DietAI: Calorie Counter

What it does

DietAI is a calorie and macronutrient tracking app designed to simplify weight management. Its primary function is to help users log their daily food intake and stay within personalized nutritional targets. The app's key feature is its AI-powered food logging, which allows users to add meals by typing, scanning a photo of their food, or scanning a product barcode. Based on an initial, detailed quiz, the app creates a custom diet plan tailored to the user's goals, activity level, and personal metrics.

Where it shines

DietAI excels in its onboarding process, which feels more like a premium consultation than a simple setup. Instead of using boring forms, it employs engaging, interactive controls like a vertical ruler for height (00:37) and an analog-style dial for weight (00:42). This turns data collection into a satisfying experience. The app is also clever at framing its value. Before asking for any payment, it presents screens that visualize the user's potential success (00:26) and show data-driven claims about its effectiveness (01:25), building user motivation and justifying the subscription.

UX highlights

The app's core dashboard (04:57) is clean and data-rich, providing a clear overview of calories left, macronutrient targets, and daily streaks.
Meal logging is flexible, offering multiple input methods. The text-based entry (05:02) is straightforward, while the photo scanning (05:34) and barcode scanning (05:58) features cater to different user preferences and situations.
After a meal is logged, the app provides a detailed breakdown of its nutritional content, which can be manually adjusted (07:34). This gives users both convenience and control.
The profile and settings section (08:28) allows users to easily edit their core health data and macro goals, ensuring the plan can adapt as their needs change.
The use of clear icons and progress bars for macronutrients makes complex nutritional data easy to understand at a glance.
The app includes a referral program (06:22) that is easily accessible from the main screen, encouraging organic growth.

Monetization & growth

DietAI employs an aggressive and sophisticated monetization strategy. After the extensive onboarding, the user hits a hard paywall at 02:51. If the user tries to close it, they are presented with a series of escalating offers. First, a high-discount "Limited Time Offer" appears (03:22), followed by an "Exclusive Offer" that includes a 3-day free trial (03:52). This multi-layered approach aims to capture different user segments. Furthermore, after a successful subscription, the app gates the main experience with a referral screen (03:35), capitalizing on new user excitement to drive acquisition.

Who it’s for

This app is primarily for individuals looking for a structured and data-driven approach to weight loss or management. Its user-friendly design would appeal to those who are new to calorie counting, while the detailed macro tracking and personalization would also suit more experienced users. The photo-scanning feature is particularly useful for people who eat out often or cook complex meals that are difficult to log manually. The app is clearly targeting users who are motivated to make a change and are willing to invest time in the initial setup for a personalized plan.

Notes & opportunities

The onboarding, while comprehensive, is very long. This could lead to some user drop-off before they even see the plan they've invested time in creating. The app's core AI feature, food scanning, is a major selling point, but the first scan from a photo in the video (07:12) results in a detailed list of ingredients that the user still has to confirm and adjust (07:26), which might feel less automatic than expected. Streamlining this post-scan confirmation process could further improve the user experience and deliver on the promise of effortless tracking.