What this is
No single big launch today — a batch. Five apps from the Balane workshop got a solid round of updates over the past weeks: new features, polish, more speed. And two new projects join the lineup, both still in development, both circling the same uncomfortable question: what AI actually costs when nobody's watching the meter.
The workshop first, then the new stuff.
The workshop: five apps, sharpened
FlowVisual — the process that defends itself to the CFO
FlowVisual is our desktop simulator for process consulting, and it made the biggest jump. You model a process from building blocks, hit play, and watch the load flow through — where it gets tight, the node tips from teal to red. A Monte-Carlo stress test exposes the bottleneck with probability instead of gut feel, and every improvement lands as a before/after in euros and time — each figure with a P10–P90 band, so you never hand a decision-maker false precision. At the end you export a branded PDF for the business case. Linked processes, ranges instead of fixed values, every number taggable by its origin. Runs entirely locally, no cloud, no sign-up. Now on the Mac App Store and as a direct download for macOS & Windows.
Ausklang — the quiet mood mirror
Ausklang asks once, after you use Instagram, TikTok, X or WhatsApp: "How are you feeling right now?" Over the days an honest pattern emerges — which app carries you, which one drains you. A calm weekly recap on Sundays, plus small experiments if you want to change something. No streaks, no flames, no rewards. No account, no tracking, no ads — data never leaves your device, sync only via your own iCloud or Google Drive. Ausklang+ stays an optional one-time upgrade for long pattern views. A tool, not therapy.
SynapseGym — brain training backed by studies, not vibes
SynapseGym doesn't just hand you a score. It measures your mind across six core skills, shows you where you're sharp and where you slip, then builds your daily training around your weakest one — and you watch the numbers actually move. Real cognitive science (Dual N-Back, Stroop, Go/No-Go), turned into short sessions that feel like play. Plus meditation and gratitude, because a sharp mind needs a calm one.
TextDeck — your AI prompts, made reusable
TextDeck turns prompts into templates with variables: {{Name}}, {{Topic}}, {{Language}} — fill them in, the result lands in your clipboard. On-device AI (Apple Intelligence) improves prompts and suggests placeholders, fully private, no servers. Plus the global prompt library with free community packs, ⇧⌘P to bring it up anywhere, iCloud sync between Mac and iPhone — and now Android too. Free.
GridBar — one hotkey, one grid, your actions
GridBar is our native launcher: hit the hotkey, the grid pops up, you click a tile — done. Open apps, fire URLs, toggle system settings, run shell commands, trigger Apple Shortcuts. Multiple boards for work, personal, focus. Native SwiftUI — not Electron, not 200 MB of RAM — the cheap, fast Stream Deck alternative with no hardware.
Under the hood, the same holds for all five: real polish, fewer rough edges, more speed. And still the Balane principle — local first, no forced account, no data we mine.
Two new projects: looking at the AI bill
Both newcomers are still in development, and both orbit the same thing: AI has become dirt cheap per token — and the bill keeps growing anyway. One takes it seriously, the other as a joke that carries the truth.
Bankrupt by AI — two ways to go bankrupt with AI
Bankrupt by AI is an independent analysis project by Balane about the two ways to fail with AI: all in on the hype — headcount cut before the workflow is proven — or all out on principle, sitting still until the market reprices what you do. Both ends of the scale are failure zones; the middle is the operating band. At the center is a market temperature from six indicators, revised quarterly, plus case anatomies that end every time with what would have worked instead, and a playbook of five tests. Patterns, not people. Not investment advice.
Burnmaxxing — who's burning the most money on AI?
Burnmaxxing is the silly flip side of the same coin. Everyone talks about how much they save with AI — Burnmaxxing measures what the token bill really says at the end of the month, and turns it into a competition. Connect your providers, get your spend verified, land on the board: leaderboards, share cards, achievements, a financial damage calculator. Anonymous by default, sharing is opt-in. Not a serious SaaS — and that's exactly the point.
To close: cheaper never meant less
These two projects exist for one reason: our gut reads price cuts wrong. We assume a cheaper token means a smaller bill. The opposite is true — and it isn't a new observation. Back in 1865, William Stanley Jevons showed it with coal: use a resource more efficiently and consumption doesn't fall, it rises. That's exactly what's happening with AI tokens right now, a thousandfold.
If you want to understand why your AI bill keeps growing while the price per token drops tenfold a year, read the new essay over at Against Certainty:
