In the fast-evolving world of artificial intelligence, few stories capture the transformative power of AI like that of Lovable, the Swedish startup revolutionizing software development. Founded in 2023, Lovable has skyrocketed to $200 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) in under two years, achieving this milestone with a lean team of around 100 employees. At the helm of its growth strategy is Elena Verna, a seasoned growth expert previously at companies like SurveyMonkey, Amplitude, Miro, and Dropbox. In a recent episode of Lenny's Podcast—published on December 18, 2025—Verna unpacked the "new AI growth playbook for 2026," revealing how Lovable shattered traditional SaaS conventions to build one of the fastest-growing companies in history.
Lovable's core innovation lies in "vibe-coding," a term popularized by Andrej Karpathy. Users simply describe their desired app or website in natural language—chatting with the AI about features, aesthetics, and behaviors—and the platform generates full-stack, production-ready code. Powered by leading models from OpenAI and Anthropic, Lovable handles everything from UI design and backend logic to databases, authentication, payments, and deployment. This democratizes software creation, enabling non-coders like teachers, designers, and entrepreneurs to build sophisticated tools without traditional development hurdles
The results speak for themselves: by November 2025, Lovable powered 100,000 daily projects, doubling from $100M ARR in July to $200M just four months later. This hypergrowth outpaces even legendary SaaS benchmarks like Slack, and it's fueled by organic virality rather than massive sales teams or paid advertising. Verna emphasizes that in the AI era, 60-70% of traditional growth tactics no longer apply. Old playbooks focused on optimizing funnels, heavy marketing spends, and sales-led motions are obsolete when products evolve weekly amid rapid LLM advancements.
Instead, Lovable's strategy hinges on relentless innovation. "Prioritize shipping features over fine-tuning activation," Verna advises. The company releases updates constantly, embracing technical debt to stay ahead in a landscape where competitors can replicate features overnight. Product-market fit isn't a static milestone—it's reassessed weekly or even daily as underlying AI capabilities improve.
A cornerstone of this approach is an aggressive freemium model. Lovable gives away core functionality for free, encouraging widespread usage and word-of-mouth sharing. This contrasts sharply with trial-based models common in pre-AI SaaS. By lowering barriers to entry, users experiment freely, build real projects, and naturally upgrade when needing advanced features or scale. Verna calls this "giving away the product" as the ultimate growth lever, turning users into evangelists.
Another paradigm shift: the rise of the "minimum lovable product" (MLP) over the minimum viable product (MVP). In AI, mere viability isn't enough—products must delight from day one to spark viral adoption. Lovable obsesses over making every interaction "lovable," fostering emotional connections that drive organic spread.
Verna also highlights how activation has moved from growth teams to product teams. In traditional setups, growth engineers tweaked onboarding flows; now, the product's inherent magic—delivering instant value through AI—handles activation. Growth's role evolves toward enabling deeper retention, monetization, and expansion loops.
Lovable's European roots add another layer to its success story. Despite advice to relocate to Silicon Valley, co-founders Anton Osika and Fabian Hedin stayed in Stockholm, crediting abundant talent and focused urgency for their edge. This decision paid off spectacularly, culminating in a $330M funding round in December 2025 led by CapitalG and Menlo Ventures, valuing the company at $6.6 billion.
Looking ahead to 2026, Verna predicts AI will force every company to reinvent growth. Velocity becomes the moat: ship faster than rivals can copy. Brand building integrates into the product itself—every touchpoint must embody delight. And as AI agents proliferate, human creativity in prompting and ideation will differentiate winners.
For aspiring builders, Lovable exemplifies what's possible: a small team, no-code empowerment, and AI-native tactics yielding unprecedented scale. As Verna notes, the ground is shifting beneath us—distribution channels, customer expectations, and technological platforms all transforming simultaneously.
Whether you're a founder, product leader, or growth practitioner, Lovable's playbook offers critical insights. Embrace freemium boldly, innovate without restraint, and redefine fit continuously. In the AI era, survival demands adaptation—and thriving means leading the charge.