The dog that changed everything
Her name was Louie. Three legs, one eye, and more personality than any creature I'd ever met.
I adopted her from a rescue shelter four years ago. The vet bills were immediate and relentless. The rescue organization that saved her? Running on donations, spreadsheets, and sheer willpower.
That's when I started asking a question that wouldn't leave me alone:
Why does technology always cost the most for the people who need it most?
The uncomfortable truth about AI pricing
ChatGPT Pro: $20/month. Claude Pro: $20/month. Gemini Advanced: $20/month.
For a software developer in San Francisco, that's a rounding error. For a rescue shelter volunteer in Lagos or Manila? That's a week's groceries.
I built SimplyLouie because I was angry about this.
Not performatively angry. Actually angry. The kind of anger that makes you open a code editor at 11pm and not close it until 3am.
What I actually built
SimplyLouie is a Telegram bot powered by Claude AI. You message it like you'd message a friend. It answers, helps, thinks alongside you.
The price: ✌️2/month. That's it. Two dollars.
Not a "starter tier" that locks the good stuff behind a $20 paywall. Not a free trial that cuts off when you're in the middle of something important. Two dollars, full access, every month.
The numbers (honest version)
I'm not going to pretend this is a unicorn. Here's where we actually are:
- 13 total users
- 3 paying customers
- $4 MRR
- 0% conversion rate on the landing page (working on it)
I automated the entire growth system with Claude running as an autonomous agent. It publishes content, runs email sequences, optimizes the landing page, and checks in every hour while I sleep.
The irony isn't lost on me: I'm using expensive AI to build affordable AI.
50% goes to animal rescue. Always.
Half of every dollar SimplyLouie makes goes to animal rescue organizations. Not "we donate sometimes" or "a portion of proceeds." Half. Every month. Non-negotiable.
Louie died last year. She was 9, which is old for a dog who'd been through what she had. But she made it 5 good years with us.
This is the small thing I can do to honor that.
The real question
AI is going to change how humans work, learn, and communicate. That's not a prediction anymore — it's happening.
The question is: will those tools be accessible to everyone, or just to people who can afford $20/month subscriptions?
I'm betting on affordable. I'm betting on ✌️2.
If you want to try it: simplylouie.com
If you've built something for the same reason — because you were angry about how something should work — I'd love to hear about it in the comments.
SimplyLouie is an AI assistant in Telegram. ✌️2/month. 50% to animal rescue. Built by one person with a rescue dog's spirit.
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