The "Solo Capitalist" Stack: The Only 5 AI Tools You Need to Replace an Agency.
⚡ Quick Verdict: The $80/Mo "Agency Killer"
The Brain (Strategy): Gemini Advanced ($20/mo).
The Researcher (Facts): Perplexity Pro ($20/mo).
The Builder (Code): Replit Core ($20/mo).
The Artist (Design): Midjourney ($10/mo).
The Growth (SEO): Keywords Everywhere ($10/yr).
Total Cost: ~$71/month.
Total Value: Replaces a Copywriter, Jr. Dev, Graphic Designer, and SEO Analyst.
In the old economy (2020), if you wanted to scale a business, you needed Headcount.
You hired a writer, a designer, and a dev. You managed Slack channels. You paid payroll taxes.
In the Gemini Era (2026), you don't need Headcount. You need Leverage.
As a "Creative Generalist," my goal is to keep my burn rate low and my output high. I don't want to manage people; I want to build things.
Over the last 6 months at the Infomly Lab, I have tested over 50 AI tools. Most of them are wrappers—useless toys built on top of OpenAI.
But 5 of them are legitimate Force Multipliers.
Together, they form the "Solo Capitalist Stack." Here is the exact setup I use to run this site.
1. The Brain: Gemini Advanced
Role: The Strategist / Lead Editor
[1]Cost: $20/mo
Why it’s in the stack:
I covered this in my Gemini vs. ChatGPT review, but it bears repeating: Context is King.
When I need to plan a content calendar for Q4, I don't want to explain my business from scratch every time. I upload my entire "Brand Bible," my last 20 articles, and my analytics PDF into Gemini.
Because of its 1 Million Token Context Window, it "remembers" everything.
The "Anti-AI" Workflow:
I don't use Gemini to write the final draft. I use it to Simulate the Critic.
Prompt: "Act as a skeptical Reddit user. Read this draft and tell me why it sucks. Tear it apart."
Result: It finds the fluff that I (the human) was too lazy to cut.
2. The Researcher: Perplexity Pro
Role: The Fact-Checker / Research Assistant
Cost: $20/mo
Why it’s in the stack:
Gemini and ChatGPT are "Generative" Engines. They are designed to be creative, which means they sometimes lie (hallucinate).
Perplexity is an Answer Engine. It is designed to be accurate.
The "Solo Capitalist" Use Case:
When I write a post like "The Future of SEO," I need hard data.
Old Way: Google search -> Click 10 links -> Read through ads -> Find one stat. (Time: 20 mins).
Perplexity Way: "Find the latest market share data for Google Search vs. Bing in 2025. Cite sources." (Time: 10 seconds).
It gives me the citations immediately. If you are writing "Anti-AI Assets" (which rely on data), Perplexity is non-negotiable.
3. The Builder: Replit (Core)
Role: The Junior Developer
Cost: $20/mo
Why it’s in the stack:
I am not a React developer. I know enough HTML to be dangerous, but I can't build a SaaS app from scratch.
Replit Agent changed that.
Replit allows you to prompt: "Build a keyword density checker tool using Python and Flask."
It doesn't just give you the code snippet; it builds the environment, installs the dependencies, and deploys the app live.
The Lab Test:
I used Replit to build the "ROI Calculator" featured in our Strategy section. It took 4 minutes. A freelancer on Upwork quoted me $200 and 3 days delivery.
4. The Artist: Midjourney v6
Role: The Graphic Designer
Cost: $10/mo (Basic Plan)
Why it’s in the stack:
You cannot have a "Text Wall" website in 2026. Visuals increase "Time on Page," which is a huge ranking factor for Google.
DALL-E 3 (inside ChatGPT) is okay, but it looks "AI-generated." It has that plastic, shiny look.
Midjourney has Taste.
It creates images that look like high-end editorial photography or custom vector art.
The Workflow:
I don't just ask for "A picture of a robot." I use a Style Reference (--sref) code to ensure every image on Infomly has the same color palette and artistic vibe. This creates "Brand Consistency" without hiring a Creative Director.
5. The Growth: Keywords Everywhere
Role: The SEO Analyst
Cost: ~$15/year (Credits based)
Why it’s in the stack:
Most SEOs tell you to buy Ahrefs (
99/mo)orSemrush(99/mo)orSemrush(129/mo).
For a Solo Capitalist, that is overkill. You don't need to track 10,000 backlinks. You just need to know:"Are people searching for this?"
Keywords Everywhere is a browser extension. When I Google something, it simply shows me the Volume and CPC (Cost Per Click) right there in the sidebar.
It is cheap, lightweight, and keeps me focused on High-Intent Keywords rather than vanity metrics.
The Cost Analysis: Agency vs. The Stack
Let's look at the math. This is why the "Creative Generalist" model is winning.
Table: The "Burn Rate" Comparison
RoleTraditional Agency Cost (Monthly)"Solo Stack" Cost (Monthly)Strategist$2,000+$20 (Gemini)Researcher$500$20 (Perplexity)Developer$1,500$20 (Replit)Designer$1,000$10 (Midjourney)SEO Tools$99 (Ahrefs)$1.25 (Keywords Everywhere)TOTAL~$5,000+ / month~$71.25 / month
The Verdict:
The "Solo Stack" costs 1.4% of the price of an agency.
Is the agency better? Maybe.
Is it 70x better? Absolutely not.
Final Thoughts: It’s Not About the Tools, It’s About the System
Buying a hammer doesn't make you a carpenter.
Subscribing to these 5 tools won't make you a millionaire.
But if you have the Strategy (Post 2) and the Structure (Post 4), these tools give you the Leverage to execute at a speed that big companies cannot match.
You are a speedboat. They are an aircraft carrier.
Equip your boat properly.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Do I really need both Gemini and Perplexity?
If you are on a strict budget, you can drop Perplexity and use Gemini for research. However, Perplexity's ability to browse real-time academic papers and news sources is currently superior to Gemini's Google grounding for deep research tasks.
Is Midjourney hard to use?
It runs inside Discord, which can be confusing for new users. However, they recently launched a Web Alpha interface that makes it much easier. If you struggle with prompts, Gemini is actually great at writing Midjourney prompts for you.
Why not use free tools only?
Free tools have limits. They throttle your speed, have lower quality outputs, and don't offer privacy protection. If you are building a business, $70/month is a negligible expense for the "Unfair Advantage" these Pro models provide.