Value AI: Item Price Scanner: Revenue, team and how it was built
Value AI: Item Price Scanner (iPhone app for resellers that identifies an item from a photo, estimates its resale value from eBay sold prices and posts an eBay listing, United States (the Flippa listing gives California)): About US$2.3K monthly recurring revenue, October 2026. Evidence grade C: the founder's own figures, not verified by anyone else. Team: 1 creator, as the Flippa listing describes the seller; the App Store names one developer, Carter Clark; headcount not published. Launched January 2026; still running, revenue falling.Added 27 October 2026
- Outcome
- About US$2.3K monthly recurring revenue, October 2026Revenue falling
- Evidence
- C the founder's own figures, not verified by anyone else
- Launch
- January 2026
- Status
- Still running
- Team
- 1 creator, as the Flippa listing describes the seller; the App Store names one developer, Carter Clark; headcount not published
- Outside funding
- None disclosed
- Main channel
- Paid ads
Value AI is an iPhone app for resellers, people who buy used goods at thrift stores, garage sales and flea markets and sell them again online, for example on eBay. The user photographs an item; the app identifies it, estimates what it would sell for, and shows the prices at which similar items actually sold on eBay in the last 30 or 90 days. Since April 2026 it can also write a complete eBay listing and post it to the user's own eBay account. The App Store names one developer, Carter Clark. The app's version history starts with version 1.4 on 27 January 2026, and it had 113 ratings with an average of 4.5 on 27 October 2026.
On 27 October 2026 the app was offered for sale on Flippa, a marketplace for buying and selling websites, apps and online businesses, at an asking price of US$52,000. The seller's text says that the app has about 151 active subscribers and monthly recurring revenue (MRR), the subscription income that repeats every month, of about US$2,300. Flippa's summary card shows monthly revenue of about US$2,030, and the listing a monthly profit of US$1,557. The seller wrote that revenue peaked at more than US$4,000 a month after launch and then fell when the creator spent less on advertising.
The listing is a vetted listing: Flippa says its vetting team reviewed the information and verified revenue, primary expenses and traffic. Flippa does not say how it checked them, and the listing connects no payment provider, so this page grades the figures C, a seller statement that a reviewer checked. The Flippa listing does not name the app's developer or link to its App Store page; this page matched them by the app's name, features, rating and location.
How much revenue does Value AI: Item Price Scanner make?
Each row shows the evidence grade and the source numbers from the list at the end of this page. The grades are explained in How Aiolum verifies.
| Fact | Value | Grade | How we know | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly recurring revenue, 27 October 2026 | about US$2,300, from about 151 active subscribers | C | Flippa listing, read 27 October 2026: "With approximately 151 active subscribers, the app generates a Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) of about $2.3K." The listing is marked "Vetted Listing": "Our vetting team has reviewed this listing and verified: Revenue Primary Expenses Traffic". No payment integration is connected. Calculated: US$27,600 a year at that rate, and about US$15.23 a subscriber a month. | [1] |
| Monthly revenue on Flippa's list card, 27 October 2026 | US$2,030 | C | Flippa list of apps with at least US$2,000 monthly revenue: "Monthly Revenue USD $2.03K", "Monthly Profit USD $1.56K", "Marketplace · Listed by Owner". Calculated: 11.7% below the MRR in the seller's text. Flippa does not say which month the card covers, or whether the figures are before or after Apple's commission. | [2, 1] |
| Monthly profit, 27 October 2026 | US$1,557, a 77% profit margin | C | Flippa listing: "Monthly Profit USD $1,557 /mo" and "Profit Margin 77%". Calculated: 1,557 divided by 2,030 is 76.7%. | [1] |
| Revenue in the last three months, to October 2026 | more than US$10,000 | C | Seller's title on Flippa: "$10K+ revenue in the last 3 months". Calculated: at least US$3,333 a month on average, more than the current monthly figure, which agrees with the fall the seller describes. | [1] |
| Peak revenue | more than US$4,000 a month gross, undated | C | Seller's text: "the app experienced rapid growth post-launch, peaking at over $4K in gross monthly revenue. However, revenue has seen a slight decline due to reduced acquisition efforts". Calculated: US$2,300 is 42.5% below US$4,000. | [1] |
| Costs | advertising is the largest; API and software about US$35 a month | C | Seller's text: "The largest expense is advertising, with other costs, such as API and software, remaining low at about $35 per month collectively." The listing does not give the advertising amount. | [1] |
| Downloads | 890 a month on average | C | Flippa listing: "Avg. Downloads 890 /mo". The seller's text says most downloads come from App Store traffic and Apple Search Ads. | [1] |
| Asking price (not a sale price), 27 October 2026 | US$52,000 | C | Flippa: "Asking Price (Classified) USD $52,000", with "Profit Multiple 4.8x" and "Revenue Multiple 3.7x", whose basis Flippa does not explain. Calculated: US$52,000 is 1.88 times the yearly MRR rate of US$27,600. | [1] |
| Developer | Carter Clark | B | US App Store page: "Developer Carter Clark", "Seller Carter Clark", "Copyright © 2025 Carter Clark". The same developer publishes one other app, Fried: Screen Time Control. The Flippa listing hides the seller from visitors who are not signed in, so it does not confirm the name. | [3, 1] |
| Match between the Flippa listing and the App Store app | same name, features, rating and country | C | Flippa: "Value AI: Item Price Scanner", "iOS App", "4.5 | 101 App Store reviews", "built-in eBay listing automation", "CA, United States". App Store: "Value AI is an AI item price scanner for resellers", 4.5 from 113 ratings, "list directly to your eBay account", US storefront. The store title on 27 October 2026 was "Value AI: Resale Price Scanner". A different app named Value AI, by another developer, had 3 ratings and no eBay features. | [1, 3, 6] |
| Start of the app | by 27 January 2026 | B | The oldest entry in the App Store version history is version 1.4 on 27 January 2026, so earlier versions came before it. The seller's text says "In February 2026, an iOS subscription app was launched", and Flippa gives "App Age 1 year". | [3, 1] |
| App Store ratings, 27 October 2026 | 4.5 from 113 ratings; age rating 4+ | B | US App Store page. The Flippa listing showed 4.5 from 101 reviews on the same day, probably copied earlier. | [3, 1] |
| Versions in 2026 | 18 versions, from 1.4 (27 January) to 2.0.7 (12 October) | B | App Store version history. Counted: 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 1.9.2, 1.9.5, 1.9.6, 1.9.7, 1.9.9, 2.0.0, 2.0.1, 2.0.2, 2.0.3, 2.0.5, 2.0.6 and 2.0.7, so 17 updates after version 1.4 in about eight and a half months. | [3] |
| Work needed | 2 to 5 hours a week | C | Seller's text: "The operation requires an estimated 2 to 5 hours per week", for monitoring, occasional support, advertising and "development coordination for necessary updates". | [1] |
| Time from the oldest listed version to the October 2026 figure | 9 months | calc | Calculated: January 2026 to October 2026. | [3, 1] |
How to read this table: a grade B value is a record kept by a third party, here the App Store's own data on the developer, ratings and version dates. A grade C value was written by the seller on Flippa, or by the developer in the App Store text; Flippa's vetting team says it reviewed the revenue, but no payment processor confirms it. A "calc" value was computed on this page from the rows above it.
| Plan | Per month, billed yearly (US$) | Per month, billed monthly (US$) | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | 0 | 0 | a limited number of scans |
| Premium Weekly | 7.99 a week | full access | |
| Premium Monthly | 12.99 | full access | |
| Premium Annual | 8.33 (99.99 a year) | full access | |
| Premium Annual, second price | 10.42 (124.99 a year) | full access |
All plans are in-app purchases billed by Apple. The App Store lists two annual prices, US$99.99 and US$124.99, and does not say which users see which; the per-month figures for the annual plans are calculated (99.99 / 12 = 8.33 and 124.99 / 12 = 10.42). The weekly plan costs US$7.99 a week, which is US$34.62 a month if paid for a full year of weeks (calculated: 7.99 × 52 / 12). The App Store text says: "Free scans are limited. Full access requires a subscription."
When did Value AI: Item Price Scanner launch, and how did it grow?
From version 1.4 on 27 January 2026 to a vetted Flippa listing with about US$2,300 of MRR on 27 October 2026. Each entry carries its grade.
- 2025BThe copyright line on the App Store page is "Copyright © 2025 Carter Clark". [3]
- 27 January 2026BVersion 1.4, the oldest entry in the App Store version history. [3]
- 30 January 2026BVersion 1.5 refreshes the home screen and "updated referral code logic to make rewards more reliable". [3]
- February 2026CThe seller's account on Flippa: "In February 2026, an iOS subscription app was launched specifically for resellers and thrifters." [1]
- 3 March 2026BVersion 1.8: a "Major backend AI upgrade", results that pull "from real-time market data", and a new "Flip Score". [3]
- 19 April 2026BVersion 1.9: list items to eBay in one tap; the app writes a filled listing and uploads it "directly to your eBay seller account". [3]
- 29 April 2026BVersion 1.9.2: values in US dollars, euros, pounds, Canadian and Australian dollars. [3]
- 1 August 2026BVersion 2.0.3: shipping settings, package weight and size before listing on eBay. [3]
- 12 October 2026BVersion 2.0.7: real eBay sold listings with 30-day and 90-day sales history; the developer states that estimated pricing accuracy rose "from 65% to up to 95%" when eBay sales data is available. [3]
- 27 October 2026CVetted Flippa listing: about US$2,300 MRR from about 151 subscribers, US$1,557 monthly profit, asking price US$52,000. The App Store shows 113 ratings averaging 4.5. [1, 2, 3]
Why did Value AI: Item Price Scanner work?
Four causes, in the order they mattered. Each one is a reusable lesson.
One photo, two jobs
The same photo answers the buying question in the shop (what is it, what does it sell for, how fast) and does the selling work at home (title, description, price, shipping, upload to eBay). A reseller who checks dozens of items a week saves time at both ends.
Sold prices, not asking prices
The October 2026 update shows real eBay sold listings for similar items and 30-day and 90-day sales history. The App Store text stresses "Compare recent sold prices, not just asking prices": an asking price is what a seller hopes to get, a sold price is what a buyer actually paid.
Weekly subscriptions
The plans are US$7.99 a week, US$12.99 a month, or US$99.99 or US$124.99 a year, all billed by Apple. The seller wrote that the business model is "primarily based on weekly and annual recurring subscriptions".
Paid installs inside the App Store
The seller wrote that most downloads come from App Store traffic and Apple Search Ads, the ads shown in App Store search results, and that revenue fell when the creator spent less on advertising. Advertising is the largest cost; the AI and software cost about US$35 a month, according to the listing.
How it was built
These details come from the App Store page (the developer's description and release notes), the Flippa listing (the seller's text) and the app's support page. No source describes the code or names the AI model. [3, 1, 4]
- A native iPhone app, 37.3 MB, in English and French, that requires iOS 26.0 or later.
- An AI model identifies the item from the photo and estimates its value; the app's sources do not name the model or its provider. Since version 1.8 in March 2026 the developer says the AI "pulls from real-time market data".
- eBay is the market behind the product: sold-listing data for the price estimates since October 2026, and one-tap listing to the user's connected eBay seller account since April 2026. The sources do not say which eBay interfaces the app uses.
- Subscriptions are in-app purchases through Apple; the App Store lists weekly, monthly and two annual prices.
- The support page and the privacy policy are Notion pages, and support goes to a Gmail address; no product website was found.
- Customers come from App Store search and Apple Search Ads, according to the seller; the app averages 890 downloads a month.
Tools named in the sources
Each one opens its page in the Tools tab, with every story that uses it.
Who tried this before Value AI: Item Price Scanner, and why did they fail?
Four companies in the Loot Drop database promised to recognize objects from a phone camera, to show the right price, or to make second-hand selling easy. The values below are from that database and are not independently verified.
Moodstocks
The promisePoint a phone camera at an object and get information about it instantly.
Why it diedGoogle, with far larger resources in image recognition, bought it in 2016 and ended its independent product.
Looklive
The promiseFind and buy the clothes that celebrities wear, through image recognition and retailer partners.
Why it diedDepop, Poshmark and Instagram shopping offered more complete services, and its image recognition did not keep up with fast fashion changes.
Bountii
The promiseCompare prices for home and personal goods across many online stores.
Why it diedGoogle Shopping put price comparison into search, and legal doubts about collecting data from other sites by scraping used up its resources.
Selltag
The promiseList and sell second-hand goods to people nearby with less effort than classified ads.
Why it diedIt never reached the scale a marketplace needs; Wallapop and then Facebook Marketplace had more buyers and sellers.
The failed startups come from Loot Drop, a free database of dead startups, retold here in our own words. Loot Drop describes its entries as AI-assisted summaries of public sources, so these cards carry no evidence grade.
What changed
Moodstocks and Looklive had to build their own image recognition with millions of dollars of funding, and lost to larger companies. Bountii had to collect prices from other stores and faced legal doubts about doing so. Selltag tried to build a new marketplace and could not attract enough buyers and sellers. All four were funded, and all four lost to larger companies such as Google, Instagram and Facebook Marketplace.
Value AI does not build a recognition system or a marketplace. It uses an AI model to read the photo, which the seller listed among costs of about US$35 a month for API and software, and it sells on eBay, a market that already has the buyers. It is a small subscription business on top of two larger platforms, Apple and eBay, with one creator who, according to the listing, needs 2 to 5 hours a week. The risk of the predecessors remains: Google Lens, eBay's own apps and many similar App Store apps can offer the same photo-to-price step.
Can one person copy Value AI: Item Price Scanner now?
Yes, and many already have.
The App Store page itself shows ten similar resale apps under "You Might Also Like", so the idea is easy to copy and the market is crowded. What this app added was the second half of the work, the eBay listing, and sold-price data instead of a bare AI guess. The listing shows how small such a business can stay: about 151 subscribers, low AI costs, and paid App Store ads as the main source of growth, which also means revenue falls when the ads stop, according to the seller.
Where it is still open: Other markets with sold-price data and a listing step: sports cards, sneakers, books, furniture on local marketplaces, and the same tools for Vinted, Poshmark or Mercari sellers.
- 1Pick a group of people who make the same quick decision many times a week, here whether a used item is worth buying.
- 2Answer it from one photo, and back the AI estimate with real transaction data, here eBay sold prices.
- 3Do the next task for them too, here writing and posting the listing, so the app saves time at both ends.
- 4Charge weekly or yearly through the App Store, and buy installs with Apple Search Ads only while each subscriber pays back the ad cost.
What could go wrong for Value AI: Item Price Scanner?
The risks are the mirror image of the causes above.
Seller figures, reviewed by Flippa, not by a payment processor
The MRR of about US$2,300 and the 151 subscribers come from the seller's text on Flippa. Flippa's vetting team says it verified revenue, primary expenses and traffic, but does not say how, and no payment provider is connected to the listing. Flippa's own card shows a lower US$2,030 a month. A reader could look for an App Store Connect or RevenueCat screenshot, or a later listing with a payment integration.
The listing does not name the developer
Flippa does not show visitors who are not signed in the seller's name or a link to the app, and no sign-in was used. This page matched the listing to the App Store app of developer Carter Clark by the name Value AI, the eBay listing feature, the 4.5 rating with about a hundred reviews, the US location and the 2026 start. A different App Store app named Value AI, by another developer, exists and was ruled out.
Revenue is falling
The seller wrote that revenue peaked at more than US$4,000 a month in gross monthly revenue and then declined "due to reduced acquisition efforts and a lesser focus on scaling advertisements". The current figure is 42.5% below that peak (calculated). Growth depends on paid App Store ads, whose cost the listing does not state.
A developer reply repeats a user's earnings
An App Store review of 16 February 2026 says the app "Helped me make an extra $2000 over winter break", and the developer replied on 24 June 2026: "Making an extra $2,000 over winter break is incredible." The store description itself says "Value AI provides estimates, not guaranteed sale prices." No other earnings claim appears on the App Store page or the support page.
Dependence on eBay
The price data and the listing feature both depend on eBay. The sources do not say whether the app uses eBay's official developer interfaces or how it reads sold listings. Version 2.0.1 "Added private feedback collection for selected users"; the release note does not say how users are selected.
Start date and figures disagree
The seller's text says the subscription app launched in February 2026, but the App Store history already shows version 1.4 on 27 January 2026, and Flippa gives an app age of 1 year. The asking price of US$52,000 is not a sale price.
Sources
The grade next to each source is the best grade that the source can support. "Read in full" means that the text of the page was downloaded and the numbers were checked in it.
- C Flippa listing 14286659: Value AI: Item Price Scanner, read 27 October 2026Read the public part in full as an anonymous visitor on 27 October 2026; the seller, the store link and the detailed financials need an account and were not read. Source for the MRR, subscribers, profit, margin, downloads, location, app age, the vetting block, the asking price and the seller's description. Flippa's robots.txt allows listing pages.
- C Flippa iOS and Android app listings with at least US$2,000 monthly revenue, read 27 October 2026Read the card for Value AI: monthly revenue, monthly profit, profit multiple, age and "Listed by Owner".
- B App Store (US): Value AI: Resale Price Scanner, Price Items, Auto-List on eBay, by Carter Clark, read 27 October 2026Read in full. Apple's records give the developer and seller name, ratings, age rating, in-app purchase prices and version dates (grade B); the description and release notes are the developer's text (grade C). The site's robots.txt allows app pages.
- C Value.ai Support, Notion page linked from the App Store listing, read 27 October 2026The page loads by script; its text was read through Notion's page-data endpoint, which robots.txt allows. Source for the support contact by email and the notice that the app gives informational estimates only.
- C Loot Drop database export, 1,749 failed startupsLocal export. AI-written summaries, not independently verified. Source for the failed predecessors.
- B App Store (US): Value AI, Instant Item Valuation by AI, a different app by another developer, read 27 October 2026Read in full to rule it out: 3 ratings, category Utilities, one plan of 50 analyses a month, no eBay features.