 15, TypeScript, SQLite, Drizzle ORM, and a service worker for offline use; do not offer alternative stacks. The core loop is: turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. Make the first run work locally with one documented command. Store all user data locally by default and make export straightforward. Put secrets in .env, ship .env.example, and never commit credentials. Import Markdown, text, or user-authored notes and split them into editable learning units. Create flashcards and short quizzes only after showing the generated items for approval. Implement a transparent spaced-repetition schedule with due, again, hard, good, and easy actions. Add goals, study sessions, streak-free progress charts, notes, and weak-topic review. For language practice, record the learner and compare timing or pronunciation without presenting medical claims. Support offline use, full export, reset, backup, and deletion of all learning data. Include clear empty, loading, success, and recoverable error states. Add input validation, safe filenames, and graceful handling of unavailable APIs. Write focused tests for the core transformation and one end-to-end happy path. Create a README with setup, architecture, permissions, data location, and backup steps. Do not add accounts, billing, telemetry, analytics, or a hosted control plane. Do not claim to reproduce proprietary data, network liquidity, regulated access, or frontier infrastructure. Deliberately leave out licensed premium courses. Deliberately leave out accredited certificates and grading. Deliberately leave out live tutors, large classrooms, and a learner marketplace. Finish by running the tests and listing the exact commands used. ## Required capabilities - modern browser - user-supplied study material - optional speech or language-model API key ## Delivery order 1. Scaffold the smallest runnable application and document its commands. 2. Implement the primary data model and core workflow. 3. Add validation, safe failure states, and persistence. 4. Cover the critical path with automated tests. 5. Exercise a clean install from the README and fix every missing step. ## Done when - A new user can go from clone to first successful workflow using only the README. - The core workflow works without paid infrastructure unless the brief requires it. - Tests cover the highest-risk behavior. - Known limitations are explicit rather than hidden. ===== .env.example ===== # Copy to .env and document every variable when it is introduced. # Never put real credentials in this file. APP_ENV=development # Add only values required by the selected implementation.
You are building a lean indie version of Brilliant. Create the following project files first, then implement the application by following them. Keep the files updated as decisions change. Do not collapse this into a single README or prompt. ===== README.md ===== # Brilliant indie build ## Goal Build the smallest trustworthy replacement for the core Brilliant workflow for one developer or a tiny team. ## Scope Turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. ## Quick start 1. Install the documented dependencies. 2. Copy `.env.example` to `.env`. 3. Run the development command chosen during implementation. 4. Complete the acceptance checks in `BUILD_PLAN.md`. ## Honest limits This build deliberately does not replace: - expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights - licensed course catalog - expert curriculum - human feedback - large learner network and certification If those capabilities are essential, use Moodle instead of pretending the gap is solved. ===== AGENTS.md ===== # Agent instructions - Optimize for a working, understandable weekend build. - Prefer the fewest moving parts that satisfy the brief. - Do not invent cryptography, security guarantees, APIs, or compliance claims. - Keep secrets out of source control and logs. - Add focused tests for destructive, security-sensitive, and data-loss paths. - Run the project checks before declaring the build complete. - Record any deliberate shortcut in the README under "Tradeoffs". ===== BUILD_PLAN.md ===== # Build plan ## Original build brief Build a closest honest personal substitute for Brilliant in an empty repository. Use Next.js 15, TypeScript, SQLite, Drizzle ORM, and a service worker for offline use; do not offer alternative stacks. The core loop is: turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. Make the first run work locally with one documented command. Store all user data locally by default and make export straightforward. Put secrets in .env, ship .env.example, and never commit credentials. Import Markdown, text, or user-authored notes and split them into editable learning units. Create flashcards and short quizzes only after showing the generated items for approval. Implement a transparent spaced-repetition schedule with due, again, hard, good, and easy actions. Add goals, study sessions, streak-free progress charts, notes, and weak-topic review. For language practice, record the learner and compare timing or pronunciation without presenting medical claims. Support offline use, full export, reset, backup, and deletion of all learning data. Include clear empty, loading, success, and recoverable error states. Add input validation, safe filenames, and graceful handling of unavailable APIs. Write focused tests for the core transformation and one end-to-end happy path. Create a README with setup, architecture, permissions, data location, and backup steps. Do not add accounts, billing, telemetry, analytics, or a hosted control plane. Do not claim to reproduce proprietary data, network liquidity, regulated access, or frontier infrastructure. Deliberately leave out licensed premium courses. Deliberately leave out accredited certificates and grading. Deliberately leave out live tutors, large classrooms, and a learner marketplace. Finish by running the tests and listing the exact commands used. ## Required capabilities - modern browser - user-supplied study material - optional speech or language-model API key ## Delivery order 1. Scaffold the smallest runnable application and document its commands. 2. Implement the primary data model and core workflow. 3. Add validation, safe failure states, and persistence. 4. Cover the critical path with automated tests. 5. Exercise a clean install from the README and fix every missing step. ## Done when - A new user can go from clone to first successful workflow using only the README. - The core workflow works without paid infrastructure unless the brief requires it. - Tests cover the highest-risk behavior. - Known limitations are explicit rather than hidden. ===== .env.example ===== # Copy to .env and document every variable when it is introduced. # Never put real credentials in this file. APP_ENV=development # Add only values required by the selected implementation.
You are building a production product version of Brilliant. Create the following project files first, then implement the application by following them. Keep the files updated as decisions change. Do not collapse this into a single README or prompt. ===== PRODUCT.md ===== # Brilliant product brief ## Problem A consolation build is possible, but the paid product's decisive value sits outside a solo rebuild. For Brilliant, build interactive practice around user-authored math and science lessons. The hard boundary is expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights, plus content, pedagogy, and network. ## Product outcome Turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. ## Target user A serious builder who needs a maintainable product foundation rather than a one-off demo. ## Required capabilities - modern browser - user-supplied study material - optional speech or language-model API key ## Explicit non-goals for v1 - expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights - licensed course catalog - expert curriculum - human feedback - large learner network and certification ## Success criteria - The primary workflow is measurable end to end. - Setup is reproducible in a clean environment. - Failure, recovery, and support paths are documented. - Product claims match what the implementation actually guarantees. ===== ARCHITECTURE.md ===== # Architecture ## Starting brief Build a closest honest personal substitute for Brilliant in an empty repository. Use Next.js 15, TypeScript, SQLite, Drizzle ORM, and a service worker for offline use; do not offer alternative stacks. The core loop is: turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. Make the first run work locally with one documented command. Store all user data locally by default and make export straightforward. Put secrets in .env, ship .env.example, and never commit credentials. Import Markdown, text, or user-authored notes and split them into editable learning units. Create flashcards and short quizzes only after showing the generated items for approval. Implement a transparent spaced-repetition schedule with due, again, hard, good, and easy actions. Add goals, study sessions, streak-free progress charts, notes, and weak-topic review. For language practice, record the learner and compare timing or pronunciation without presenting medical claims. Support offline use, full export, reset, backup, and deletion of all learning data. Include clear empty, loading, success, and recoverable error states. Add input validation, safe filenames, and graceful handling of unavailable APIs. Write focused tests for the core transformation and one end-to-end happy path. Create a README with setup, architecture, permissions, data location, and backup steps. Do not add accounts, billing, telemetry, analytics, or a hosted control plane. Do not claim to reproduce proprietary data, network liquidity, regulated access, or frontier infrastructure. Deliberately leave out licensed premium courses. Deliberately leave out accredited certificates and grading. Deliberately leave out live tutors, large classrooms, and a learner marketplace. Finish by running the tests and listing the exact commands used. ## Boundaries Separate the product into replaceable modules for interface, application logic, persistence, external integrations, and operational concerns. Keep domain logic independent from delivery frameworks and vendors. ## Production baseline - Configuration: validated at startup with safe local defaults where possible. - Security: least privilege, input validation, secret redaction, rate limits on abuse-prone paths, and no invented security primitives. - Data: explicit schema and migrations, transactional writes where integrity matters, backup and restore instructions. - Integrations: adapters around third-party providers, idempotent webhook or job processing, bounded retries, and timeouts. - Observability: structured logs with request or operation IDs, an error-tracking hook, and health/readiness checks where a server exists. - Quality: unit tests for domain rules, integration tests at module boundaries, and one end-to-end critical-path test. ## Decision records For each major dependency, document why it was chosen, its failure mode, and how it can be replaced. Do not introduce infrastructure until a requirement justifies it. ===== AGENTS.md ===== # Agent instructions - Read `PRODUCT.md` and `ARCHITECTURE.md` before changing code. - Implement milestone by milestone; keep each change reviewable and leave the application runnable. - Treat authentication, payments, encryption, imports, webhooks, and destructive actions as high-risk boundaries when present. - Never invent cryptography or silently weaken a requirement to make a test pass. - Use provider interfaces for external services and deterministic fakes in tests. - Add migrations and rollback or recovery notes for persistent data changes. - Log useful operational context without credentials, tokens, passwords, or personal data. - Update documentation and run all checks before completing a milestone. ===== MILESTONES.md ===== # Delivery milestones ## M0 — Decisions and scaffold - Confirm the runtime, persistence model, threat boundaries, and deployment target. - Create a reproducible local environment and continuous checks. ## M1 — Core workflow - Implement the smallest end-to-end product path with validation and tests. - Keep integrations behind interfaces. ## M2 — Trust layer - Add secure failure behavior, recovery paths, audit-relevant events, and data safeguards. - Test abuse cases and destructive operations. ## M3 — Operability - Add structured logs, error reporting hooks, health signals, backup/restore documentation, and deployment configuration. ## M4 — Release gate - Run a clean-install test, critical-path end-to-end test, dependency review, and documented rollback exercise. - Compare the shipped behavior with `PRODUCT.md` and publish remaining limitations. ===== OPERATIONS.md ===== # Operations ## Before release - Validate configuration and secrets at startup. - Define backup, restore, and rollback procedures and test them. - Document logs, error tracking, health signals, and alert ownership. - Set dependency update and vulnerability review expectations. ## Incident checklist 1. Contain the issue without destroying evidence or user data. 2. Record the timeline and affected scope. 3. Rotate exposed secrets and revoke compromised sessions or credentials. 4. Restore from a verified source when needed. 5. Document the root cause, remediation, and regression test. ## Launch constraint Do not market omitted Brilliant capabilities as implemented. The v1 non-goals in `PRODUCT.md` remain user-visible limitations until they are deliberately delivered.
# Brilliant indie build ## Goal Build the smallest trustworthy replacement for the core Brilliant workflow for one developer or a tiny team. ## Scope Turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. ## Quick start 1. Install the documented dependencies. 2. Copy `.env.example` to `.env`. 3. Run the development command chosen during implementation. 4. Complete the acceptance checks in `BUILD_PLAN.md`. ## Honest limits This build deliberately does not replace: - expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights - licensed course catalog - expert curriculum - human feedback - large learner network and certification If those capabilities are essential, use Moodle instead of pretending the gap is solved.
# Agent instructions - Optimize for a working, understandable weekend build. - Prefer the fewest moving parts that satisfy the brief. - Do not invent cryptography, security guarantees, APIs, or compliance claims. - Keep secrets out of source control and logs. - Add focused tests for destructive, security-sensitive, and data-loss paths. - Run the project checks before declaring the build complete. - Record any deliberate shortcut in the README under "Tradeoffs".
# Build plan ## Original build brief Build a closest honest personal substitute for Brilliant in an empty repository. Use Next.js 15, TypeScript, SQLite, Drizzle ORM, and a service worker for offline use; do not offer alternative stacks. The core loop is: turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. Make the first run work locally with one documented command. Store all user data locally by default and make export straightforward. Put secrets in .env, ship .env.example, and never commit credentials. Import Markdown, text, or user-authored notes and split them into editable learning units. Create flashcards and short quizzes only after showing the generated items for approval. Implement a transparent spaced-repetition schedule with due, again, hard, good, and easy actions. Add goals, study sessions, streak-free progress charts, notes, and weak-topic review. For language practice, record the learner and compare timing or pronunciation without presenting medical claims. Support offline use, full export, reset, backup, and deletion of all learning data. Include clear empty, loading, success, and recoverable error states. Add input validation, safe filenames, and graceful handling of unavailable APIs. Write focused tests for the core transformation and one end-to-end happy path. Create a README with setup, architecture, permissions, data location, and backup steps. Do not add accounts, billing, telemetry, analytics, or a hosted control plane. Do not claim to reproduce proprietary data, network liquidity, regulated access, or frontier infrastructure. Deliberately leave out licensed premium courses. Deliberately leave out accredited certificates and grading. Deliberately leave out live tutors, large classrooms, and a learner marketplace. Finish by running the tests and listing the exact commands used. ## Required capabilities - modern browser - user-supplied study material - optional speech or language-model API key ## Delivery order 1. Scaffold the smallest runnable application and document its commands. 2. Implement the primary data model and core workflow. 3. Add validation, safe failure states, and persistence. 4. Cover the critical path with automated tests. 5. Exercise a clean install from the README and fix every missing step. ## Done when - A new user can go from clone to first successful workflow using only the README. - The core workflow works without paid infrastructure unless the brief requires it. - Tests cover the highest-risk behavior. - Known limitations are explicit rather than hidden.
# Copy to .env and document every variable when it is introduced. # Never put real credentials in this file. APP_ENV=development # Add only values required by the selected implementation.
# Brilliant product brief ## Problem A consolation build is possible, but the paid product's decisive value sits outside a solo rebuild. For Brilliant, build interactive practice around user-authored math and science lessons. The hard boundary is expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights, plus content, pedagogy, and network. ## Product outcome Turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. ## Target user A serious builder who needs a maintainable product foundation rather than a one-off demo. ## Required capabilities - modern browser - user-supplied study material - optional speech or language-model API key ## Explicit non-goals for v1 - expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights - licensed course catalog - expert curriculum - human feedback - large learner network and certification ## Success criteria - The primary workflow is measurable end to end. - Setup is reproducible in a clean environment. - Failure, recovery, and support paths are documented. - Product claims match what the implementation actually guarantees.
# Architecture ## Starting brief Build a closest honest personal substitute for Brilliant in an empty repository. Use Next.js 15, TypeScript, SQLite, Drizzle ORM, and a service worker for offline use; do not offer alternative stacks. The core loop is: turn user-authored math and science lessons into a study plan with interactive practice, schedule retrieval practice, and show progress without claiming accredited instruction. Make the first run work locally with one documented command. Store all user data locally by default and make export straightforward. Put secrets in .env, ship .env.example, and never commit credentials. Import Markdown, text, or user-authored notes and split them into editable learning units. Create flashcards and short quizzes only after showing the generated items for approval. Implement a transparent spaced-repetition schedule with due, again, hard, good, and easy actions. Add goals, study sessions, streak-free progress charts, notes, and weak-topic review. For language practice, record the learner and compare timing or pronunciation without presenting medical claims. Support offline use, full export, reset, backup, and deletion of all learning data. Include clear empty, loading, success, and recoverable error states. Add input validation, safe filenames, and graceful handling of unavailable APIs. Write focused tests for the core transformation and one end-to-end happy path. Create a README with setup, architecture, permissions, data location, and backup steps. Do not add accounts, billing, telemetry, analytics, or a hosted control plane. Do not claim to reproduce proprietary data, network liquidity, regulated access, or frontier infrastructure. Deliberately leave out licensed premium courses. Deliberately leave out accredited certificates and grading. Deliberately leave out live tutors, large classrooms, and a learner marketplace. Finish by running the tests and listing the exact commands used. ## Boundaries Separate the product into replaceable modules for interface, application logic, persistence, external integrations, and operational concerns. Keep domain logic independent from delivery frameworks and vendors. ## Production baseline - Configuration: validated at startup with safe local defaults where possible. - Security: least privilege, input validation, secret redaction, rate limits on abuse-prone paths, and no invented security primitives. - Data: explicit schema and migrations, transactional writes where integrity matters, backup and restore instructions. - Integrations: adapters around third-party providers, idempotent webhook or job processing, bounded retries, and timeouts. - Observability: structured logs with request or operation IDs, an error-tracking hook, and health/readiness checks where a server exists. - Quality: unit tests for domain rules, integration tests at module boundaries, and one end-to-end critical-path test. ## Decision records For each major dependency, document why it was chosen, its failure mode, and how it can be replaced. Do not introduce infrastructure until a requirement justifies it.
# Agent instructions - Read `PRODUCT.md` and `ARCHITECTURE.md` before changing code. - Implement milestone by milestone; keep each change reviewable and leave the application runnable. - Treat authentication, payments, encryption, imports, webhooks, and destructive actions as high-risk boundaries when present. - Never invent cryptography or silently weaken a requirement to make a test pass. - Use provider interfaces for external services and deterministic fakes in tests. - Add migrations and rollback or recovery notes for persistent data changes. - Log useful operational context without credentials, tokens, passwords, or personal data. - Update documentation and run all checks before completing a milestone.
# Delivery milestones ## M0 — Decisions and scaffold - Confirm the runtime, persistence model, threat boundaries, and deployment target. - Create a reproducible local environment and continuous checks. ## M1 — Core workflow - Implement the smallest end-to-end product path with validation and tests. - Keep integrations behind interfaces. ## M2 — Trust layer - Add secure failure behavior, recovery paths, audit-relevant events, and data safeguards. - Test abuse cases and destructive operations. ## M3 — Operability - Add structured logs, error reporting hooks, health signals, backup/restore documentation, and deployment configuration. ## M4 — Release gate - Run a clean-install test, critical-path end-to-end test, dependency review, and documented rollback exercise. - Compare the shipped behavior with `PRODUCT.md` and publish remaining limitations.
# Operations ## Before release - Validate configuration and secrets at startup. - Define backup, restore, and rollback procedures and test them. - Document logs, error tracking, health signals, and alert ownership. - Set dependency update and vulnerability review expectations. ## Incident checklist 1. Contain the issue without destroying evidence or user data. 2. Record the timeline and affected scope. 3. Rotate exposed secrets and revoke compromised sessions or credentials. 4. Restore from a verified source when needed. 5. Document the root cause, remediation, and regression test. ## Launch constraint Do not market omitted Brilliant capabilities as implemented. The v1 non-goals in `PRODUCT.md` remain user-visible limitations until they are deliberately delivered.
$ choose a build depth, inspect the files, then open the complete pack in your agent · this prompt is generated from the build plan · improve it via PR
People still pay for Brilliant because the learning loop is buildable, while trusted curriculum, instructors, feedback, credentials, and community are not. The recurring cost buys curriculum quality, assessment validity, content rights, spaced-repetition tuning, speech models, sync, moderation, and support, not just the visible interface.
xexpert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights
xlicensed course catalog
xexpert curriculum
xhuman feedback
xlarge learner network and certification
Don't feel like building it? These folks already made it free.
all 5 free alternatives to Brilliant →· no votes, no pay-to-list · just what's real
Brilliant pricing
| plan | monthly | annual (per mo) | what you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| free | $0/user | $0/user | First 2 levels of every course; up to 2 lessons/day; sequential progress; occasional ads |
| premium individual | $30/user | $20/user | Unlimited lessons and all levels across 40+ courses; no ads; jump ahead; Koji tutoring |
| premium family | — | $40 | Up to 6 seats; each member gets a separate Premium account; all 40+ courses |
| premium group | — | $11.33/user | 3–50 seats; starts at 3 seats for $33.99/month equivalent; each extra seat $10.10/month |
free tierFirst 2 levels of every course and up to 2 lessons/day; sequential progress; occasional ads
billingIndividual monthly + annual; Family annual; Group annual only; subscriptions auto-renew
hidden costsGroup plan has a 3-seat minimum; extra seats cost $10.10/month each and a full group cannot add seats mid-term, capacity can be increased at renewal.
verified 2026-08-12 · source ↗
Vibecode Brilliant
Not really. Brilliant's value is not the code: Recheck price before merge. See the honest breakdown above.
How much does Brilliant cost?
Brilliant costs about $30/month (Premium Individual, checked 2026-08-12), which is $360 per year.
What do I lose by replacing Brilliant?
Honestly: expert curriculum, interactive problem library, pedagogy, apps, and content rights; licensed course catalog; expert curriculum; human feedback; large learner network and certification. If any of those are load-bearing for you, keep paying.
Is there an open-source alternative to Brilliant?
Yes: Moodle (Hosts authored activities, quizzes and progress, although the actual interactive pedagogy still has to come from you.) Oppia (Authors branching interactive explorations that respond to wrong answers instead of merely displaying the solution.) eXeLearning (A desktop lesson authoring tool for interactive exercises, games, equations and quizzes, with decidedly public-sector aesthetics.) All 5 curated free alternatives are at vibecodeit.com/brilliant/alternatives. The prompt is for when you want it exactly your way.