Hey,
It’s Pete Matheson with a new issue of Experiments in Progress.
You've seen them everywhere.
This week, I want to talk about the brands that dominate YouTube sponsorships and give you my actual, unsponsored take on whether they're worth it.
These Brands Are Everywhere on YouTube. Worth It or Not?
Here's my honest breakdown👇
🎙️ Wispr Flow: Great Product
Wispr Flow is genuinely excellent dictation software. I'll say that upfront.
You press a hotkey, speak naturally, and the text appears wherever your cursor is. It cleans up your filler words, handles punctuation, and works across every app. The experience is polished in a way most dictation tools aren't.
Weesper Neon Flow does 100% on-device processing on macOS and Windows at just €5/month. That's one-third of the price, offline, with your data never leaving your device.
Superwhisper is also worth a look along with Aqua Voice, MacWhisper, and Notta.
If you dictate a lot and want the slickest cloud experience: Wispr Flow is hard to beat. But if privacy matters, or you just don't want another subscription creeping up in price every year there are real alternatives now.
🌐 Squarespace: No Longer The Only Option
The sites genuinely look great out of the box but the landscape has shifted.
Vibe coding tools like Lovable, Bolt, and Claude Code let you describe a site in plain English and get real, exportable code back.
By 2026, vibe coding is mainstream. For brochure sites, portfolios, and small business sites — the barrier is already gone.
If you want something visual and fast without touching code: Framer starts at $10/month and produces genuinely beautiful results. Carrd is $9/year for simple sites.
🎓 Skillshare: Great for One Month
The idea is: pay for ad-free, curated learning. The reality: YouTube has many very similar videos for free, all day, every day.
The best instructors in almost every creative and tech field (video editing, photography, design, coding) are on YouTube. For free. Uploading constantly.
Khan Academy for structured learning. Free.
Coursera if you want credentials. Free to audit.
YouTube with an ad blocker if you just want the content.
If there's a specific Skillshare course you want, pay for one month, take it, cancel. Don't subscribe to something you'll use twice.
🔒 VPNs: Here's the One I'd Actually Use
NordVPN. ExpressVPN. Surfshark. If you've watched tech YouTube for more than five minutes, you've been pitched one of these.
Most of them are... fine. Serviceable. They do the job.
But here's the one I'd actually recommend: ProtonVPN.
It offers strong privacy with no data logging, unlimited data on its free tier, and no ads.
It was built by CERN and MIT scientists. The privacy credentials are real, not marketing.
Paid plans are slightly more expensive than NordVPN, but the trust factor is genuinely different.
📊 Buy or Skip: My Unsponsored Take
Tool | Verdict | What to Do Instead |
|---|---|---|
Wispr Flow | Good, but overpriced | Try Superwhisper or Weesper Neon Flow |
Squarespace | Solid, not special | Framer, Carrd, or just vibe code it |
Skillshare | Has its uses | YouTube + one month when needed |
NordVPN / ExpressVPN | Fine | Try ProtonVPN free tier first |
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