The Anyway Benefit

What are creators to do in an AI-powered future?

A place where books are written in minutes? Or paintings made in seconds? Or code challenges solved instantly?

What benefit can creators invest in to overcome the overwhelming quantity of content that’s coming?

The Anyway Benefit: where people want to buy from you anyway, despite there being alternatives.

People bought Twitterrific and Tweetbot despite Twitter’s own app being free (and bought Tweetie 2 before it was bought by Twitter too).

The Iconfactory, Tapbots and Atebits — the creators of those apps — didn’t get purchases because they were the best deal. They got purchases because their work showed a level of care you didn’t find elsewhere. You could feel their passion for their craft in the product. You could feel connected to the artist behind the art.

That was something that, for their chosen few, justified every upgrade fee, in exchange for a shared pursuit of an optimal experience.

As it happens, those apps are gone now. Twitter revoked API access to third-party Twitter apps, and those income streams are no more.

But their community of loyal customers lamented the loss publicly, and agreed to support those creators where they venture next.

This is the Anyway Benefit.

This is the creator’s place in an AI powered future.

It’s more than the product. It’s the shared experience.