Why I'm building this site (and what "AI build log" actually means)
I want to start this the honest way: today, this site has no readers, no search ranking, and no income. I'm writing that down on purpose, as the first line of the first post, so there's a clear record of where this actually started.
I'm a university student in Japan. I'm not a professional programmer. What I do have is a habit, over the last while, of using AI coding assistants — mostly Claude Code — to build small, working pieces of software instead of just reading about how to do it.
What I've actually built so far
Not a portfolio pitch — just a plain list of what exists and runs:
- A cost-estimation calculator for pricing what I make (materials and margin, not hourly freelance rates — see the follow-up post and correction on that), built as a single working page.
- A batch image/PDF processing tool that handles a repetitive task I used to do by hand — more on it, including the parts that aren't finished.
- A small product-catalog page and matching admin tool, built around a real use case: a local shop whose products weren't easy to browse online. Full writeup here.
None of these have an audience yet, and none of them have made money. They're just real, and they run.
Why write about it in English
English isn't my first language, which makes this slower than it should be. I'm doing it anyway, for two reasons. First, most of what I'm learning — how AI coding tools actually behave, where they help and where they don't, how long a "quick" feature really takes — isn't specific to Japan, and might be useful to someone else starting from the same place. Second, writing it publicly is a way of keeping myself honest about what's actually done versus what's still an idea.
What this site is not
It's not a promise that AI tools will make anyone rich, and it's not going to pretend this is further along than it is. If a future post links to a product I use and that product happens to have an affiliate program, I'll say so plainly in the post — see the disclosure page for how that works. I'd rather post rarely and honestly than post often and pad it out.
What's next
The next posts will follow whatever I actually build next — most likely more detail on one of the tools above, including what didn't work on the first try. No fixed schedule; this updates when there's something real to report. (Update: one of those next posts ended up being about the decision-making system behind this site itself — read that here if you're curious how these posts actually get made.)
Frequently asked questions
Does this site make any money?
No. As stated above, at the time of writing this site has no readers, no search ranking, and no income. That's the honest starting point, not a modest understatement.
Is this content written by AI?
It's written from my own first-hand experience and edited with the help of AI tools, not generated wholesale and posted unchecked. The tools described here are ones I actually built and use.
How often do you post?
There's no fixed schedule. New posts go up when there's something real to report — a tool that's finished, a mistake worth writing down, a correction. I'd rather post rarely and honestly than post often and pad it out.
Will there be affiliate links on this site?
If a future post links to a product I actually use and that product happens to have an affiliate program, I'll say so plainly in that post. See the disclosure page for how that works.