Today’s Mealow on Present of AI: The Maker Profile

Present of AI recently published a maker profile of Today’s Mealow, along with a short showcase video. The profile is about one small, daily problem: picking a meal. So on the day this post went up, I asked my own app, Today’s Mealow, to pick my lunch.

I set the location to downtown Minneapolis, where I study, and answered as I felt: lunch, a bit tired, wanting something light, eating alone. The greeting read “Tired but craving something light and soothing.” The three picks were a margherita pizza, grilled salmon and gnocchi.

Each card says why it fits. The salmon’s reason starts “Light, flaky,” which matches the light answer. The gnocchi’s calls it “Soft pillows of comfort,” which matches the tired one. I’d walk to the salmon, since it’s the dish I’d finish without feeling heavy afterwards.

What did Present of AI write about Today’s Mealow?

Present of AI published a maker profile of Today’s Mealow, the food picker I, Ziwei Yu, build on my own. It comes with a short showcase video. The profile covers the problem behind the app, how it works, what I built it with and what changed after launch.

The profile is written from my side of the story, in my own words where it quotes me. Present of AI describes it as a showcase rather than a formal review. The profile and the video are both on Present of AI’s maker page.

Why did I build a food picker?

I built Today’s Mealow because someone close to me regularly got stuck on what to eat. The tools she had made it harder, not easier. Delivery apps and review sites kept adding options when what she needed was fewer.

Present of AI quoted one line from me that sums it up. “The problem wasn’t a lack of information, it was too many choices.” When I’m hungry and undecided myself, a long list of places only makes it harder for me. What helps is someone narrowing it down to a few I can say yes to.

That’s why the app hands back three dishes and nothing more. I wrote about the same problem from the reader’s side in getting help deciding.

What did I build Today’s Mealow with?

I built Today’s Mealow mostly with AI coding tools, as a business student rather than a trained programmer. Claude Code did most of the development, Codex generated images, and the app runs on WeChat Cloud Development with the DeepSeek API and two map services.

Here is the stack the profile lists:

• Claude Code, for writing and changing the app’s code
• Codex, for generating images
• WeChat Cloud Development, for the back end
• The DeepSeek API, for choosing the dishes
• The Amap and Google Maps APIs, for finding nearby places

The profile spent some time on how I work with AI agents. Mostly, it’s lots of small rounds. I write down what I want, let the agent build it, use the result myself, and write down what’s wrong. Then the next round starts from that list. Most of what makes the app better came from using it and fixing what I saw. Screenshots of real runs, like the lunch above, are where I spot most problems. The about page explains how the picks work in more detail.

What changed in Today’s Mealow after launch?

After launch I made Today’s Mealow faster and fixed dishes labeled with the wrong cuisine. I also kept picks for one way of eating, like dessert, out of another, like a proper meal. Google Maps came in for places outside China, and the first screen was redesigned.

One more change made the picks more useful: leaning toward each restaurant’s known dishes, so the cat suggests what a place is actually good at. Then in September 2026 the web version arrived, in English and Chinese, so people outside WeChat could use the app too.

Want to see what the cat picks on your street? Answer a few quick questions and get 3 dishes from real places near you.

See today’s picks

Is Today’s Mealow a funded startup?

Today’s Mealow is a solo side project, not a funded startup, and the Present of AI profile says it doesn’t make money yet. It’s free to use. Another feature this month, in a founder newsletter, looked at the same project from the builder’s side.

That other feature is covered in the post on the 1752vc Founder Spotlight. If you’d rather spin than answer questions, the food wheel is free too.