Frontier AI, built for the real world.
What I build
Four ways I can help
From a personal AI setup that gives you back hours every week, to software your whole organisation runs on.
Personal AI systems
Your own AI chief of staff.
An AI setup built around how you actually work: an assistant that knows your projects, an inbox that triages itself, and a second brain that remembers what you read.
I run my own work this way, every day.
Agents & automations
Take the repetitive work off your team.
Focused AI agents and workflows that plug into the tools you already use (email, CRM, spreadsheets, documents), with a human approving anything that goes out.
Built for a sales team and for my own nonprofit's fundraising.
AI-powered apps & data platforms
Real software, with AI where it earns its place.
Mobile apps, web platforms, data portals and dashboards, built properly: tested, documented, and designed to survive real users and real constraints.
My literacy app is used daily by education assistants in South African schools.
AI training: Claude Code & Codex
Teach your team to build with AI.
Hands-on training in AI coding and automation tools, for founders, operators and teams, from never having heard of them to shipping real work.
I run weekly Claude Code and Codex training for my own team.
Featured work
An AI coach in every pocket
Zazi iZandi · Masinyusane
An offline-first literacy app with an AI coach in every pocket
The app young education assistants use to teach children to read in South African schools, now with an AI coach that knows each child's progress and says what to teach next.
- teaching sessions in 30 days
- 9,400+
- teaching sessions in 30 days
- education assistants active in that month
- 190+
- education assistants active in that month
- child attendances recorded
- 52,000+
- child attendances recorded
- automated tests before every release
- 8,000+
- automated tests before every release
AI agents + training
Multi-agent lead research and outreach, plus team training
A set of agents that scout leads on LinkedIn and the web, research the right contact at each company, and draft personalised emails with context from the rep's own inbox. I set it up and trained the rep to run it with Claude Code and Codex.
Why I do this
Bringing frontier AI to the ground in Africa
For fifteen years I've built Masinyusane, a community-based education nonprofit in South Africa. For the last four, I've built its software and AI myself. The most powerful technology ever made shouldn't stop at the boardroom. It should reach a young teacher helping a child learn to read.
- children supported in their education
- 100,000+
- children supported in their education
- young people employed
- 2,000+
- young people employed
- of schools reached
- Hundreds
- of schools reached
Masinyusane, organisation-wide.
Small by design
Senior on every line of code
AI5 Labs is me, plus trusted specialists when a project needs them. That's a feature, not a limitation.
You work with the builder
No account managers or handoffs. The person you talk to is the person who designs and writes the code.
I use my own systems
Everything I sell, I run myself first, in real organisations, my own projects and my own day.
Honest about status
Live means live. Pilot means pilot. You'll always know exactly what's working and what isn't yet.
Safe by default
I've built AI for systems that handle children's data. Privacy, human approval and testing aren't extras.
How it works
From first call to working system
A free 30-minute call
Tell me what's eating your time. I'll tell you honestly whether AI is the answer. Sometimes it isn't.
A written scope and price
A short proposal with what I'll build, how long it takes and what it costs, agreed before any work starts.
Build in the open
You see working software early and get an update every week. No disappearing for months.
Handover and support
Documentation, training for your team, and optional ongoing support as your needs grow.
FAQ
Straight answers
The questions people usually ask before working with a one-person studio.
Is AI5 Labs just you?
Yes, by design. I design and build every system myself. When a project needs extra hands (design, specialist data work, extra QA), I bring in trusted freelancers I've worked with, tell you who they are, and stay accountable for the result.
What kinds of projects are a good fit?
Personal AI setups, focused agents and automations for small teams, AI-powered apps and data platforms, and hands-on AI training. I'm not the right fit for large enterprise transformation programmes, and I'll say so.
How is pricing handled?
Every project starts with a written scope and price, agreed before any work begins. Personal setups and training are small engagements; custom software is scoped to what you actually need.
Do you work with nonprofits?
Most of my work so far has been for mission-driven organisations, starting with my own. If you're working on something that matters, I'd love to hear about it.
Which AI models and tools do you use?
Whatever fits the job: Claude, OpenAI models and open models, with Claude Code and Codex for building. I'm not tied to any vendor.
What about privacy and data safety?
I've built AI on top of children's education data, so I take this seriously: personal data is minimised or pseudonymised before it reaches a model, access is locked down by role, and anything an AI sends to the outside world is approved by a human first.
Let's build something real.
Start with a free 30-minute call. Tell me what's eating your time, and I'll tell you honestly whether AI can fix it.