Tangibl’s creator, Jyeer Sounguila is doing more than just creating with AI, he’s using it to boost his engineering and CAD background. His mission is more than making custom footwear. He aims to bring ownership to small creators.
* This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link (and make a purchase), I earn a small commission—at no extra cost to you.
Smarter You and Creating with AI
It’s no secret that I leaned heavily into AI when I started Smarter You Services. If you’ve read my posts here and on LinkedIn, you also know that I don’t just pop open ChatGPT and run with the first thing it responds with when I’m researching a new small business tool. I’ve built entire ‘operating systems’ that are plug and play across the various agents and models. This not only helped me augment my business without having to hire staff or interns (or outsource work); it solved problems with context and continuity between threads. This was key to my ability to code small business solutions. It also saved me 10’s of hours of typing on every project so far.
The AI Creator Industry
You see all kinds of new AI tools hitting the market these days—coding tools, image generators, writing assistants, AI- ‘augmented’-everything from all the big players. Before long, I imagine most tools will call on AI in some way. That’s ok in my book. It’s just another iteration in technology. Wildly different—yet no different—than the birth and adoption of commercial internet.
But what happens when the marketing hype of ‘AI’ being built into something loses its luster? Right now, it’s being thrown around like it is the best thing to happen to everything. Eventually, like with social media to marketing, if you aren’t using it, you’ll be behind. Not dead, but behind.
I think this answer comes down to the “how”, not the “why” or the “when”, of AI adoption into your business. That’s why this series of use-cases is fun and interesting for me to add to the Smarter Blog. It’s a showcase, sure, but it should also serve as a reminder that there are unlimited uses for AI. It’s a tool. An enhancer. A breaker of barriers. And, at the end of the day, if your solution or business idea is sound at its core, building with AI can only make it better and more successful.
Enter Tangibl: Closing the Gap Between Ideas and Products
Many AI startups promise the world but deliver another chatbot, AI agent, or consolidated AI hub. Tangibl’s founder, Jyeer Sounguila, takes a very different route. He uses AI as a bridge between creativity and production. And he draws the idea from his engineering and CAD experience.
The Tangibl MVP Today
Tangibl’s first product appears simple on the surface—it’s a sneaker customization tool. A creator picks a base model, adjusts colors, graphics, and patterns through guided tools, and keeps control of the design process. A cool idea, but something you can do through a couple of large shoe manufacturers.
Where it gets interesting is that Tangibl’s AI quietly handles a seriously heavy lift in the background. It’s generating lightweight specs and tech packs manufacturers can use to design and develop the shoes you create in the visual interface.
The result isn’t a mockup. It’s a manufacturable product that can be produced in runs as small as one pair. That’s the key distinction. Most “creative AI” tools stop at pretty visuals. Tangibl outputs production-ready files that slot directly into vetted low-MOQ manufacturing pipelines.
That’s huge. If you have ever been privy to how products make their way from design ideas through the engineering process to making a prototype model, this is a big, expensive lift. And even if you can find a way to lower the cost to prototype, getting manufacturers to do low MOQ (minimum order quantity) is even harder.
The Vision Tomorrow
Sneakers are only the proof point. The long-term goal is much bigger: Any sketch, text prompt, or reference image can become a product specification. Jyeer’s Tangibl AI will help refine designs with material suggestions and manufacturability checks, but the creator stays in charge.
Tangibl aims to support a wide range of categories—from apparel to accessories to hard goods—giving small creators access to some of the same workflows that global brands take for granted.
In other words, Tangibl isn’t building another AI toy. It’s building infrastructure. It’s the backend of what Jyeer calls “the physical internet”.
The Tools I Personally Use to Create with AI
* This is an affiliate product list. I earn small commissions if you purchase. It doesn’t increase your cost.
- LG 32GN650-B Ultragear Gaming Monitor 32” via Amazon
- Razer Gigantus V2 Cloth Gaming Mouse Pad (Medium) via Amazon
- Lamicall Aluminum Metal Adjustable Cell Phone Stand Desk Via Amazon
Why It Matters
The current creator economy is tilted toward platforms that reward attention, not ownership. Tangibl flips that equation. If it succeeds, creators won’t just post designs online for likes. No, they’ll own the products themselves and share in the value created.
Tangibl is still in its early stages. It’s being bootstrapped, running a lean private beta with 15–20 creators, and focused on proving demand before anything else. But if the system works as intended—collapsing the gap from “napkin sketch” to manufactured product—it represents something far more interesting than a niche sneaker app. It’s a case study in how AI can move from hype to impact.
Personally, I’m all for this. One thing AI is great at is removing the old gatekeepers. That excites me. There’s so much room for small creators to play in the global economy. I think it’s about time they were given better opportunities to do so. I’m not so naïve to think that it will kill monopolies or truly dent the wallets of the big players, but as Jyeer and I discussed, it’s about ownership. “Little people” should be able to own the products and the processes that come from their ideas. Tangibl is a great first step toward this ownership.
How to Connect with Jyeer and Tangibl:
Want to learn more or connect with Jyeer and Tangl? Here’s how.