About Sterling AI

I’m Ryan, and I’m 20 years old. I study Economics, Statistics, and Information Systems at the University of Auckland, which means an hour-long train from out west every morning. Most of my days split between lectures, Sterling AI, and the gym. I get my flat whites from a place on Dominion Road on the way to the train. Outside of work and study, I follow politics and current affairs closely. I like understanding how systems work, whether that’s an economy, a government, or a piece of software.

I’ve been watching AI develop since before ChatGPT launched, back when OpenAI had a playground interface that most people hadn’t heard of. I listened to business leaders and scientists promise and warn in equal measure, and I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what it all actually meant for someone my age entering the workforce. The conclusion I kept arriving at was simple: the people who learned to build with AI early would have a real advantage over those who waited.

I wanted to build something real off that idea. Not a university project, but a business that solved an actual problem for actual people. I noticed that small restaurants and cafes in Auckland, places with great food and real character, were stuck without a proper web presence because agencies charged $3,000 to $7,000 for a website. AI tools let me do the same calibre of work in a fraction of the time, which meant I could price it at $695 and still deliver quality that stands up against anything an agency produces.

That’s what Sterling AI does. We build and maintain custom websites for restaurants and cafes across New Zealand. Individually designed, no hassle for the owner, month-to-month with no surprises. $695 to set up, then $49 a month for the Sterling Care Plan: hosting, security, and ongoing content updates included. The owner emails us when they need something changed and we sort it.

I’m building Sterling AI to learn, to test ideas, and to prove that one person with the right tools can deliver work that used to require an entire team. So far it’s holding up. I’m keen to find out where it goes.