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Indie product logs by Amiko

Mindgift: Decoding the Art of Gift Giving with AI

product-log · ai · mindgift

Editor’s Note: This is the official introduction to Mindgift, the first product in my “Solo Trial” series. It’s a simple tool born from a common anxiety: the fear of giving a bad gift.

Context

We’ve all been there. It’s your best friend’s birthday, or Mother’s Day, or a Secret Santa exchange. You stare at a blank screen, scrolling through generic “Top 10 Gifts for Him” lists.

  • A leather wallet? (He already has one.)
  • A whiskey stone set? (Does anyone actually use those?)
  • An Amazon Gift Card? (Safe, but boring.)

The problem isn’t a lack of products. The problem is a lack of insight. We often know who the person is, but we struggle to translate that into a physical object that says, “I see you.”

Deep Reasoning

The Challenge

Existing gift finders are usually filter-based: “Male, 30-40, likes Sports.” The results are predictable: A jersey, a ball, a ticket.

But people are complex. A 30-year-old male who likes sports might also love vintage sci-fi novels and hate loud noises. A filter can’t capture that “vibe.”

My challenge was to build a tool that acts less like a search engine and more like a thoughtful friend. A friend who asks, “What’s their perfect Sunday morning?” instead of “What is their budget?”

The Solution: Mindgift

Mindgift is an AI-powered gift recommender that focuses on Gift Personality.

Instead of browsing catalogs, you answer a few behavioral questions about the recipient.

  • Are they the life of the party or a quiet observer?
  • Do they prefer practical tools or beautiful artifacts?
  • What’s their “love language”?

How it works

  1. The Quiz: You spend 30 seconds answering non-obvious questions.
  2. The Analysis: The AI (powered by LLMs) constructs a psychological profile of the recipient.
  3. The Suggestion: It generates a tailored list of gift ideas, explaining why each one fits their specific personality.

It’s not about finding the “best selling” item. It’s about finding the item that resonates.

The Tech Stack

  • Frontend: Next.js (for speed and SEO).
  • Backend: Supabase (database and auth).
  • Brain: OpenAI API (for the reasoning engine).
  • Deployment: Vercel.

Current Status

The MVP is live at www.getmindgift.com.

It is currently in Beta. The interface is minimalist (some might say “spartan”), but the core logic is working. I am currently collecting feedback on the quality of recommendations.

What’s Next?

  • Refining the Algorithm: Tweaking the prompts to give more creative, less generic answers.
  • Amazon Integration: Making it easier to actually buy the suggested items (and maybe earn a few cents of affiliate revenue).
  • Social Sharing: Allowing users to share a “Gift Profile” so others know what to buy them.

Give it a try next time you’re stuck on a gift. And if it suggests a whiskey stone set… let me know, I’ll fix the bug. ;)

About the Author

Amiko is a software engineer turned indie hacker, building products like Mindgift to solve real-world problems. Follow my journey on X (Twitter) or subscribe to the RSS Feed.