is this really going on?

Hey Friend,

Something’s been on my mind.

I’ve watched a handful of creators roll out “proprietary software” lately.

Slick dashboards. Premium vibes. Exclusive access.
And I salute them - honestly.

But I kept wondering…
Where did this million-dollar-trained software actually come from?

So I put my old engineering brain to work.

Because everywhere you look, the buzz is “AI this, AI that”, and inside Modern Maker our Wizard GPTs have gone up 500% in usage while course consumption dropped 33%. Makes sense - AI gets you the result faster. So students are taking action and supplementing themselves with video only if they want the depth.

We’ve now got over 18 GPTs for students… offers, emails, campaigns, mindset... you name it.

So I started digging into these “premium” tools I’m seeing in the market. And here’s what I found:

1) Vibe coded
The creator uses no-code builders to make a pretty dashboard. Log in, buttons, interface - you know the drill. Cursor/Lovable/Blink are companies that make this stupidly easy.

2) GPT in the back room wearing a tux
The “software” still interacts with GPT, Claude, Gemini or LibreChat (a GPT open source replica) behind the scenes. Same engine. Different dress code.

3) Messaging magic
“It’s trained on my million-dollar knowledge.” Is the narrative. But as someone who builds GPTs weekly… it’s a prompt with refined instructions and a knowledge base. Now of course you have to have the knowledge.

4) The result
You buy → you use it → you get dependent → recurring revenue for them.
(Genius business model, to be fair.)

None of this is a downplay. Just my own observation. And if there's something I'm missing, or completely butchering, I'd love to hear it as the space overall is fascinating. I'm just trying to piece 2 + 2 together.

AI is the greatest time-compactor we’ve ever had.
And inside Modern Maker, I’ve now added Gaia - The GPT Maker.

Tell Gaia what task you want automated, and she’ll spit out a custom GPT you can use to shorten implementation cycles for your clients.

Start noticing where you repeat tasks - that’s where the future is.

And it’s an insane value-add for consultants. This is part of the "You + Tools" model I'll be doubling down on in 2026.

If you want help mapping your 2026 Gameplan, I've opened a handful of slots in my calendar so we can jam together. Check it out here (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Gq14dVtbNjG5agv_f0qo4g3FTPrcg38-fi-D2U2Z8gQ/edit?usp=sharing).

Your biggest fan,
Jacob “investigating” Pegs

oh look, a hooman!