Austin Frankel
By Dan Murphy
We recently spoke with Austin Frankel, a senior at Blind Brook High School in Rye Brook, who developed Seat Maker, an app designed to create seating charts for anyone hosting an event and needing to determine who will sit where.
Austin’s APP has quickly climbed to #4 in the U.S. paid Lifestyle category. “I built it because I saw the need for an easy way to arrange seats at community events and dinners,” said Frankel.
How Did You Come Up With This Idea?
“In 10th grade, I was at a youth organization event, and no one knew where to sit. People were moving chairs, asking around, and trying to figure it out on the fly. A week later, I went to a wedding dinner and saw the same thing. It almost ruined the whole night. That’s when it clicked. There should be a fast, mobile app for seating that actually works. No spreadsheets, no long setup. Just a simple way to build and share a seating chart that makes sense.”
What is the concept?
“Seat Maker makes event seating simple. Whether it’s a dinner, party, mitzvah, or school event, figuring out where people sit is usually stressful. Most tools out there are designed for desktop or require complicated setup.”
How did it get so popular?
“I solved a real pain point. No one wants to retype guest lists or deal with long spreadsheets. With Seat Maker, you import from contacts, drag to a seat, and you are done. Short demo clips, social media channels, and ambassadors also helped promote the product a lot. It reached #4 in U.S. Paid Lifestyle within 24 hours and #75 overall, with more than 30,000 impressions and strong early reviews.”
What are Your Future Plans?
“I am a senior at Blind Brook High School in Rye Brook, NY. I plan to study business and entrepreneurship in college while continuing to build Seat Maker.”
What are your thoughts on AI?
“As a kid, I remember asking Google for hours on end to fix simple problems. AI helped me move faster. I used it to learn SwiftUI, debug, and pressure test ideas. For Seat Maker, I am exploring smart seating suggestions and conflict checks.”
Have you had any other successes in creating apps or in the tech industry?
“In high school, I started a coding class for kids, a tutoring program for AP Computer Science students, and built websites for local businesses. Seat Maker is my first iOS app and my biggest launch so far.”
What does it cost to use your APP?
Seat Maker is now free to download on iOS (as of today). I am also planning on implementing a one-time purchase (OTP) that will unlock new/premium features (e.g., ad-free, advanced templates, smart seating suggestions, batch tools).
How do you monetize Seat Maker?
I currently monetize with in-app advertisements.
We tried Austin’s app and found it to be very useful and easy to use for older, non-tech-savvy individuals like this reporter.
If you have an upcoming event, Try Seat Maker at www.seatmakerapp.com/
Austin Frankel is a 17-year-old high school senior from Rye Brook, NY, and the creator of Seat Maker. He is an entrepreneur who loves turning ideas into life. I’m ambitious and motivated to keep building, learning, and finding new ways to make an impact. Contact Austin at austinhfrankel@gmail.com
