You’ve heard the hype: AI will replace developers, automate your job, and take over your startup.
Cool. But I’m not here to sell you GPT-4 or pitch some overpriced SaaS with a .ai domain.
I run a cloud hosting company (Sliplane), and these are the five actually useful AI tools I use every single day, to ship faster, automate boring work, and avoid burning cash on things I can self-host 🙂
1. n8n — My Automation Sidekick
Forget Zapier. n8n is an open-source automation tool that connects APIs, databases, and even human-in-the-loop logic. I use it to run internal ops and marketing workflows.
Why I love it:
- Way cheaper than Zapier/Make (I self-host it for ~€9/mo on Sliplane)
- More flexible: you can write JS, run cron jobs, call webhooks
- Great for async workflows and internal tooling
➡️ I wrote a post about how to self-host n8n in less than 5 minutes!
➡️ I wrote a post about how I use n8n and AI agents to scale my startup if you want to steal some.
2. OpenWebUI — ChatGPT Without the Price Tag
OpenWebUI is like ChatGPT, but self-hosted. You plug in your own models (e.g. Mistral, OpenAI, etc.), and boom. A private chatbot with no fixed costs (you will still pay for API usage).
I use it for:
- Summarizing docs and meeting notes
- Brainstorming content and blog posts
- Debugging or CLI command generation
It saves me hundreds per year! And it’s actually pretty good.
➡️ Here’s how I set up OpenWebUI
3. Cursor — The AI-Powered VSCode I Didn’t Know I Needed
Cursor is a drop-in VSCode alternative with AI superpowers. I mostly use it when I’m building CRUD things (like the API).
What it does well:
- Code suggestions that understand your context
- Inline refactors
- Can generate entire files or fix bugs
Not self-hosted, but it earns its spot by saving me a bunch of time. I still switch to Zed for more complex things where AI doesnt help that much!
If you’re a student you can get it for free!
4. RunPod + a Self-Hosted Mistral Model
I use RunPod’s serverless GPU runtime to host a small Mistral model that powers parts of our backend abuse detection. Why? Because privacy matters and running it yourself is cheaper than you think!
Some cool perks:
- Pay-per-second pricing
- No vendor lock-in (OpenAI compatible API)
Also: it’s surprisingly fun to build your own AI infra.
5. OpenRouter — One API, All the Models
OpenRouter is like the Swiss army knife of LLM APIs. It lets me switch between models like Claude, Mixtral, GPT-4, and Gemini; all behind a single interface. Perfect for routing based on cost, speed, or latency.
Why I use it:
- Model fallback if one goes down
- Benchmarking different LLMs with zero code changes
- Great pricing transparency
OpenRouter is a great tool to have in your arsenal!
Wrap-Up
I don’t use AI because it’s trendy, I use it because it buys me time.
These five tools help me move faster, build smarter, and stay lean. Most are open-source. Most are dirt cheap. And all of them actually work 🙂
If you’re building a startup, try replacing the AI hype with something useful!
Cheers,
Jonas, Co-Founder of Sliplane
