Hey Reader,

You know why building with AI feels so damn hard?

It's not because you're not technical enough.

It's not because the tools are too complicated.

It's because everything changes every 48 hours.

A new model drops. New tool launches. Someone on Twitter says Cursor is dead. Someone else says Claude Code is the future. Then Antigravity does something. Then Codex gets an update.

And you're sitting there thinking...

"What the hell am I supposed to use?"

I Just Proved This (The Hard Way)

For the last 18 days, I went all-in on my Claude Code challenge.

Testing. Experimenting. Comparing. Learning.

I was excited. I was discovering things.

It was so much fun!

And then yesterday I looked up and realized something terrifying.

I haven't shipped a single thing in almost three weeks.

My revenue this month... well, let's just say it shows.

I got so caught up in experimenting that I forgot to actually build.

Sound familiar?

Here's The Dirty Truth

After 18 days of obsessive testing, here's what no YouTuber or Twitter account wants to tell you:

The tool doesn't actually matter.

I'm dead serious.

You can build the same apps I build with the free version of Antigravity.

Or cheap Chinese models like GLM 4.7.

And you know what actually makes money?

Keeping your head down.

Learning. Shipping. Results.

For you, your business, and your clients.

The Paralysis Is the Problem

It's not the tools - here's what actually matters.

Different tools fit different phases. That's it.

Just starting? Use Cursor, Windsurf, or Antigravity. Visual. Simple. No terminal nightmares.

Deep into learning and debugging already? Claude Code and Codex win. $100-200/month for near unlimited tokens is unbeatable value when you're burning through credits.

Know what you're doing? Cursor's value skyrockets again because you're efficient with it, and you learn to love the pro features that only Cursor offers.

Pick the right tool for the phase that you're in.

What I Use Now

I'm ending the 18-day experiment early today, because it just cost me money.

But here's what I'm using now:

1. ​Claude Code for agentic automation and quick experiments
2. ​Conductor for everyday work and changes on multiple projects
3. ​Cursor when I need to ship something real with focus

That's it. This is the best of the best combo for my workflow.

The best AI coder is the one you actually use to ship something.

Pick one. Go all in. Build the thing.

Talk soon,
— Rob