Why I built my own kanban instead of using Trello/Jira

Jefferson Richard Dias — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 16:57:44 +0000

Back in 2019, after trying tools like Trello and Jira, I started noticing a pattern: they were powerful… but also way more complex than what I actually needed for my day-to-day work.

Too many configurations, too many clicks, too many features I never used.

I just wanted to organize tasks quickly and keep working.

So I did what most developers eventually do: I built my own tool.

The idea: real simplicity

From the start, the goal was clear:

Build an extremely simple kanban
Focus on speed
Clean, distraction-free interface
Zero friction to create and move tasks

This wasn’t about competing with Jira — it was about doing the opposite.

Technical decisions

Since I already work a lot with Python, I went with:

Flask for the backend (lightweight and straightforward)
Frontend with plain HTML/CSS/JS (no overengineering)
A structure designed to be fast and easy to maintain

I intentionally avoided heavy frontend frameworks to keep performance high and maintain full control.

The twist: AI inside the board

Over time, I started experimenting with adding AI directly into the workflow.

Now the system includes a chatbot that interacts with the board itself. It’s not just a separate chat — it actually understands the task context.

You can:

Create tasks using natural language
Move cards
Extract insights from the board
Automate small actions

This changed how I use kanban on a daily basis.

From side project to product

For a long time, this was just a personal tool.

But recently, I decided to turn it into a real product:

Free version
Paid version
Focused on developers and small teams

It’s still evolving, but it already solves the problem that made me build it in the first place.

Final thoughts

In the end, this wasn’t about building “just another tool”.

It was about removing unnecessary complexity and getting back to basics — now with a modern touch using AI.

If you feel like tools like Jira are overkill for your workflow, it might be worth rethinking how much complexity you actually need.