From Layoff to Building AI Products with Free-Tier Tools (Solo, Bootstrapped, Still Going)
I didn’t plan to become a solo builder. I got laid off, and like most people, I thought I’d quickly land another role and move on. But somewhere in the uncertainty, I started doing something I hadn’t done in years - I started building.
Not with funding. Not with a team. Just free-tier tools, curiosity, and a stubborn need to stay useful.
Experimenting instead of waiting
At first, it was just small experiments. Using whatever free tools I could find, I started testing ideas just to see what was possible. That slowly turned into real prototypes:
A small claims guidance app to help people understand and navigate court processes
A Selenium automation concept to convert test cases into CI/CD-ready flows
And an AI-based productivity assistant idea (early version work, still evolving)
Nothing was perfect. Everything was early. But all of it was real. I want to be transparent about this part. I’m actively looking for a job to pay the bills while continuing to build on the side. I’m not in the “fully funded startup founder” stage. I’m in the “do both because I have to” stage. But I realized something important that if I wait for stability before building, I may never build at all. So I stopped waiting.
Now things are shifting
What started as random prototypes is slowly becoming more structured. I’ve now reached a point where I can’t do everything alone anymore. So I’m starting to:
Stabilize early prototypes
Bring in developers and consultants where needed
Move from “hacking ideas together” → “building something real”
Still bootstrap. Still scrappy. Just more intentional now.
Why RemiMinderAI keeps pulling me back
Out of everything I’ve worked on, one idea keeps sticking: RemiMinderAI.
It’s deeply personal.
It’s focused on helping families understand and retain what happens in medical visits especially when information gets lost, misunderstood, or forgotten. I’ve seen how real this problem is. And I don’t think it’s solved well today. That’s the one I can’t walk away from.
Lessons Learned
A few honest lessons so far:
Free-tier tools can get you much further than expected
Speed matters more than perfection early on
You can’t build everything alone forever
And not every idea deserves equal emotional energy
Most importantly: building while unemployed is messy—but it forces clarity fast.
Where I am now
Right now I’m:
Job hunting to stay financially stable
Continuing to build and iterate prototypes
Starting to work with developers/consultants for scale and stability
And focusing deeper on the ideas that actually matter long-term
I don’t know exactly where this ends up. But I know I’m not going back to just “waiting for the next job.” I’m building through it.
