João Marcelo Pitanga is a product manager with an engineering and data background who built EsotericAI during a bolt.new hackathon. He works on his product before and after business hours of his full-time job, fueled by a lifelong connection to esotericism and a belief that AI can make tarot and astrology feel truly personal. He's approaching 1,000 users and still building every day.
Product: EsotericAI Category: AI / Lifestyle / Wellness Founded: 2025 Team size: Solo founder Website: esotericai.xyz SaaS Hive page: https://www.saashive.com/products/esotericai
What were you doing before EsotericAI, and how did the idea come to you?
I've been a product manager throughout most of my career, with an engineering and data background, but with a knack for all product-adjacent stuff like design, marketing, and business. I've always been into esotericism, so has my family. We believe that energies flow everywhere, either through physical card draws or digital. But before, the digital space didn't have AI to make the experience closer to human or in-person.
The idea came to me during a bolt.new hackathon that ran for about a month. I love tech, energies, and the cosmos, everything that is unknown and the ways we use to make sense of it: symbols, interpretations, esotericism, mysticism. I tried to come up with a way to blend both worlds and leverage AI to take it to the next level. I built the very first version during that hackathon. I didn't even finish by the deadline, it took me a couple of extra days. Here's the demo of that first version: https://youtu.be/PRe7-T-LcvE
In one or two sentences, what does EsotericAI do and who is it for?
EsotericAI closes the gap between in-person esoteric consultations and the digital space. It allows anyone, any time, anywhere to access tarot readings and astrology insights that are truly personalized and unique to them, with the ability to ask follow-up questions to deepen their reading and consultation experience.
How long did it take to build your first version, and how much did it cost to get there?
About a month. I started on the $25/month bolt.new tier and spent roughly 3 hours a day, some days more, some less, before or after business hours of my full-time job. Since then I've gone through the $25, $50, even $100 tiers depending on demand, and I spend more than 3 hours a day most of the time. That means very early mornings or very late nights alongside my full-time job. It takes making a lot of time to put in real work.
What did you spend time or money on that turned out to be a complete waste?
I don't want to burn others out there, but things like partnerships with directories for extra visibility are a total waste of money in my opinion. They don't have the public or the traffic. The only one that actually works for me is TAAFT (There's An AI For That), which is a directory specifically for AI tools. That's where the majority of my close to 1,000 users came from, both through paid and organic clicks. Other platforms provided a very small percentage of what TAAFT brought. Not zero, but nothing close.
How did you get your first users, or if you're still early, how are you planning to?
My first users came from launching on TAAFT a couple of weeks after the hackathon, with paid and non-paid clicks. I'm still figuring it all out in terms of where and how to find the most qualified users. Some paid clicks on other platforms helped, but TAAFT has been the clear winner so far.
What's one decision you've made so far that had the biggest positive impact on your product or business?
Staying close to power users. The fun thing is, they reach out to you as well. You have to be there for them, hold onto that, make it worth it.
One user specifically reached out saying the product was great but they'd love it to go more in the astrology direction. They were already familiar with tarot but not astrology, which meant they were willing to spend more money to explore that side. I already had astrology on my backlog, but that was a strong signal about what to prioritize next.
What's the best feedback or reaction you've gotten from someone who's seen or tried your product?
One user reached out saying the product had so much potential, that it was truly different from the rest. Much cleaner, a premium experience, and still more affordable. Another reached out saying the product was awesome, but they'd love to see more than just tarot. I already had that on my plans, but their message made me work on it faster to keep them interested and engaged.
What's been the lowest moment so far? What kept you going?
It's hard. It just is. You have a full-time job and still find time to work on a project you believe in and love. It doesn't click from one day to the other.
My lowest was when the TAAFT launch and paid promotions started to run out and I saw a stall in signups. Having a referral system doesn't mean users will actually use it. That led me to question things. I shifted my focus to spending on listings mostly, to build organic traffic. I believe it's a statistical thing. I still don't have enough users to have meaningful numbers, but I rely on signals that the product is marketable. Some users found the share and referral system on their own. I just need it to click.
The greatest minds out there have all been in this same spot, and all of them have one saying in common: keep showing up, keep going until it clicks, because it will. Not blindly, but with focus. Little by little you see things compound. But it still takes its toll, no doubt.
How do you decide what to work on next? What gets priority and what gets ignored?
It's a mix of research, gut feeling, and contact with power users. But I try to aim for things that can generate a viral or growth loop, or that can strengthen my chances of ranking and AI citations.
My latest feature is a free one called Send a Card. The idea is for it to become a free marketing engine where users bring other users by sending them a tarot card. That's the kind of feature I prioritize: something that can create organic growth.
What's the one reason someone would pick your product over the alternatives?
Most tarot and astrology apps out there are a mess. A bunch of things everywhere, you go around for a while until you get something done, and they're more expensive to get actual value back.
EsotericAI is made to have a premium feel with a free-to-freemium cost. It doesn't just do a tarot reading. It journals it. You can revisit anytime. You can generate interpretations about your readings, and the readings themselves also consider planetary transits for richer insight. If you unlock your natal chart or numerology profile, those are blended in to make things truly personalized. On every reading you can ask for additional insights, like a conversation with the reader. And once unlocked, you can ask your natal chart questions about love, career, astrocartography. It takes your chart and planetary transits to respond with insights unique to you and your life.
And you don't need to get past a bunch of useless ads or buttons. It's right there for you. Starts at $1, or free forever if you share readings or refer friends.
Where can people find or try EsotericAI?
You can try it at esotericai.xyz. It's also available across multiple directories as João builds organic traffic. SaaS Hive readers get 50% off on their first month or year when signing up through the SaaS Hive link.
Follow EsotericAI on Instagram: @esotericai.xyz Connect with João on LinkedIn: João Marcelo Pitanga
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and flow. All answers are João's own words.
Comments (0)
Sign in to leave a comment.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.