Why Code Ownership Matters in AI Website Builders: Export, Own, Deploy

When you build a website with an AI tool, who owns the code? This question has major implications for your business. Most AI builders keep your code hostage—and that's a problem.

The Vendor Lock-in Problem

Most AI website builders don't let you export your code. This means:

• ✗You can't download your site
• ✗You can't self-host
• ✗You can't work with developers
• ✗If they shut down, you lose everything

Real Nightmare Scenarios

What Code Ownership Means

With full code ownership (like Webline offers):

• ✓Export anytime — Download your complete Next.js project
• ✓Self-host anywhere — Vercel, AWS, your own servers
• ✓Work with developers — Use familiar Git workflows
• ✓No lock-in — Leave without losing work
• ✓Modify freely — Change anything in the code

Platform Comparison

What You Get When You Export

your-project/
├── src/
│   ├── app/           # Next.js pages
│   ├── components/    # React components
│   └── lib/           # Utilities
├── public/            # Static assets
├── package.json       # Dependencies
├── tailwind.config.js # Tailwind CSS
└── tsconfig.json      # TypeScript

This is a standard Next.js 15 project. Any developer can work with it. See real examples of what code export looks like in practice.

Who Needs Code Ownership?

• Startups: You'll eventually need custom development
• Agencies: Clients may want to take over their site (see AI builder vs agency comparison)
• Enterprises: Security requirements often mandate self-hosting
• Developers: You want to work in your IDE, not a browser
• Everyone: You never know when you'll need to move