A 64-year-old retiree built an AI platform to help him with a legal case — and become closer with his wife

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How vibe coding is reshaping work, startups, and the economy.

Brian Rezendes' deep connection with AI began when he used it to manage inventory at his job at a hardware store.

Three days a week, the 64-year-old had to get up on a ladder and audit the top racks, counting goods and making sure everything was in the right place. The task was a struggle at his age, he said. So he used AI to keep track.

He would count the displays downstairs first and record those with AI. Then, he would go upstairs and ask the AI if he had one of those units downstairs. If yes, he would add it to his upstairs count.

"I talked to a lot of people about this, and they all thought I was crazy," Rezendes said, acknowledging that some people eventually showed interest. "Most of them refer to the Terminator movie."

In his small rural town of 600 in North Dakota, Rezendes wagers he's using technology more than anyone else — by far. Now, he's using vibe coding to manage a complex legal case and help his wife build websites to manage daily tasks like cooking.

"Being up here in North Dakota, I feel very alone; there are not many people who are into new technology," Rezendes said.

Rezendes is on the older side of "vibe coders," who use platforms like Claude Code, Lovable, Cursor, and Replit to design platforms that make their lives easier. Many have no background in software development or advanced programming.

"I didn't go to college when I was younger, and I think I'm at the point where I kind of regret that. I don't know if I'm trying to make up for it or what," Rezendes said. "I just really enjoy learning, and want to embrace the new technologies and hopefully be able to create something that earns me some wealth."

Vibe coding for saving time and energy

After Rezendes' parents died, he and his sister disagreed about handling their estate, which left him with piles of legal paperwork. "Until ChatGPT came out, I was pretty much stuck, unless I wanted to spend all my earnings working with an attorney," Rezendes said.

Rather than relying on commercial chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude, which have prompt limits and can cost up to hundreds of dollars a month, Rezendes vibe coded a custom app he calls "TrixieHQ" — humanizing the chatbot as a companion. It uses application programming interfaces (APIs) to share data and act as a sort of home base for all of his projects.

TrixieHQ has an AI search box powered by OpenAI, which he uses for legal advice and as a "paralegal partner."

The interface he vibe coded has given him advice on navigating lengthy and complex legal documents, building a deed, brainstorming questions, and crafting plans of action for his court appearances. He estimates this has saved him thousands of dollars in legal fees, and he hasn't noticed it hallucinating details about the case. Still, he says it has steered him the wrong way a few times after he asked questions that weren't precise enough.

Making life easier, one prompt at a time

On the side, he's building YouTube channels for AI cartoons with a video generation software called Runway and historical videos created with agents he made in CrewAI. He hopes that he can gain enough followers in the next few years to have some passive income to supplement his and his wife's travels in retirement.

"As I'm getting older, I have more aches and pains, but with utilizing these new technologies, I'm going to be able to do more and more," Rezendes said. "It would be a great benefit for older Americans to learn technology. All the ones I do talk to are scared to death of it. They think it's going to take over and wipe us all out."

His wife wanted him to vibe code her websites, such as one where she puts her recipes and another that stores her photos. He built Cheryl's Recipe Box with help from Codex and GitHub. He admitted that his wife isn't into technology much — and calls Trixie her husband's "girlfriend."

"My wife gets a little bit jealous when I spend too much time on the computer," Rezendes said.

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Noah Sheidlower is a senior economy reporter with Business Insider. He covers retirement, aging, age tech, and employment trends.Noah reported a months-long series called 80 Over 80 about what working at 80 and older looks like. The 300-interview series includes over a dozen features and chronicles the lives of people like an 81-year-old Home Depot worker battling heart failure, a 93-year-old woman searching for a job, and an 85-year-old bus driver who died at work. The series has been recognized by the National Headliner Awards, New York Press Club Awards, and Deadline Club Awards.In 2024, Noah led a 17-story retirement series on the regrets older Americans have about their lives. He has also reported on how Americans have navigated unemployment, what compels Americans to move, and how mass deportations could impact the economy. He has appeared on SiriusXM Business Radio, Vox, and CBS News to discuss his reporting.Noah received his Bachelor's in Sociology and English from Columbia University. Noah has covered the restaurant industry, transportation, retail, and markets for CNBC, NBC News, CNN, and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.Contact: [email protected] or 516-304-1352.Popular articlesSome of America's oldest workers hold jobs while battling major health issues81 and working to surviveThey died 'doing what they loved': The stories of workers in their 80s who died on the jobThey're in their 80s, still working, and living paycheck to paycheckWhat work looks like in your 80s for half a million AmericansWhat an extra $500 to $1,000 a month did for 8 familiesA medical crisis derailed their retirement plans. Here's what they wish they'd done differently.