Beginner9 min

Set Up Your Starter AI Toolkit

You do not need ten subscriptions. You need one good language model for words and ideas, one image tool, and one editor that handles captions. This lesson sets up a lean kit you can run mostly free or under roughly twenty dollars a month, so cost is never your excuse for not posting.

Step 1: Choose one language model

  • Claude Sonnet 4.6: fast, strong at natural-sounding writing and scripts. Great default.
  • GPT-5: strong all-rounder with a generous free tier for ideas and captions.
  • Gemini 2.5 Pro: huge context, handy for feeding in long transcripts or research.

Pick one to start. You can always add a second later. For most creators, Claude Sonnet 4.6 for drafting plus the free tier of one other model is plenty.

Step 2: Add an image tool and an editor

NeedToolNotes
Thumbnails, post artMidjourney or FluxFlux has a free/cheap tier; Midjourney has stronger style control
Captions and quick cutsCapCut or DescriptAuto-captions, silence removal, free tiers exist
AI voiceoverElevenLabsFree minutes monthly; one consistent voice per account

Step 3: Confirm everything works

Run a quick smoke test. Generate one idea, one image, and one caption. If all three work, your engine is wired up and you never have to set up again.

starter toolkit check
# not real commands, just your checklist for the day
$open language model -> ask for 5 video ideas
got 5 ideas in my niche
$open image tool -> generate one thumbnail concept
got a usable rough composition
$open editor -> import a clip, auto-caption it
captions generated, exported a test clip
$
Do not collect tools
Tool-shopping feels like progress but it is procrastination. Three tools you actually use beat fifteen you read about. Lock your kit this week and spend the rest of the course making things.

Example result: a finished starter kit might be Claude Sonnet 4.6 for scripts, Flux for art, and CapCut for editing. Total cost under twenty dollars a month, and it can carry you to your first thousand followers.

Hands-on tasks