I did not build TokenBar because menu bar widgets are fun. I built it because I got tired of guessing what my AI usage was costing me.
The problem was simple: the bill showed up after the fact. By then the money was already gone and the lesson was already expensive.
That is a bad way to run a solo business.
TokenBar exists for one job: make AI spend visible while you are still using it.
Not a dashboard you check later.
Not a spreadsheet you update when you remember.
Right now, in the menu bar, while you are making decisions.
What changed for me:
- I stopped treating token spend like background noise
- I noticed expensive prompts fast
- I started thinking in terms of cost per action, not just convenience
- I shipped with more discipline because the feedback loop got tighter
The lesson is bigger than AI.
If a cost is hidden, it will always feel smaller than it is.
If a cost is visible, you make better decisions.
That is why I care about TokenBar.
It is not about counting tokens for fun.
It is about keeping a real-time handle on the thing that can quietly eat your margin.
If you are using AI every day and you want the cost to stay visible, that is the problem TokenBar solves.
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