Brainstormers 2.0 – Building an AI Ideation Engine That Thinks with You

“When two or more brains clash, sparks fly.
But what if the other brains aren’t in the room—and charge by the hour?”

That question sparked Brainstormers.
The goal is simple: let anyone brainstorm endlessly, cheaply, and privately by pairing proven creative-thinking methods with large-language-model (LLM) agents. Below is a deep technical dive into how the new 2.0 rewrite turns that idea into a production-ready web application.

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1 · Project Genesis

• Human truth: Great ideas often emerge from debate, disagreement, or “constructive conflict.”
• Practical snag: People aren’t always available—and consulting experts cost money.
• Solution: Encode six research-validated brainstorming techniques into AI agents so you can simulate that multi-perspective clash on demand.

Brainstormers keeps you almost alone, but never stuck in your own head.

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2 · Architecture at a Glance

Layer	Choice	Rationale
Framework	Next.js 15.4.5 (App Router)	File-system routing, edge-ready deployment
Language	TypeScript	Strict types, safer refactors
Styling	Tailwind CSS + custom gradients	Utility speed, theming consistency
UI Primitives	Radix UI	Accessible components, headless control
Deployment	Vercel	CI/CD, image & edge optimizations
Security	100 % client-side BYOK model	No server => zero key exposure

Multi-Provider LLM Matrix

// /lib/llm/providers.ts
export const providers = {
  openai:  ['o4-mini','gpt-4o','gpt-4o-mini','gpt-4.1-nano'],
  groq:    ['qwen2.5-32b-instruct','llama-3.3-70b-versatile','deepseek-r1-distill-llama-70b'],
  gemini:  ['gemini-2.0-flash-exp','gemini-1.5-flash','gemini-1.5-flash-8b'],
  deepseek:['deepseek-chat','deepseek-reasoner']
} as const;

Users paste an API key once; it lives in localStorage, never touching a server. Skeptical? It’s open source—audit, run, revoke.

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3 · Brainstorming Engine

Method	What It Does	Code Module
Big Mind Mapping	Expands concepts radially to surface distant associations	/lib/brainstorm/mindMap.ts
Reverse Brainstorming	Inverts the problem (“How could we cause it?”) then flips answers into fixes	/lib/brainstorm/reverse.ts
Role Storming	Forces a perspective shift by assuming a persona	/lib/brainstorm/role.ts
SCAMPER	Systematic transform (Substitute, Combine, Adapt…)	/lib/brainstorm/scamper.ts
Six Thinking Hats	Parallel thinking across six cognitive modes	/lib/brainstorm/hats.ts
Starbursting	Generates 5W-1H questions around a central idea	/lib/brainstorm/starburst.ts

Each module exports:

export interface Method {
  id: string;
  name: string;
  systemPrompt: string;   // static setup
  userPrompt: (topic: string) => string; // dynamic prompt factory
}

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4 · UX Highlights

1. Setup Wizard – choose provider & paste key (client-only).
2. Dashboard – pick a method, tweak settings, hit Start.
3. Real-Time Chat – streaming responses; hot-swap methods mid-session.
4. Markdown Renderer – custom highlighter, tables, and code fences.

Add html { scroll-behavior:smooth; } and every Learn How It Works button anchors to #how-it-works for buttery page jumps.

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5 · Performance & Quality

• Lighthouse: Performance 95+, Accessibility 100
• Bundle: < 200 kB gzipped (analyze flag)
• TTI: < 2 s on throttled 3G
• Type Coverage: 100 %

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6 · Business Model & Future Path

Because there’s no backend cost, BYOK keeps Brainstormers free. With funding, a managed proxy LLM (or on-premise) could replace BYOK for a true SaaS launch.

Planned roadmap:

• Session persistence & export (PDF/Markdown)
• Multi-user collaboration (WebRTC + CRDT)
• Plug-in SDK for custom methods
• Usage analytics that stay client-side

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7 · Key Lessons

1. Client-Only ≠ Toy – You can build serious AI tools without servers.
2. Provider Abstraction – Clean interfaces tame API churn.
3. Open Source Trust Loop – Transparency converts skeptics into adopters.
4. Design Matters – Gradients and micro-interactions boost stickiness.

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Try It · Fork It · Break It

• Live Demo: https://brainstormers-7e5a.vercel.app
• Code: https://github.com/Azzedde/brainstormers

If you improve it, send a PR; if you fund it, we can wrap a house LLM and turn Brainstormers into a full SaaS platform.