The Real Story Behind
Cheaper Than Karen
How watching my brilliant assistant waste time on repetitive tasks led to a mission to transform administrative work everywhere.
It Started With Frustration
Every successful business tool starts with someone getting frustrated enough to build a solution. In our case, that someone was me watching my brilliant executive assistant, Catalina, waste her talents on repetitive email tasks that a well-trained AI could handle better.
Meet the Team
I've spent my career in technology and business operations, but this project is personal. After watching Catalina—one of the most capable professionals I know—spend hours daily on automatable tasks, I couldn't unsee the problem. When not building productivity tools, I'm usually planning the strategic projects that Catalina now has time to execute.
Catalina
Head of User Experience & Original Guinea Pig
The inspiration and reality-check behind every feature we build. Catalina ensures that our tools actually solve real problems for real assistants, not just sound good in demos. Her feedback drives our product development because if it doesn't work for her daily workflow, it doesn't ship.
If something we build doesn't pass the "Catalina test"—meaning it doesn't actually save her time or improve her work quality—we don't release it.
Our Philosophy
Technology Should Amplify Human Intelligence, Not Replace It
We're not trying to replace assistants—we're trying to free them from mundane tasks so they can do what they're actually great at. Catalina didn't become less valuable when we automated her email responses; she became more valuable because she could focus on strategic work.
Real Problems Deserve Real Solutions
Every feature we build solves a problem that Catalina actually experienced. We don't add functionality because it sounds impressive; we add it because it addresses a real workflow pain point. This keeps us focused on utility over novelty.
Simple Tools That Actually Work
The best productivity tools are invisible—they solve your problem without creating new ones. We prioritize reliability and ease of use over feature complexity because frustrated users don't save time, regardless of how sophisticated the technology is.
Why "Cheaper Than Karen" Isn't Just a Joke
The name captures an important truth about business automation: it should provide clear economic value. Our AI email automation costs less per month than two hours of assistant time but saves 2-3 hours daily. That's not just convenient—it's financially transformative for businesses of any size.
We could have chosen a more corporate name, but "Cheaper Than Karen" reminds us (and our customers) that we're solving a real economic problem, not just building cool technology.
What's Next
This started as a solution for one assistant's email overwhelm and has become a mission to transform how businesses think about administrative automation.
Smart Calendar Management
That actually understands preferences
Meeting Prep Automation
Briefing documents that write themselves
Follow-up Systems
Never let anything fall through the cracks again
Document Processing
AI that reads, summarizes, and organizes like your best intern
Our Commitment
Every tool we build will be tested in our own operation first. If it doesn't make Catalina's workday better, it doesn't get released. If it doesn't provide clear economic value, it doesn't get built. If it doesn't solve a real problem that real assistants face, it doesn't make it past the idea stage.
We're not just building software—we're building the future of administrative work, where human creativity and strategic thinking are supported by intelligent automation instead of buried under routine tasks.
Because the best assistants shouldn't be doing assistant work—they should be doing strategic work that happens to include some assistance.
Ready to Join Our Mission?
Help us transform administrative work by starting with your own email automation.