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Project Story — NexStep.ai

Inspiration

Vietnam’s startup ecosystem is growing rapidly, but navigating it is still highly fragmented. Events are scattered across platforms, job opportunities are disconnected, and communities are difficult to discover unless you are already “inside” the network. For students and aspiring founders, the biggest challenge is not a lack of opportunities — it is knowing what to do next. This inspired us to rethink the problem: instead of building another directory of resources, what if we could create an AI layer that guides users through the ecosystem and turns exploration into action?

What We Built

NexStep.ai is an AI-powered platform that helps users navigate Vietnam’s startup ecosystem. Instead of passively browsing listings, users can: Explore opportunities visually (events, jobs, communities, programs) Select relevant items to build a personalized path Generate AI-powered action plans tailored to their goals The core idea is simple: move from information overload → structured execution

How We Built It

We focused on building a fast, clean, and demo-ready product with a strong data foundation: Frontend: React + Tailwind CSS for a minimal, modern interface Interaction Design: Card-based exploration with “Add to Path” functionality AI Layer: Generates structured action plans based on user-selected items Data Layer (TinyFish): We used TinyFish to structure and aggregate ecosystem data — including events, jobs, and programs — into a unified layer. This allows NexStep to transform fragmented information into organized, actionable inputs for the AI system. We intentionally prioritized clarity and usability, ensuring users can go from exploration to execution in just a few steps

What We Learned

Clarity beats complexity — A simple, well-defined user flow is more powerful than adding more features AI is most valuable when it drives action, not just answers questions Combining visual exploration + AI guidance creates a much stronger experience than a chatbot alone In emerging ecosystems like Vietnam, curation and direction are more valuable than raw data

Challenges

1. Avoiding a “ChatGPT wrapper” Our initial idea leaned heavily on a prompt-based interface, which felt generic. We pivoted to a hybrid model: visual discovery + AI planning, which made the product more interactive and differentiated.
2. Making the product feel real under time constraints With limited time, we focused on: clean UI believable data a strong demo flow This allowed us to simulate a real product experience without overbuilding backend systems.
3. Defining a clear value proposition There are already platforms for jobs and events, so we needed to clearly position NexStep.ai as: a decision engine, not a listing platform This shift significantly strengthened both the product and the pitch. #What’s Next We see NexStep evolving into a full AI operating layer for Vietnam startup ecosystem, helping users not only discover opportunities, but continuously plan, execute, and track their progress. Starting with Vietnam, we aim to expand across Southeast Asia, where similar fragmentation exists.

Built With

• chatgtp
• replit
• tailwind