Watchdog
watchdog.chat
AI community moderation for Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp and more that blocks spam, scams and trolls.
$444/mo
Ben Katz
Ex-DoorDash staff engineer building Watchdog AI moderation and flightschools.fyi
@ben_makes_stuff New York, United States823 followers$444 MRRAI BuildersSaaS FoundersDirectory MakersCommunity Builders
Ben Katz at a glance
- Known for
- Watchdog, flightschools.fyi and Hackayork
- Based in
- New York, United States
- Active products
- Watchdog, flightschools.fyi and Hackayork
Facts checked 2026-10-08
About Ben Katz
Ben Katz is a New York-based software engineer who left a job as a staff software engineer at DoorDash to build independent businesses. With more than 13 years of programming experience, Ben had already been a founder at two bootstrapped, profitable startups before DoorDash, and documents the solo founder journey on X and in live coding streams.
The main product is Watchdog, a bootstrapped SaaS that uses AI to moderate and manage online communities on Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp, Reddit and other platforms. It removes spam, scammers and trolls, detects impersonators, answers FAQs and summarizes chats. Ben describes it as profitable, and the Indie Hackers profile lists it at around $444 MRR.
They also built flightschools.fyi, a free directory that compares flight schools across all 50 US states by price, aircraft fleet, instructors and a quality score. An earlier tool, Unblock Domains, which helped websites stay off domain blacklists, was shut down after a year without revenue. Ben also organizes Hackayork, a meetup where New York makers get together to hack and demo projects.
Products by Ben Katz
flightschools.fyi
flightschools.fyi
Free directory comparing US flight schools by price, fleet, instructors and quality score.
Hackayork
hackayork.com
Indie hacker meetup in New York City for building, demos and community.
Tool that helped websites stay off domain blacklists; shut down after a year.
Revenue
Ben Katz has publicly reported $444 MRR (as of 2025). Source
- Revenue (monthly, log scale)
- First product
- Launch / milestone
- 2024First product: Launched Watchdog and Unblock Domains
- 2025Launch: Shut down Unblock Domains after a year with no revenue and…
- 2025Revenue: Revenue ≈ $444/month (self-reported)≈ $444/mo indiehackers.com
Timeline
- 2024 — Launched Watchdog and Unblock Domains.
- 2025 — Shut down Unblock Domains after a year with no revenue and started the Hackayork meetup in NYC.
How Ben builds
- Bootstrap small, profitable software businesses.
- Shut down products that do not find customers and move on.
- Build alongside other makers in person.
Ben Katz vs Thomas Sanlis
Ben Katz vs Piotr ObidowskiBen Katz FAQ
Who is Ben Katz?
Ben Katz is a New York-based software engineer who left a job as a staff software engineer at DoorDash to build independent businesses.
What is Watchdog?
Watchdog is Ben Katz's AI moderation tool that keeps Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp and other communities free of spam, scams and trolls.
Where did Ben Katz work before going indie?
Ben was a staff software engineer at DoorDash before quitting to build their own businesses.
What is Ben Katz known for?
Ben Katz is best known for Watchdog (2024), flightschools.fyi and Hackayork (2025), out of 4 products listed on IndieMakerList.
What is Ben Katz doing now?
As of October 2026, Ben Katz's active products include Watchdog, flightschools.fyi and Hackayork.
How much does Ben Katz make?
Ben Katz has publicly reported $444 MRR as of 2025. The figure is self-reported and not independently verified.
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