Why we started ABCD Labs: three everyday problems, three small tools

If we wait for others to solve our problems, it will be too late.

Key takeaways

• ABCD Labs is the experimental arm of Hornbill AI Studio. We start small, test with real people, and only then build bigger.
• Three problems started everything: household money, getting local produce to buyers, and making Nagaland easier for visitors to find and plan.
• ABCD stands for App, Build, Consulting, Data, the four ways we work.
• Experiments stay labelled experimental until real people use them.

Why: living with the problem

We did not start with technology. We started by living with people and watching what gets in their way. If we are far from the people we build for, we build the wrong things. So every tool here begins with a problem someone told us about, and goes back to them for feedback.

What: three problems, three tools

1. Household money. Zup-Zup Kharcha. Many households, and especially the people who run them day to day, have no simple tool to see where money goes. Zup-Zup Kharcha is a free expense app that lets a family build its own record, so patterns show up over weeks and months.

2. Farm to market. ShareHaat. Many good products in Nagaland's shops come from outside the state, while local farmers and makers struggle with distribution, logistics, finance and business know-how. ShareHaat is a Nagaland listing board for growers and makers, launching on 7 November 2026.

3. Visitors and visibility. Hornbill AI Studio. Visitors find it hard to get reliable information, and homestays and local businesses find it hard to be found. This site brings sourced guides, villages and towns, festivals and free local listings into one place, to make Nagaland easier to discover and plan for.

How: the ABCD way

• App: websites, web apps and MVPs.
• Build: software, AI integration and automation.
• Consulting: technology planning, in plain terms.
• Data: records and dashboards people can act on.

Our steps are discover, design, build and improve. Our content is drawn from public and official sources, written and checked with AI assistance, and every article shows its sources and a Last checked date. See our editorial approach.

Where

Nagaland first, built here, for local people, local businesses and the visitors who come to see us.

When

• The studio's tools and this site were built in 2026.
• ShareHaat launches 7 November 2026.
• New experiments and what we learned from them will be posted here as they happen.

Tell us what is hard for you

If you are a farmer, a homestay host, a shop owner, a student or run a society, we want to hear what slows you down. Write to hornbillaistudio@gmail.com.

Editor, Hornbill AI Studio