# A Telegram business idea: an open-source English learning app you can run as your own

> The English dictation app is a Telegram Mini App where learners practise English by listening and typing. Its code is open under the MIT license, so you can run your own copy under your own name, change it and earn from it. Payments are built in: subscriptions in Telegram Stars, manual payments in local methods, and rewarded ads. You need a Telegram bot, Gemini API keys and a server or hosting platform.

Author: Zaky Hamam
Published: 2026-11-07
Updated: 2026-11-07
Language: en
URL: https://zakyhamam.com/blog/english-dictation-bot-business-idea/
Tags: telegram, business-idea, open-source, learn-english

If you run a Telegram channel or group, or you're looking for a small product to start with, here is one that's already built. The [English dictation app](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot) is a Telegram Mini App I made for learning English by listening and typing, and its full code is public under the MIT license. That license means you can run your own copy under your own name, change it, and earn from it.

## What does it do for a learner?

The learner hears an English sentence, sees its translation, and types what they heard into one box per word. The app marks every wrong letter as they type until the sentence is right, and never shows the answer before that. Once it's solved, they can replay each word, look it up and save it.

Lessons follow everyday situations and grow from short phrases to full sentences. What keeps learners coming back:

- A daily goal and a streak
- Reviews of past mistakes after one day, three days and a week
- Weekly leagues, and a daily challenge with its own leaderboard
- Badges, saved words and progress statistics
- An evening reminder from the bot, which they can turn off

It works on phones and desktops, in right-to-left and left-to-right languages, with keyboard shortcuts on a computer.

One thing to know before you start: the lesson translations and word meanings are generated in Arabic today. As it stands, the app fits best if your audience speaks Arabic and wants to learn English.

## How do you earn from it?

The [English dictation app](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot) comes with four ways to earn, and you can use any of them:

**1. Pro subscriptions in Telegram Stars.** The learner pays inside Telegram and Pro starts the moment the payment arrives, with nothing for you to do. The default prices:

- Monthly: 150 Stars, renewed by Telegram every 30 days
- Yearly: 1,500 Stars, paid once

**2. Manual payments in local methods.** Mobile wallets, bank transfers or USDT. The learner taps a payment method and a chat with you opens with a ready message carrying their account id. Once you receive the money, you grant Pro from the admin panel for a month, a year or any number of days.

**3. Rewarded ads.** Free learners watch an ad to unlock more sentences for the day or to reveal a word. The app supports networks including Adsgram, Monetag, Adexium, Telega.io and GigaPub, and you choose which to turn on and in what order.

**4. All of them together.** Subscriptions for people who want to learn without limits, ads for people who prefer free, and you earn from both.

## Free and Pro

| | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Sentences a day | 10, plus 10 more after an ad | 50 |
| Reveal a word | After an ad | Any time |
| Lessons | In order | Any lesson |
| Streak freeze | None | Twice a month, automatic |
| Statistics | Summary | Charts and most-missed letters and words |
| League | Standard name | Pro badge and a name color |

These are the defaults. Every number here, and the prices, change from the admin panel without a restart.

## What do you need to run your copy?

- **A Telegram bot**, free from [BotFather](https://t.me/BotFather)
- **Gemini API keys** from Google AI Studio, to write the lessons and record their audio. The free tier works, but recording all the audio takes days with a few keys, and less with more keys or billing turned on
- **Somewhere to run it**: a server with Docker, or a hosting platform such as Railway, Render or Fly.io. The database comes with it
- **An HTTPS address**: the free one your hosting platform gives you, or your own domain

You can record the audio with ElevenLabs instead of Gemini, or use your own recordings.

## How do you get started?

1. Follow the [deployment guide](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot/blob/main/docs/deploy.md) for your server or platform
2. The app starts in **development mode**, so nobody but you can see it
3. In the bot, open **Owner tools** and tap **Write lessons**. The app writes the lessons and records their audio, no commands needed
4. Try everything, then tap **Open to everyone**
5. Share your bot's link in your channel and groups

## How do you make it your own?

- **Name and picture:** your bot carries your name and photo, set in BotFather
- **Prices and limits:** from the admin panel, whenever you like
- **Lessons:** the app writes them for you, and you can rewrite them or replace the audio
- **Interface language:** a new language is two text files and one line, with no code change
- **Anything else:** the full code is yours to add features or change the design

The one condition of the license is to keep the MIT license text and copyright notice in your copy.

## Is the income guaranteed?

No. It depends on how many learners you reach, what you charge, and the ad rates where they live. What the project saves you is the hardest part, building the app, so what's left is reaching people. It suits anyone who already has an audience that wants to learn English.

## Start now

Open the [English dictation app on GitHub](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot), read the deployment guide, and run your copy in development mode to try it yourself before you open it up.

If you'd rather earn from the links you already share, read about [Ad Box, the bot that turns your links into earning links](/blog/adbox-telegram-links-earn/). The rest of what I've built is on the [Work page](/work/).

## Questions

### Can I run it commercially and sell it?

Yes. The code is under the MIT license, which allows commercial use, changes and selling, as long as you keep the license text and copyright notice in your copy.

### Do I need to be a programmer?

You need the basics to follow the deployment guide on a server or hosting platform. Writing the lessons, recording audio and opening the app to the public are all done from inside the bot, with no code.

### How do I receive subscription payments?

Telegram Stars payments happen inside Telegram and reach your bot automatically. Manual payments such as mobile wallets, bank transfers or USDT come to you directly, and you turn Pro on from the admin panel.

### How much can I earn?

There is no guaranteed number. It depends on how many learners you reach, what you charge, and the ad rates in their countries.

### Can I use it for learners who don't speak Arabic?

The interface can be translated into any language with two text files and no code change. The lesson translations and word meanings are generated in Arabic today, so other audiences need that part adapted.

## Sources

- [English dictation app on GitHub](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot)
- [Pro membership in the project](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot/blob/main/docs/pro.md)
- [Deployment guide](https://github.com/Zaky1m/english-dictation-bot/blob/main/docs/deploy.md)
- [Telegram Stars](https://telegram.org/blog/telegram-stars)