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The $200 AI Startup Kit
10 AI tools a one-person business can start with for under $200. What each one does in plain English, the real price, a setup you can finish in an afternoon, and an honest note on what to watch out for.
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What's inside
01 · Your all-round helper
Claude
An AI assistant you talk to in plain English.
Free plan. Pro $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly).
02 · Graphics without a designer
Canva
Drag-and-drop design for social posts, flyers, price lists and thumbnails.
Free plan. Pro US$144/year.
03 · Posts that go out on time
Buffer
Schedule a week of social posts in one sitting.
Free plan (3 channels). Essentials $5/channel/mo billed yearly.
04 · Your own email list
beehiiv
A newsletter tool for building an email list you own, so you're not at the mercy of an algorithm.
Free plan (up to 2,500 subscribers). Lite $49/mo billed yearly.
05 · Booking without the back-and-forth
Calendly
Share one link and people book a time that works for both of you.
Free plan (1 event type). Standard $10/seat/mo billed yearly.
06 · Getting paid
Stripe Invoicing
Send professional invoices that customers can pay online by card, and let Stripe send the polite payment reminders for you.
0.4% per paid invoice. Card processing fees are separate; see Stripe's pricing page.
07 · Meeting notes that write themselves
Fathom
Joins your Zoom, Google Meet or Teams calls, records them and writes a summary with action items, so you can listen instead of scribbling.
Free forever plan. Premium $16/mo billed yearly.
08 · A helper on your website
Tidio with Lyro
A chat bubble for your website.
Free plan. Lyro AI from $32.50/mo.
09 · The glue between your tools
Zapier
Connects your apps so routine hand-offs happen on their own, like adding a new Calendly booking to a spreadsheet or emailing you when a form comes in.
Free plan (100 tasks/mo). Pro from $19.99/mo billed yearly.
10 · One video, many short clips
Opus Clip
Upload a longer video (a talk, a how-to, a podcast) and it picks out short, captioned clips sized for Reels, TikTok and Shorts.
Free plan (60 credits/mo). Starter $15/mo.
Plus a one-page budget for a starter stack that costs $164 on day one. Prices were checked on each tool's own pricing page in October 2026.
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- Plain-English setups, no tech degree
- Prices checked on official pages
- A starter stack for $164 on day one
- Honest caveats for every tool
One click to our free signup page on beehiiv. The kit arrives in your welcome email.