AI That Works for You. Not Instead of You.
You have so much more to offer than any tool. We help Bay Area individuals, families, and small businesses put AI to work on the busywork — so you can spend more time on the work you love and know so well. We set it up, teach you to run it yourself, and you keep everything.
AI That Makes Your Team Better. Not Smaller.
Whether your business runs on an internal IT person, an outside managed-services provider, or no solution yet, we pair the right AI tools, systems, and platforms with your people — set up right and owned outright. For teams that need more, we step in on product management and leadership, large-scale migrations from mergers and acquisitions, and family-office support. We measure success by what your team can do without us.
Hi, I’m Gene.
I’ve been the person friends, families, and businesses call about technology for as long as I can remember. My favorite moment in any project is when someone says “wait — I can do this myself now.”
Every project ends with you owning every account, password, and document. Ask about fixed‑scope packages with a price agreed before we start.
How It Works
The same four steps every time — we call it the Matching Method. No surprises, no lock-in, and you end up more capable than you started.
Listen
A free 30-minute chat about how your team or household actually works today. No sales pitch, no jargon.
Match
A plain-English plan matching the right tools to your people — with a fixed price on it before we start.
Empower
We set everything up and train you hands-on until you’re confident, not just covered.
Stay
You own every account, password, and document. We stay reachable — but you’re never locked in.
For Your Business
Tools that fit how your team actually works — set up right, taught hands-on, and owned by you. Click any card for the full picture. Each card now shows the method and the tools we’d reach for.
Networking
Wi-Fi that works in every room, and a network that doesn’t fall over.
We use mesh Wi-Fi to kill dead zones and split traffic into separate lanes, so guests can’t reach business systems — and we’re alerted before you notice a problem.
Identity Management
One login for everything — and former employees actually locked out.
One secure single sign-on across every app, with joiners and leavers handled automatically so access never drifts.
AI Services & Automation
Hand the boring, repetitive work to AI — so your people can do the parts that need people.
We map your repetitive workflows and hand them to automation and AI assistants — always with a human in the loop for anything that matters.
Team Collaboration
One place where your team finds everything — and actually uses it.
We design one knowledge base and task system around how you already work, then train the team so it actually gets used.
Email Hosting & Migration
Move your email without losing a single message — and stop landing in spam.
We clean up your DNS and add SPF, DKIM, and DMARC so your mail is trusted, then migrate in stages with a 30-day safety net.
Web Hosting & Domain Routing
A website you own and understand. No mystery boxes.
Transparent hosting you control: DNS, SSL, and a CDN set up cleanly, with CI/CD so deploys are safe and reversible.
For You & Your Family
Patient, one-on-one help with the technology in your life — at your pace, in plain language. No question is too small. Each card now shows the method and the tools we’d reach for.
Email Management
Get your inbox back under control — and keep it that way.
We build filters and a folder system that sort mail for you, and tame the spam filter so nothing important hides.
Device Maintenance
Keep your computers and devices fast, safe, and backed up.
Updates, cleanup, and a real backup — so a lost or broken device is an inconvenience, not a disaster.
Basic Troubleshooting
Patient help with everyday tech problems. No question is too small.
We find the actual cause, not just the symptom, and show you the fix so it’s less scary the next time it happens.
Technology Education
Learn your devices and apps at your own pace, in plain language.
Patient, one-on-one lessons at your pace — including how to spot scams and phishing before they catch you.
Introduction to AI
A friendly, hands-on introduction to AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude.
Hands-on practice with real tools, plus the honest limits — like why AI can “hallucinate” and when not to trust it.
Smart Phone Setup & Training
Get your iPhone or Android set up right — and comfortable to use.
Setup, data transfer, bigger text, and security like two-factor and scam-call blocking — so your phone works for you.
Real Work, Real Results
A few field notes from actual projects and experiments — in our own words. This is how we think, and what working with us is like.
Moving email without losing a message
The exact staged method we use to move a business between Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, and legacy hosts: audit first, run both systems in parallel, cut over on a low TTL, and keep the old mail readable for 30 days.
Read the method → AI · BuildA working app in about a day
An honest, unedited case study: building a live trail-tracking web app with AI assistance — four pivots, a few confident-but-wrong AI moments, and a clear line between where AI helps and where a human still has to drive.
Read the case study → Personal · HardwareNew life for a 10-year-old laptop
Instead of a $10k+ machine to run AI locally, a careful rebuild turned a 2016 MacBook Pro with 8GB of RAM into something genuinely useful again — and the honest math on when that’s worth doing.
Read the story →Fixed-Scope Packages
A few clear starting points, each with a price agreed before we begin — so there are no surprises. Everything is tailored to fit, and everything we set up is yours to keep. Need something else? Just ask.
Ctrl+Care
Your fractional IT department: someone who knows your setup and is a call away, without a full-time hire.
- Priority help by phone and email
- Proactive updates, backups, and monitoring
- A monthly check-in, not a mystery invoice
By the Hour
Don’t let AI replace you — you have so much more to offer. Bring whatever’s on your plate and we’ll work through it together, one‑on‑one, at your pace.
- Buy time in 1, 3, or 5‑hour blocks
- Spend it however you need — AI, email, devices, or all three
- Bigger blocks, better rate — and nothing expires on you
AI 101, One-on-One
A patient, hands-on introduction to AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude — no technical background needed.
- What AI is and isn’t, in plain English
- Real ways to use it in your day-to-day
- Written notes you can keep and refer back to
Our Promise
Free Guides
Reference pages we keep for anyone who needs them — clients or not. Help yourself.
Plain-English Tech Glossary
Every bit of jargon you’ll meet on this site (and in life), explained the way we’d explain it over coffee. DNS, the cloud, two-factor, AI — all of it.
Open the glossary →Email Settings for Every Major Provider
The classic setup page: IMAP, POP, and SMTP servers and ports for Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, Yahoo, and more — for whenever a mail app asks and you need an answer.
Open the settings page →Questions People Actually Ask
The honest answers to the things you might be wondering but hesitant to ask. Here are a few — the rest are on the full FAQ page.
Are you going to replace my team with AI?
No — that’s the opposite of what we do, and we’ll put it in writing. We use AI to take the boring, repetitive work off your people so they can do the parts that need a human. We measure success by what your team can do, not by how few of them are left.
What will this cost?
Every package comes with a fixed price, agreed before we start — no meters running, no surprise invoices. The first 30-minute chat is free, and you’ll leave it knowing your options and rough costs either way.
What if my team hates new tools?
That’s usually a sign the tool didn’t fit how they work, or nobody showed them why it helps. We choose tools around your actual workflows and train people hands-on. If something isn’t getting used, we swap it or remove it — adoption is the whole point.
Are you going to judge my messy setup?
Never. We’ve seen everything, and none of it is embarrassing to us — it’s just where you are today. No question is too basic, and nobody gets made to feel dumb. Ever.
See all the questions & answers →
Get in Touch
Tell us what’s going on — or what you’re curious about. The first chat is free, half an hour, and you’ll leave knowing your options either way. We respond quickly.
Prefer to talk? Call (510) 467-0217.
Upcoming Events
Our free monthly meetup to explore AI tools over coffee. Share discoveries, ask questions, and see what’s possible. No laptop required — all levels welcome.
Learn more & save a seat →