Deniz Sancar in the desert at sunset

BUILD. TEST. SHIP.

Deniz Sancar

Entrepreneur, founder, and investor. I build companies by leveraging AI systems.

See what I build Say hello

Worked with

ElevenLabs Whop Skillshare GoHighLevel TikTok for Business

Founder. Builder. Operator.

I have built and co founded several companies, from software used by over a hundred thousand people to a game that reached number one on the App Store. I work the same way every time. Find the slow, expensive part of a business and turn it into a system, with AI doing the heavy lifting.

Deniz Sancar speaking on stage at TikTok
On stage with TikTok for Business.

The box office

  • 100,000+

    Sign ups on Virlo, the software company I co founded.

  • No. 1

    Free game on the UK App Store with 38-0-0, ahead of Fortnite.

  • 2,000,000+

    Players in the first week of 38-0-0.

A few things at once, on purpose.

Starring

  1. Yarigai as the AI agency My done-for-you AI agency. It builds AI into the jobs that eat a team's week, like CRM updates, outreach, reporting and support, inside the tools the business already uses. Then we keep it running. Nothing to sign up for. Visit yarigai.ai
  2. Virlo as the research engine A software company I co founded, now past 100,000 sign ups. It tracks what is working across TikTok, Reels, Shorts, and Meta Ads for any niche, with AI doing the research a team used to do by hand. Visit Virlo
  3. 38-0-0 as the overnight hit A football squad draft game I built with AI. Draft a team from random Premier League seasons and see if you can go a whole season unbeaten. It hit number one free on the App Store, ahead of Fortnite, with over 2 million players in its first week. Play 38-0-0
  4. Mockingbird as the ad studio Newer software that takes ad creative already winning on Meta and rebuilds it in your brand with AI. Keep everything you make, cancel any time. Built for teams who want a head start, not a blank page. See Mockingbird
  5. Outtest as the lab My newest software company. AI agents read your analytics and payment data, find where you lose customers, then design, launch and monitor split tests on your site, pricing and ads, and keep the winners. Most testing tools stop counting at the signup. Outtest judges every test on revenue, so a new version only wins if it brings in more money. See Outtest
  6. Sancar Media as the marketing agency An agency I founded that helps established businesses grow. They get the same systems and AI leverage I use across my own companies, run by my team. Visit Sancar Media
  7. Deniz Sancar as himself I post on YouTube, LinkedIn, and short form about building companies with AI, the tools I actually use, and what is working right now. Breakdowns with the reasoning, not just the hot take. Watch and read

The apps

Six apps, in order of release.

Swipe the reel

  1. Frame 01 Kaizen Smarter every day An educational social feed. Swap mindless scrolling for short posts that each teach you something in under a minute. View on the App Store
  2. Frame 02 38-0-0 Football squad draft Spin a Premier League club and season, draft one player at a time, and try to go a whole season unbeaten. Over 1 million downloads. View on the App Store View on Google Play
  3. Frame 03 Blotchi Paint and seek Hide and seek where you paint yourself into a hand drawn scene, then hold your breath while the Seeker looks for you. View on the App Store View on Google Play
  4. Frame 04 Basketball Dynasty Career sim Build a 20 season dynasty, or live one player's whole career. Ranked in the top 150 trending sports apps downloaded in the UK. View on the App Store View on Google Play
  5. Frame 05 Workout Arcade Push up games Prop your phone on the floor and do push ups. The camera turns every rep into a move in an arcade game. View on the App Store View on Google Play
  6. Frame 06 Fighter Dynasty MMA career Built on the success of 38-0-0 and Basketball Dynasty. Start with no record and fight your way to a world title. View on Google Play App Store coming soon

Most people use AI to make content. I use it to build companies.

I do not chase tools for the sake of it. I find the part of a business that is slow, manual, or expensive, and I turn it into a system that runs with AI doing the work. Then I test it, keep what holds up, and move to the next constraint. It is how a game I built reached number one on the App Store, and how I run everything else.

  1. Rule 1 Find the blue ocean Build where no one else is looking before you spend a thing.
  2. Rule 2 Systems over effort Turn the repeatable, expensive work into something AI can run.
  3. Rule 3 Test, do not guess Change one variable, measure it honestly, keep what survives.
  4. Rule 4 Ship fast A rough thing live teaches you more than a perfect thing later.

Ikigai

A reason for being.

Ikigai is the Japanese idea of a reason for being. It sits where four things overlap: what you love, what you are good at, what the world needs, and what you can be paid for. I use it to decide how I spend my time and what I build next. Every project I run sits somewhere on this map.

  • PassionLove it, good at itGames and apps I want to use myself. 38-0-0, Blotchi, Basketball Dynasty, Workout Arcade and Fighter Dynasty.
  • MissionLove it, the world needs itShowing people how to build with AI on YouTube, TikTok and LinkedIn. Kaizen, a feed that teaches you something every scroll.
  • ProfessionGood at it, it paysPutting AI to work inside other businesses, through Yarigai, my done-for-you AI agency, and Sancar Media.
  • VocationThe world needs it, it paysSoftware that does the work a team used to do by hand. Virlo, Mockingbird and Outtest.
  • IkigaiAll four at onceBuilding companies with AI.
Ikigai diagram. Four overlapping circles: what I love, what I am good at, what the world needs, and what I can be paid for. Passion, mission, profession and vocation sit where two meet, and ikigai sits in the centre where all four meet. What Ilove What I amgood at What theworld needs What I canbe paid for
Deniz Sancar at a rooftop restaurant in Santorini

From engineering school to building my own thing.

I studied engineering at Imperial College London. Rather than take the path it pointed to, I went all in on building my own businesses.

Since then I have co founded Virlo, now past a hundred thousand sign ups, built a football game that went viral overnight, and worked with brands across software, education, and creator tools.

The through line is simple. I like systems that are testable, and I use AI to build them faster than most teams can plan.

I would rather build it than talk about building it.

The story so far

Ten years, from my first YouTube channel to number one on the App Store.

  1. 14 years old

    • Started my first YouTube channel.

  2. 16 years old

    • 12 A* and A grades at GCSE.

  3. 18 years old

    • 4 A* and A grades at A-level.
    • Started my second YouTube channel.
    • Joined Imperial College London to study civil engineering.

  4. 19 years old

    • Started growing faceless TikTok pages.

  5. 20 years old

    • Reached 500,000 followers on my TikTok page, WhyInspire.
    • Started my YouTube personal brand.

  6. 21 years old

    • Started doing digital marketing for other businesses.

  7. 22 years old

    • Reached 10,000 subscribers on YouTube.
    • Incorporated Sancar Media Ltd.
    • Co-founded Virlo AI.
    • Graduated from Imperial College London with an integrated master's degree.
    • Started a corporate job at HSBC.
    • Launched Virlo.
    • Resigned from my corporate job to go full time on entrepreneurship and digital marketing.

  8. 23 years old

    • Reached 40,000 subscribers on YouTube.
    • Virlo reached 70,000 users and a $1M+ valuation.
    • Launched my first app, Kaizen, on the App Store.
    • Worked on digital marketing for over sixty companies, and counting.

  9. 24 years old

    • Launched Mockingbird, my second software company, and got its first paying customer.
    • Launched 38-0-0.com and grew it to 1 million active players in under 5 days.
    • 38-0-0 became the number one free game on the UK App Store on 9 June 2026.
    • Virlo crossed 100,000 sign ups.
    • Launched 5 apps on the App Store.
    • Launched Outtest, my third software company. AI agents that split test your site, pricing and ads, and keep the versions that make more money.
    • Launched Yarigai, my done-for-you AI agency.

Watch

Breakdowns of what is working right now.

How I build companies with AI, and what is actually working, with the reasoning, not just the headline.

Watch Me Build and Sell an AI App in One Weekend Reel 1 Watch Me Build and Sell an AI App in One Weekend How to Start a 1-Person Business With AI in 2026 Reel 2 How to Start a 1-Person Business With AI in 2026 I Gave Claude Code 24 Hours to Build Me a Profitable Dropshipping Business Reel 3 I Gave Claude Code 24 Hours to Build Me a Profitable Dropshipping Business
See all videos on YouTube

In the press

Written up here and there.

AI consulting

I help businesses put AI to work.

Most businesses have a part that is slow, manual, or expensive. I find it and turn it into a system that runs with AI doing the work, the same way I run my own companies.

Done for you Yarigai My AI agency does this work for businesses. We map the jobs that eat your team's week, build AI systems that do them inside the tools you already use, and keep them running. Visit yarigai.ai
  1. Pre-production Find the bottleneck

    We go through how your business runs, and I find where the hours and the money go.

  2. Production Build the system

    I map out the fix and help you build it. Agents, automations, internal tools, or content pipelines, whatever the job needs.

  3. Post-production Hand it over

    Your team gets a system it can run, and a clear number to judge it by.

Sample reel

Homepage of the Nando's UK redesign concept Restaurant website, spec redesign Nando's UK An unofficial concept redesign of Nando's UK. A live PERi-ometer to pick your heat, a build-your-usual plate you can order in one tap, the real menu, and the story from Mozambique to the British high street. Concept only. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Nando's. View the concept Homepage of Outtest AI software, live product Outtest The website, free tools, guides and the app itself, with accounts, plans and a dashboard, for AI agents that split test a business's site. Visit useouttest.com Homepage of mockingbirdhouse.com AI tool, live product Mockingbird The website and the product. Pick a winning Meta ad, press remake, and download a finished version in your brand. Visit mockingbirdhouse.com

Past productions

  • 100,000+ sign ups Virlo

    Trend research that used to take a team hours, now run by AI across TikTok, Reels, Shorts, and Meta Ads for any niche.

  • 1,000,000+ app downloads 38-0-0

    A football game built with AI and shipped fast. Over 2 million players in its first week, covered by The Observer.

  • 6 apps in under a year The app studio

    Six apps between December 2025 and October 2026, across learning, games, and fitness.

Through my company, Sancar Media Ltd, I have also been paid by brands including ElevenLabs, Whop, Skillshare, GoHighLevel, and TikTok for Business. Some projects were media and marketing work, not necessarily AI consulting.

Admit one Book a consulting call Pick a time on Calendly and bring the part of your business you want fixed.

Press junket

Questions I get asked.

Who is Deniz Sancar?
I am Deniz Sancar, a UK entrepreneur and founder who builds companies with AI. I run Yarigai, my done-for-you AI agency. I also co-founded Virlo, which has passed 100,000 sign ups, built 38-0-0, which was the number one free downloaded app on the UK App Store for a weekend, and launched Mockingbird and Outtest. I studied engineering at Imperial College London.
What is Yarigai?
Yarigai is my done-for-you AI agency. We map the jobs that eat a team's week, like CRM updates, outreach, reporting and support, build AI systems that do them inside the tools the business already uses, and keep them running. There is nothing to sign up for.
What does your AI consulting involve?
I find the parts of a business that are slow, manual, or expensive, then map out a fix and build it. Depending on the business, that means AI agents, automations, internal tools, or content pipelines.
What have you built with AI?
Virlo tracks what is working across TikTok, Reels, Shorts, and Meta Ads for any niche. Mockingbird rebuilds winning Meta ads in any brand's style. Outtest runs split tests on your site with AI agents and keeps the versions that make more money. I have also shipped five apps to the App Store, including 38-0-0, which has passed 1 million downloads. I built this website too, along with websites for other businesses, including ecommerce brands, restaurants, and SaaS companies.
How do I book a call?
Pick a time on Calendly. For anything else, email deniz@sancarmedia.com.
Where do you share what you learn?
I post breakdowns of what is working in AI on YouTube, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, and Instagram.

Contact

Find me around.

For anything direct, email is best.

deniz@sancarmedia.com