Home/AI Stack
The AI tools I actually pay for.
Eight tools, three subscriptions, and the reason I dropped the other dozen I tried this year.
Writing & research
For everything that needs words.
Audio & video
Spoken & visual work.
Weekly
Descript
Edit audio like a doc. Remove filler words with a click. Made podcasting feasible solo.
Tier: Creator$24/mo
WeeklyFathom
Free, accurate AI meeting notes. Replaced Otter for me this year. Tighter summaries.
Tier: FreeFree
SometimesCanva AI
Fastest path from a brief to acceptable visuals. Not for hero design — for everything else.
Tier: Pro$15/mo
Automation & ops
The plumbing.
Daily
Make.com
For automations with branching logic. Cheaper than Zapier per task with real visibility.
Tier: Core$10/mo
SometimesZapier
When the integration only lives in Zapier’s catalog. Otherwise Make wins on price.
Tier: Starter$19/mo
DailyNotion AI
Inside-the-doc AI for planning, summarising, rewriting. Where I think — not where I publish.
Tier: Plus + AI$18/mo
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