Pickaxe reviews

This is a solid product, well thought through and creates good bots (pickaxes) .. but... I am not going to use it because, they have opted to restrict the LLM you can use even if on BYOK. Currently, I want to use Open AI 4.1 but blocked. I have to assume that we as LTD buyers will always be prevented from using latest LLMs for no practical, logistical, financial reason and therefore, always behind our competition. This is clearly to push LTD buyers into a subscription package.. I bought the highest tier on here so nowhere else to go to unlock using my BYOK. I have emailed, left a question on here.. but the reply was merely this is limited to the Pro tier. I am now using AgenticFlow which does not have any restrictions when using BYOK. Shame really

So we had done some basic testing with Pickaxe and it has a lot of promise! We were excited to start working on our project now. Then suddenly we login and there is a huge "Migrate Now" window -- which is almost impossible to bypass. So I was like "Sure, I'll migrate".... UNTIL... UNTIL I saw our plan basically gutted to what's nearly equivalent to their "Free" plan on their website. So paying a decent sum for the top tier on AppSumo nets us a nearly free plan. Everythign is downgraded to where it's almost useless. So Surely, I thought this was a mistake. So I've emailed.... and well, you guessed it. No Response. So I know APPSUMO has a guarantee for when an app closes. While Pickaxe hasn't closed (yet) --- it's effectively useless and may as well be considered closed. So I'm hoping AppSumo will listen to people when they start pointing this out. We'll see!

I’m frustrated with the recent changes made to the pickaxe system after the upgrade. The new restrictions have limited my ability to use the pickaxes as I’ve intended, and despite purchasing add-ons with the expectation that they would be functional, I’ve found that they do not meet my needs anymore. I've invested significant time into this, and the unexpected changes have made it difficult to adapt, leaving me feeling uncertain about the value of my purchases in this evolving landscape.

Yet another product that changes it offer and thinks it is amazing. AppSumo need to step in and support the buyers of the product and offer a refund. No more partnerships with PickAxe either.

Please revert back to the original deal we paid for. This is stealing.

❌ Why Not Pickaxe AI?

- Aggressive Support and Vague Policy Language
The communication from Nathaniel, the so called “co-founder”, is aggressive, vague, and lacks the minimum business standards. There’s a high risk of account suspension, as reported on the web by many users.

- Lack of Real Memory, Logic, or Conditionals – Only Prompt Chaining

The platform lacks real memory, logic, or conditionals. It only supports prompt chaining.

- Unstable User Sessions and Sudden Platform Changes

The platform is unstable, leading to frequent user sessions and sudden platform changes.

- No Export or Versioning; Locked-In Projects
There’s no export or versioning option, making it difficult to manage projects.

- Poor Transparency and Lack of Trust at the Business Level

The platform lacks transparency, which erodes trust at the business level.

- Suitable for Basic “Hobby-Based” Q&A Chatbots – Not Useful for Company-Level, Enterprise-Level, or Advanced Chatbots

Pickaxe AI is a basic no-code system with numerous limitations. It’s not suitable for company-level, enterprise-level, or advanced chatbot development.

- Rigid, Closed-Off, and Inherently Unstable Infrastructure for Long-Term Product Development
The platform’s infrastructure is rigid, closed-off, and inherently unstable, making it unsuitable for long-term product development.

Then comes the human factor—the support, if you can call it that. Communication is cold, unhelpful, and alarmingly aggressive.

The primary person who responds to you, Nathaniel, is rude and disrespectful. For him or anyone else, it’s impossible to resolve an issue. With full rudeness, they ask you to search for that on their chatbot or community!

Forget transparency—the platform operates with an alarming level of opacity that’s genuinely dangerous if you’re building anything significant.

And let’s talk about trust. The risk of sudden feature changes, unannounced plan adjustments, or even account suspension is not theoretical. It’s happened. Users have experienced disruptions without warning, with no real recourse. The platform’s control over your project is absolute, and it’s not in a positive way.

Their “enterprise-ready” claim? That’s a fantasy. There’s no DevOps layer, no architectural support, and no business-grade functionality. It’s just a GPT shell with prompts duct-taped together, presented as a development environment. Sure, it works fine if you just want to build a chatbot that says “Hi, how can I help you?” But the moment you try to do anything more—anything structured, intelligent, or commercially scalable—the entire platform collapses under the weight of its own false promises.

I’ve built enough to recognize the difference between a sandbox and a system. Pickaxe AI is the former. If you’re a hobbyist experimenting for fun, it might pass. But if you’re a serious builder, if you need stability, scalability, or even the basic respect of a professional support interaction—stay far away.
This isn’t enterprise-level. It’s not even reliable. It’s a flashy toy platform that breaks down when you try to use it like a real tool. I regret all the monthly subscriptions I made on this platform and the time I wasted. Guess what? After that, all my chatbots stopped working due to unannounced changes!
In summary, avoid this platform either by subscription or lifetime deals. There are many respectful and usable platforms available.

Just as the refund period came to an end, the company changed the plans offered. The entire software is almost unusable now, what a con. They are pushing upsells and must be desperate. Appsumo please step in. I spent a lot of money on this promise and LTD situation.

Appsumo need to step in, otherwise it sets a standard. I’m really disappointed.

Pickaxe seems to be in trouble.

A few days ago, they launched a "special offer" to buy their add-on and perks for their "successful journey". TOO expensive, something like 1,000 USD. INSANE!

It seems they failed, therefore, they are finding ways to limit LTD owners by limiting their plans.
After building 3 studios (I bought the option of 50), now they limit the amount of data coming from URL links... TO ONLY 50 PAGES!

Even though they agree that the only limitation was anchored in the amount of documents uploaded (50), they started to limit the amount of links fetch.

No single Pickaxe project can live with only 50 pages. That is insane. Therefore, they are pushing everyone to buy or upgrade.

Either they are broke, so everyone should just refund whatever they bought from them, or they need to provide an answer on why they limit the number of pages we can feed our chatbot....

Update: Mike Gioia is now limiting the amount of data used per Studio, even though the deal clearly states that the limitations apply to each Pickaxe, not to every Studio.

This is pushing out LTD buyers, and questions have already started to appear on the AppSumo deal page from users affected.

This is becoming a SCAM and the biggest bait and switch I have ever encountered!

Pickaxe just dumped Appsumo buyers.
Exactly when the "refund" period with appsumo finished. They launched a "New version".

They also launched a "special offer" to buy add-ons and perks for their "successful journey". TOO expensive, something like 1,000 USD, for some benefits we suppose to have on the appsumo deal.
It seems they failed, therefore, they are finding ways to limit Appsumo users by limiting their plans.

1. After building 3 studios (I bought the option T3 of 50), now they limit the amount of data coming from URL links. TO ONLY 50 PAGES!

2. Even though they agreed that the only limitation was anchored in the amount of documents uploaded (50), they started to limit the amount of links fetched.

3. No single Pickaxe project can live with only 50 pages. That is insane. Therefore, they are pushing everyone to buy or upgrade.

4. Futhermore, Pickaxe is now limiting the amount of data used per Studio, even though the deal clearly states that the limitations apply to each Pickaxe, not to every Studio.

The original deal stated that the limitations on documents uploaded apply to each pickaxe, not to each studio. If I am allowed to fetch 50 documents per pickaxe and I have three pickaxes in one studio, it means I should be able to fetch 150 documents.

However, now the 50-document limit applies to all three pickaxes combined. Furthermore, every link is now also considered a document, which makes the pickaxe completely useless.

No really ethical from the Pickaxe team side. I already looked for some answers on social media, and it seems people are furious about this change.

I hope Appsumo take action on this. Appsumo buyers are being scammed.

A bait and switch

The simplicity and genius of the design and structure of the platform is proved by the fact that I am a senior citizen (I don't mean high school) with no computer degree, coding education or experience in AI, but I have created several working, functioning A-MAZ-ING AI tools here.
BRAVO to you and Appsumo!
Now for the "other" - the actions are VERY limited unless you buy the highest level (there are no way to level them up!) and the customer service is quick but dry.
So, as much as I like the ease of use, the limitations on actions on the first 2 levels will limit what you can do with the platform.