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Contract-review AI opened · CLOSED after 3 yr 2 mo

Hung Ya-wen, 47 · 3 yr 2 mo

“3+ years as a contract-review AI owner: Built three MVPs. Found zero users.”

I closed after 3 years and 2 months. What remained was NT$145,990 in debt and 5 customers.

On the last day, you posted the shutdown notice and turned off the servers. Cash NT$200,775, debt NT$145,990, 0 employees, 5 customers. You settled the last bills and closed the laptop. The business failed, but that time did not disappear.

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How it went

  1. 2026 · preparing to openHung Ya-wen, 44. You have decided to try starting a company in Taipei. No idea, no product yet. Savings NT$1,401,058, employed (NT$56,302 a month).
  2. 12/2026: what now?Start a business: «Contract-review AI» — You are going with «Contract-review AI». Still no company, no product. Now find out whether the idea is real.
  3. 2026 · year 1 beginsUS Rates Rose Again
  4. 1/2027: what now?Interview 20 people — 5 of 20 said they would pay. 6 only said it would be "nice to have".
  5. 2/2027: what now?Decide to build it — You decided to build. Validation ends here.
  6. 2/5 · Down sickDay three of a cold that will not lift. No time to see a doctor.
  7. 3/2027: what now?Build it yourself — You settled on how to build it.
  8. 3/6 · Your mentorLunch with an old mentor. “Forget the numbers. Are you sleeping?”
  9. 3/27 · Funding costs rose againThe US 10-year yield rose to 5.99%. Investors recalculated valuations, and the bank asked for more collateral.
  10. 4/2027: what now?Keep building — What you built today, you fixed tomorrow. Progress still went up.
  11. 4/22 · The exchange rate pushed up import billsThe TWD/USD rate rose to 33.08. Servers and subscriptions billed in dollars cost more.
  12. 5/2027: what now?Keep building — You crossed three lines off the list. Two new ones appeared.
  13. 5/19 · A competitor movedA competitor shipped the feature you were preparing, first. Their price is lower.
  14. 6/2027: what now?Keep building — Another month the same way. Progress crept up.
  15. 7/2027: what now?Keep building — What you built today, you fixed tomorrow. Progress still went up.
  16. 8/2027: what now?Keep building — You crossed three lines off the list. Two new ones appeared.
  17. 9/2027: what now?Keep building — Another month the same way. Progress crept up.
  18. 9/6 · HeatwaveA heat warning. The air conditioning ran all day. The electricity bill is on your mind.
  19. 10/2027: what now?Keep building — What you built today, you fixed tomorrow. Progress still went up.
  20. 11/2027: what now?Keep building — You crossed three lines off the list. Two new ones appeared.
  21. 11/19 · The exchange rate pushed up import billsThe TWD/USD rate rose to 33.08. Servers and subscriptions billed in dollars cost more.
  22. 12/2027: what now?Keep building — Another month the same way. Progress crept up.
  23. US Rates Rose AgainSignals of Fed tightening strengthened the dollar, and this country's funding rates followed. When the TWD/USD rate jumped, costing got complicated again for anyone buying imported ingredients or parts.
  24. Year 1 closeRevenue NT$0, loss NT$307,445. Your salary put in NT$50,292; cash NT$1,138,573.
  25. 2027 · year 2 beginsThe Currency Calmed Down · Chinese Demand Cooled
  26. 12/6 · Funding costs rose againThe US 10-year yield rose to 5.23%. Investors recalculated valuations, and the bank asked for more collateral.
  27. 12/25 · Down sickYou came down with something. You took medicine and pushed through, but could not concentrate.
  28. 1/2028: what now?Keep building — What you built today, you fixed tomorrow. Progress still went up.
  29. 2/2028: what now?Keep building — You crossed three lines off the list. Two new ones appeared.
  30. 3/2028: what now?Keep building — Another month the same way. Progress crept up.
  31. 3/10 · FamilyYour family packed you lunch. The note said, “Eat properly.”
  32. 4/2028: what now?Keep building — What you built today, you fixed tomorrow. Progress still went up.
  33. 5/2028: what now?Keep building — You crossed three lines off the list. Two new ones appeared.
  34. 6/2028: what now?Keep building — Another month the same way. Progress crept up.
  35. 6/6 · HeatwaveA heat warning. The air conditioning ran all day. The electricity bill is on your mind.
  36. 7/2028: what now?Keep building — What you built today, you fixed tomorrow. Progress still went up.
  37. 7/7 · Down sickA sore throat and a fever. You got through the day in a mask.
  38. 7/23 · A competitor movedA competitor shipped the feature you were preparing, first. Their price is lower.
  39. 8/2028: what now?Launch — You pressed launch. 0 sign-ups on day one. You refreshed ten times.
  40. 8/17 · Covered in an articleAn industry outlet wrote about the product. Sign-up inquiries rose a little.
  41. AI redrew the marketIgnore it — You did not buy the tools. Six months later, a competitor offered the same service at half the price.
  42. 9/26 · Funding costs rose againThe US 10-year yield rose to 5.23%. Investors recalculated valuations, and the bank asked for more collateral.
  43. 10/2028: what now?Spread the word through communities and content — 1 new customers this month. Few enough to know each one by name.
  44. 10/6 · Personal data requestA customer asked for disclosure and deletion of their personal data. You checked the procedure again.
  45. 10/7 · Your mentorAn old mentor called. “What scares you most right now?” they asked.
  46. 11/2028: what now?Keep going — Spread the word through communities and content — 1 new customers this month. Few enough to know each one by name.
  47. 11/4 · Security vulnerabilityAn outside researcher reported a vulnerability. You have to check whether personal data leaked.
  48. The numbers are inSpend more on marketing — You doubled the ad budget. More people came in, and just as many left.
  49. The Currency Calmed DownThe dollar's strength eased and the TWD/USD rate came down. Imported material costs fell a little, and anyone paying overseas suppliers could breathe again.
  50. Chinese Demand CooledA prolonged slump in Chinese domestic demand and real estate lowered Asia's export outlook. Clients who bought raw materials cut orders, and domestic consumption turned cautious as well.
  51. Year 2 closeRevenue NT$43,416, loss NT$470,437. Your salary put in NT$50,292; cash NT$717,162.
  52. 2028 · year 3 beginsFake Investor
  53. 12/23 · Service outageAn alert at 3 a.m.: the disk was full. Fixed before morning; nobody noticed.
  54. AI redrew the marketAI tools changed the industry’s cost and speed. Companies that adopted them move cheap and fast; the rest pay twice for the same customer.
  55. 1/2029: what now?Keep going — Spread the word through communities and content — 1 new customers this month. Few enough to know each one by name.
  56. 2/2029: what now?Keep going — Spread the word through communities and content — 1 new customers this month. Few enough to know each one by name.
  57. 2/21 · Covered in an articleAn industry outlet wrote about the product. Sign-up inquiries rose a little.
  58. The “NT$320,000 a month or your money back” coursePay for it — The course was free YouTube videos stitched together. When you asked for the refund the reply was “assignments incomplete,” then nothing. You filed a report. The officer said it was closed: “no contact.”
  59. 4/2029: what now?Keep going — Spread the word through communities and content — 1 new customers this month. Few enough to know each one by name.
  60. 4/19 · FamilyYou talked with your family for a long time. Someone said, “You come before the money.”
  61. 5/17 · Down sickDay three of a cold that will not lift. No time to see a doctor.
  62. 5/26 · Your mentorYour mentor sent a link to an article. “This sounded like you.”
  63. Financing approvedBank working-capital loan NT$79,000 · 4.1%/yr · 60 months
  64. You are short of moneyBank credit line — You walked into the bank with documents and proof of income. They said your trading history is short. Now you wait for underwriting. Bank working-capital loan NT$79,000 approved.
  65. 6/9 · Service outageThe payment processor went down for two hours. Not your fault, but you wrote the apology.
  66. 6/15 · Funding costs rose againThe US 10-year yield rose to 5.92%. Investors recalculated valuations, and the bank asked for more collateral.
  67. 7/16 · Server bill spikeThe free cloud credits ran out. From this month the bill is the real number.
  68. 7/21 · HeatwaveA heat warning. The air conditioning ran all day. The electricity bill is on your mind.
  69. The runway is running outTake a bridge round — The investor laughed. "Just pay me back double next round." You did not laugh.
  70. 8/15 · An investor showed interestAn investor asked for a meeting next week. “I want a closer look at who is building this,” they said.
  71. 8/26 · Security vulnerabilityAn outside researcher reported a vulnerability. You have to check whether personal data leaked.
  72. You are short of moneyHold on — Instead of a loan you opened the household budget. No more eating out; repairs that could wait, waited. Holding on needed a plan too.
  73. 9/26 · Covered in an articleAn industry outlet wrote about the product. Sign-up inquiries rose a little.
  74. 10/29 · FamilyAt dinner nobody brought up work. You understood that was a kindness.
  75. The runway is running outTake a bridge round — The investor laughed. "Just pay me back double next round." You did not laugh.
  76. 11/21 · Loan payment dayLoan payment day. NT$1,458 in principal and interest left the account. The balance is NT$73,013.
  77. Financing approvedBank working-capital loan NT$79,000 · 4.1%/yr · 60 months
  78. You are short of moneyBank credit line — You walked into the bank with documents and proof of income. They said your trading history is short. Now you wait for underwriting. Bank working-capital loan NT$79,000 approved.
  79. Fake InvestorA man who said he would invest presented a contract at a law office. Before sending the principal, though, he asks for a consulting fee of NT$47,000 first. Real investors do not take money first.
  80. Year 3 closeRevenue NT$928,200, loss NT$857,932. Your salary put in NT$50,292; cash NT$361,851.
  81. 2029 · year 4 beginsRates Rose
  82. 12/21 · Service outageAn alert at 3 a.m.: the disk was full. Fixed before morning; nobody noticed.
  83. 1/3 · Funding costs rose againThe US 10-year yield rose to 6.30%. Investors recalculated valuations, and the bank asked for more collateral.
  84. 1/23 · Down sickDay three of a cold that will not lift. No time to see a doctor.
  85. The runway is running outShut it down — You cancelled the last subscriptions and turned off the servers. When the laptop closed, the room went quiet.
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