Introducing WeCraft: A Build-in-Public Platform Built with Phoenix LiveView

Hey Elixir community!

I’m excited to share WeCraft, an open-source platform I’ve been building that connects technical founders with developers, built entirely with Phoenix LiveView and following clean architecture principles.

What is WeCraft?

WeCraft is a “build-in-public” platform where technical founders can showcase their projects and connect with skilled developers who want to contribute. Think of it as a matchmaking service for tech projects and talent, with real-time collaboration features baked in.

Try it live: https://www.wecraftapp.com

GitHub: https://github.com/the-nerd-company/we-craft

My Personal Motivation

As a developer, I absolutely love crafting applications - there’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of building something from scratch, architecting clean solutions, and seeing code come to life. But here’s my struggle: I’m terrible at selling and marketing what I build!

I realized I’m not alone in this. Many of us are amazing at the technical side but struggle with the business/marketing aspects. That’s exactly the problem WeCraft aims to solve - connecting developers who love to build (like me) with founders who have great ideas and business acumen but need technical expertise.

It’s essentially the platform I wish I had access to for my own projects!

Why This Might Interest You

Phoenix LiveView Architecture: We’ve implemented a context-driven architecture with clean separation of concerns:

• Phoenix contexts (Accounts, Projects, Profiles, Chats) with delegated use cases pattern

• All major features use LiveView with proper mount hooks and real-time updates

• Clean domain models with Ecto schema validation and business logic separation

Magic Link Authentication: Passwordless authentication system using email tokens - no passwords required! Built with Phoenix’s authentication patterns and scoped user sessions.

Real-time Chat: Built-in messaging system using Phoenix PubSub for project discussions and collaboration.

Smart Tagging System: Comprehensive tag-based discovery with predefined technical tags (including Elixir, Phoenix, LiveView) and business domains, with automatic validation and normalization.

Technical Highlights

As a solo developer, I’ve focused on building a solid, maintainable architecture using mostly open source technologies (with significant help from AI-assisted coding tools, which have been incredible for productivity):

• Phoenix LiveView: Leveraging the latest LiveView features for interactive, real-time UI

• Context Architecture: Clean separation with use case pattern delegation

• PostgreSQL: Using array fields for flexible tag storage and Ecto enums for project status

• OpenTelemetry: Full observability stack with distributed tracing

• Docker: Multi-stage builds ready for production deployment

• Comprehensive Testing: High test coverage with ExCoveralls, Credo, and Dialyzer

Project Status

The platform is functional with core features implemented:

• User registration and magic link authentication

• Project creation and management (status tracking from idea → live)

• Real-time chat system

• Tag-based search and filtering

• Developer-founder matching

• Responsive UI with Tailwind CSS

Code Quality

Code Quality & Standards

I maintain high standards with:

• Credo for static analysis

• Dialyzer for type checking

• ExCoveralls for test coverage

• Git hooks for pre-commit quality checks

• Comprehensive test suite with fixtures

Getting Started

You can try the live platform at https://www.wecraftapp.com, or if you want to run it locally:

git clone https://github.com/the-nerd-company/we-craft.git

cd we-craft

make init-asdf # or manual setup

mix setup

mix phx.server

Visit localhost:4000 and you’re ready to go!

Why Open Source?

I believe in the power of community and wanted to build this in the open. As a solo developer, open sourcing this project allows me to get feedback and hopefully find users who face the same challenges I do.

If you’re someone who loves building applications but struggles with the business/marketing side, WeCraft might be exactly what you need!

Looking for Early Users

I’m primarily looking for people who might actually use the platform! If you:

• Have built cool projects but struggle to get them noticed

• Are looking for technical co-founders or collaborators for your ideas

• Want to contribute to interesting projects but don’t know where to find them

• Are curious about what other Elixir developers are building

Then WeCraft might be worth checking out. I’d love to get feedback from real users about what works, what doesn’t, and what features would be most valuable.

A Vision for Non-Technical Founders

Interestingly, with the rise of AI-assisted development, I think WeCraft could also serve non-technical founders who want to craft applications using AI tools. However, this comes with an important caveat: professional developer oversight is crucial to avoid technical debt and ensure maintainable, scalable solutions.

The platform could facilitate connections where non-technical founders use AI to prototype and build, while experienced developers provide architectural guidance, code reviews, and technical mentorship. This way, we get the best of both worlds - the accessibility of AI-assisted development with the wisdom of professional experience.

Repository

GitHub: https://github.com/the-nerd-company/we-craft

The README includes comprehensive setup instructions, architecture documentation, and contribution guidelines.

Questions?

I’d love to hear your thoughts, feedback, or answer any questions about the architecture choices, Phoenix LiveView patterns we’ve used, or the project in general!

Thanks for reading, and I hope WeCraft can be useful both as a platform and as a learning resource for the community!

P.S. If you’re working on an interesting Elixir/Phoenix project and looking for collaborators, WeCraft might be exactly what you need!