The accidental startup.

It started with another idea...

A few months ago, I was in the zone building a completely different SaaS product. The codebase was coming together, the MVP was ready, and it was time to check off the final chore before launch: buying the domain name.

I had a list of 15 name ideas. One by one, I typed them into standard domain search tools. But instead of simple availability checks, I was met with a minefield of frustration:

• Domains listed as "available," only to find out they were parked aftermarket domains asking for $3,000+.
• Vague "premium registration" labels with recurring yearly fees that made no sense for a pre-revenue project.
• Generators suggesting unpronounceable combinations, hyphens, or numbers that completely killed the brand's credibility.

I wasted days. I was negotiating with brokers, checking whois databases, and feeling the launch momentum drain away. The simple task of naming a project had become a frustrating bottleneck.

The "Ah-Ha" moment

Frustrated, I closed my original IDE tab and wrote a simple script. Instead of relying on traditional registrars or broker search bars (which often track your searches or upsell taken names), my script queried real-time registry status directly to bypass all markups and premium traps.

If a domain was completely free, it was displayed. No brokers, no registration-fee surprises. Just standard, fair prices.

I shared the script with a few founder friends in a group chat. Within minutes, they were asking for a UI. They too were tired of the standard registrar search experience. I realized that the tool I built to solve my naming problem was more useful than the startup I was originally trying to launch.

So, I pivoted. I polished the backend, paired it with a clean AI-powered brainstormer, and called it ZeroTaken.