The first step of any new startup should be to spend $100k on tokensPhilip Johnston, Starcloud
Ran out of OpenAI credits halfway through my Show HN launchChase M., WhodunnitAI
I burned through $300 of API credits building it soloChampChase
AI is 24% of my revenue. $1,200 a month on a $5k appAlex Nguyen
How are you handling upfront AI token costs when building products?nextma, Ask HN
I was on the free tier and it ran out of credits mid-experimenti5heu
The first step of any new startup should be to spend $100k on tokensPhilip Johnston, Starcloud
Ran out of OpenAI credits halfway through my Show HN launchChase M., WhodunnitAI
I burned through $300 of API credits building it soloChampChase
AI is 24% of my revenue. $1,200 a month on a $5k appAlex Nguyen
How are you handling upfront AI token costs when building products?nextma, Ask HN
I was on the free tier and it ran out of credits mid-experimenti5heu
The problem is I can't afford the tokens!Incipient
A single query can run over a dollar. I can't afford Anthropic API ratesoctember, Earshot
Built it with AI and vibes. The vibes ran out in 30 minutesNoa Shavit
Burned through $100 of credits on a task that used to be 2% of my allowanceBrynn Bateman
Looking at my API bill wondering if there was a cheaper wayHauk307, A2Apex
Independent development with significant API costs. Sponsoring covers themNoizefield, Audio Plugin Coder
The problem is I can't afford the tokens!Incipient
A single query can run over a dollar. I can't afford Anthropic API ratesoctember, Earshot
Built it with AI and vibes. The vibes ran out in 30 minutesNoa Shavit
Burned through $100 of credits on a task that used to be 2% of my allowanceBrynn Bateman
Looking at my API bill wondering if there was a cheaper wayHauk307, A2Apex
Independent development with significant API costs. Sponsoring covers themNoizefield, Audio Plugin Coder
Link what you're building and set a goal. Approved by hand, then $50 is on your key. No card.
Every call shows on your run page. Your audience watches it burn.
5 backers unlock $100 on any model. Pledges fund the goal. Nothing is charged unless it funds.
Point your app at one endpoint. Open models we host on the $50, then Claude, GPT and Gemini once your crowd unlocks them. Change the model, not your code.
Every request logged: the model, the tokens, and which pot it drew from. Your backers see the burn. So do you.
When the pledged tokens are spent, add a card. Same key, same endpoint, same dashboard. Nothing to migrate.
deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V4.1-Flashdeepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017nvidia/GLM-5.3-Flash-NVFP4zai-org/GLM-5.3-Flashzai-org/GLM-5.3thinkingmachines/Inkling-NVFP4meta-models/Muse-Spark-Open-816B-A42BQwen/Qwen3.8-2.4T-A95BQwen/Qwen3.8-Max-VL-Thinkingmoonshotai/Kimi-K3How the money works
The $50 runs on open models we host. Every call shows on your run page. When it's spent, 5 backers unlock $100 on any model, Claude included. Pledges fund the goal from there.
Start a runA link to something that exists, an X handle, and a token goal. Runs are approved by hand, one per person. Once yours is, the $50 is on your key with no card.
Yes. A creative run works the same way: your audience pledges credits up front, you generate on open-weight image and video models we host, and they watch the credits burn as the work gets made. No subscription, no hardware to buy. When it ships, their pledge comes back as the work itself — early access, the output, a credit on the piece.
Nothing to launch, and no equity — ever. The $50 and the $100 are paid by Crowdrun. Pledges pay for the rest at the prices above.
The $50 covers the open models we host. Once 5 backers unlock the $100, any model through the same key — Claude, GPT, Gemini. Change the model, not your code.
Their pledge back as usage on your product once it ships. Same tokens, spent twice. Nothing else — no updates schedule, no merch, no equity.
Tokens release in four tranches against milestones you set. Miss one and the next tranche waits until you hit it. Nothing already spent is clawed back.
Your pledge comes back to you as usage on the product when it ships. Same tokens, spent twice — once to build it, once by you. No equity, no revenue share, no coin.
Nothing is spent. Every pledge returns to your Crowdrun wallet as credit, ready for another run. Credit, not cash — that’s what keeps this a pre-order and not a bank.
No. Tokens are never handed over. They’re drawn down one call at a time through our gateway and released in four milestones against visible progress. Whatever a dead run hasn’t spent goes back to its backers automatically.
Neither. No shares, no token that trades, no upside promised to anyone. Backers pre-buy usage of something they want to exist. That’s the whole instrument.