Apple’s Youngest App Developer Making Waves at 13

What were you doing at age 9?

Jordan Casey’s answer to that question is anything but average, as he was busy paving his way to becoming Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) youngest app developer. The now 13-year-old started programming at just nine-years-old, and today has four apps under his belt—all for sale in the App Store and iTunes.

Playing online games piqued his interest in the app development world, Casey says.

“I used to play a game online, and saw that some of the users were making websites about it- I thought that would be a fun hobby. So I went to the shop and bought a book on how to program, and was watching videos on the Internet about it, and that is how I started,” he says.

Casey has been a featured speaker at industry events in Silicon Valley and New York City, including a TedX presentation on his early start as an entrepreneur. One of his first apps, Alien Ball vs. Human, went to the top of various app download charts. He founded his own gaming company, Casey Games, in 2012.

Casey was recently in New York at Apple’s Soho store to launch two of his newest apps, at an Irish International Business Network (IIBN) event. The event was organized by IIBN to promote entrepreneurship at any age.

“At first I was really nervous, but I do a lot of conferences, so I am used to them now—the event was really fun,” he says.

At first, Casey says he was not taken seriously by many due to his age.

“They just thought I was doing a game, or it was a hobby, but they are starting to take me a lot more seriously now,” he says.

One of his latest apps, “My Little World,” took nearly eight months to create, he says, and it is the app he worked the hardest on. It is a game about a tiny creature that lives in his backyard, and wants to explore the entire world around him.

He is also working on a new app called TeachWear, an app for teachers to use to manage their students’ information.

“All the teacher would have to do is log on to the Internet and sign up for free- they just enter their students’ profiles, attendance and even if they leave the classroom they can download the app and log into their account and all of the information will be there across all their devices,” he says.

For other entrepreneurs both old and young, Casey says the key to success is persistence.

“I'd say never give up- you will run into a lot of problems and barriers but if you keep going and you keep fighting you will get it,” he says.

This young app developer feels he found his calling early in life, and wants to continue his career as an entrepreneur as he grows older.

“I want to work in the software industry for the rest of my life,” he says.

Looks like he is off to a strong start.