Pricing FAQ
Straight answers before you begin.
AetherForge is an AI-powered Invention Operating System for independent and neurodivergent inventors.
Every plan includes the complete system.
The difference is how much invention work you can carry at once.
Getting started
Is there a free trial?
No.
AetherForge is paid from day one and starts at $29 a month.
Most inventions take longer than thirty days to research, design, build, test, refine, and prepare for professional review. A free trial would ask you to judge the system before enough of the invention exists for its full value to become visible.
Thirty days can build momentum.
It cannot fairly test the system designed to carry an invention through its life.
Why do I have to pay before trying it?
Because AetherForge begins doing real work as soon as you begin.
Your conversations become organized invention work. Decisions are preserved. Connections form across stages. Research, documents, visuals, and other outputs create real operating costs.
AetherForge is self-financed. Paying from day one protects the platform and helps ensure it is being used by inventors ready to invest in moving their work forward.
Which plan should I choose?
Choose based on how much invention work you need to carry at once.
- Think It — one active invention
- Build It — up to three active inventions
- Patent It — keep as many inventions as you like and work across up to ten at a time
You can change plans as your work changes.
Does Think It include a limited version of AetherForge?
No.
Think It includes the complete AetherForge system: all eight stages, the co-pilot, background capture and organization, research, build and test guidance, visuals, and every invention document AetherForge produces.
The plans change capacity.
They do not change the rigor applied to the invention.
Monthly AI capacity
What is monthly AI capacity?
Monthly AI capacity covers work that creates additional model or tool costs.
Your account shows the remaining capacity as a simple percentage. You do not have to count tokens, understand model pricing, or manage technical limits.
Each plan includes a different amount:
- Think It includes monthly AI capacity
- Build It includes expanded monthly AI capacity
- Patent It includes the highest monthly AI capacity
Capacity resets at the beginning of each billing period.
What uses monthly AI capacity?
Intensive work such as:
- Live web and prior-art research
- Document generation
- Visual generation
- Video analysis
- File analysis
- Code execution
- Simulation and advanced calculation
AetherForge shows the expected capacity impact before beginning work that could create a meaningful charge.
What does not reduce my monthly AI capacity?
Talking with your co-pilot.
The work AetherForge quietly captures, organizes, connects, preserves, and versions while you talk.
Uploading and preserving your files, photos, sketches, receipts, documents, audio, and video.
Standard voice transcription also remains available without reducing your visible capacity.
What happens if my AI capacity reaches zero?
Keep talking.
AetherForge continues capturing and organizing the invention while you work.
Research, generation, analysis, and other intensive operations wait until your monthly capacity resets or you choose to refill it.
Your thought is never cut off because a meter reached zero.
Can I add more AI capacity?
Yes.
You can refill capacity from Account Preferences whenever you need more. Purchased capacity remains available until you use it.
Refills are optional. They do not change your plan or start a recurring charge.
Does bringing my own API key change my capacity?
Patent It includes the option to add an approved provider key for eligible generation work.
Your key does not run the live co-pilot conversation or the core AetherForge processes responsible for capture, review, auditing, and documentation integrity.
Those remain controlled by AetherForge.
Billing
How is billing handled?
Billing is handled through Stripe.
From your account, you can view invoices, update your payment method, change plans, and manage your subscription.
What payment methods are accepted?
AetherForge accepts major credit and debit cards.
Additional payment methods may be added later.
Which plans offer annual billing?
Build It and Patent It.
Think It is monthly only because it is the entry point to AetherForge.
How does annual pricing work?
The full twelve-month plan value appears first. A credit equal to one month is then applied.
For Build It:
- Twelve-month value: $588
- Annual-plan credit: −$49
- Amount charged: $539
For Patent It:
- Twelve-month value: $1,068
- Annual-plan credit: −$89
- Amount charged: $979
The annual-plan credit applies again at each uninterrupted annual renewal.
Is there a money-back guarantee?
No.
Monthly plans are not refundable. If you cancel, access continues through the period you have already paid for.
Annual plans return only the unused portion of the amount actually charged.
How is an unused annual balance calculated?
Annual service is divided into twelve monthly segments beginning on the date the annual plan starts.
If you cancel during a segment, you keep access through the end of that segment. That segment is treated as used.
The remaining complete monthly segments are refunded from the amount you actually paid—not from the plan’s higher twelve-month value.
For example, if nine complete segments remain on a Build It annual plan:
- Amount originally charged: $539
- Unused portion: 9 of 12 segments
- Refund: $404.25
The annual-plan credit is never added back when calculating the refund.
Are AI-capacity refills refundable?
No.
Capacity refills are separate purchases and are not part of a monthly or annual subscription refund.
Changing plans
Can I upgrade?
Yes.
Your inventions, conversations, files, decisions, and history move with you. Nothing needs to be transferred or rebuilt.
Before confirming the change, AetherForge shows the new plan, effective date, and billing effect.
Can I downgrade?
Yes.
A downgrade changes what can happen next.
It never takes away what already happened.
If you have more active inventions than the new plan allows, every invention remains visible and downloadable. You choose which inventions remain active.
AetherForge does not make that decision for you.
What if I am over the new plan’s storage limit?
Nothing is deleted.
Your existing material and version history remain visible and downloadable. New uploads pause until you reduce storage or move to a plan with more room.
What happens to my purchased AI capacity if I change plans?
It stays with your account until you use it.
Changing plans does not erase capacity you purchased separately.
What happens to my API key if I leave Patent It?
It stops powering eligible work when the downgrade takes effect.
The key becomes inactive, and Account Preferences gives you a clear option to remove it. It never continues operating silently on a plan that does not include BYOK access.
Inventions, storage, and documents
What counts as an active invention?
An active invention is one you are currently advancing inside AetherForge.
Archived inventions remain preserved and accessible. You can rotate which inventions are active without deleting anything.
What happens when I reach my active-invention limit?
Archive an invention you are not actively working on or move to a plan with more room.
The archived invention remains yours. Its files, history, and documentation stay intact.
What happens when I reach my storage limit?
Existing material remains safe, visible, and downloadable.
Only new uploads pause.
Think It and Build It do not offer storage add-ons. When you need more room, the next plan provides it.
Do all plans generate the same documents?
Yes.
Every plan can produce the same AetherForge invention documents, including the Technical Brief and Comprehensive Invention Package.
The confidential documents receive the same independent review on every plan.
If the information provided is incomplete, the document is still generated, clearly marked as a draft, with the missing or weak areas identified.
Are AetherForge documents patent ready?
No.
AetherForge is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice, determine patentability, or file patent applications.
The documents are designed to be ready to hand to a patent attorney for professional review, based on the information the inventor has provided.
Cancellation and ownership
How do I cancel?
From Account Preferences, choose Manage billing and follow the cancellation steps.
The effective date and any unused annual balance are shown before you confirm.
What happens to my work if I cancel?
It remains your work.
You can export your invention materials and generated documents before cancellation takes effect. AetherForge does not claim ownership of your invention because you cancel or change plans.
Full retention and deletion details are explained in the Data Ownership policy.
Can I export my work without canceling?
Yes.
Your own work is never gated behind cancellation. Export remains available while your account is active.
Can I permanently delete my account?
Yes.
Account deletion is separate from cancellation and is irreversible. AetherForge clearly explains what will be deleted before you confirm.
Still deciding?
Start with one invention.
Think It includes the complete AetherForge system for $29 a month.
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Last updated July 28, 2026 · AetherForge Labs, Inc.