Is AI Builder the right choice?

How to decide if Power Platform and AI Builder is the right choice for what I want to build?

Great question! There are so many tools out there and many ways to do the same thing. How do you know which one is the right solution before investing time and effort?

I have a rule of thumb when I want to build something, use whatever is available and easy to use first. When your needs exceed what the tool you are using covers, look into another solution or building it yourself.

Use the tool easiest to get started when you are building your idea. When your needs exceed the capabilities of the tool you are using, find a solution that enables you. Don't invest in building things from scratch before you know it is worth it to do so.

For example, if you have an app idea, it is better to have a prototype running as easily as possible. You can test your ideas before investing your time into building custom designed UI or features. In our specific case, you can first prototype your app with the drag and drop UI of Power Apps and using prebuilt AI models. When your specific needs surface, such as recognizing a particular object or keyword, you can invest your time into creating your custom models to train for the object or keyword detection.

Can I use Power Apps and AI Builder for production?

Yes you can. As any tool that does things magically, AI Builder in Power Apps comes with a cost. That does not mean you can't try your ideas out for free.

What will my production app cost?

If you want to go to production with Power Apps, it is a good idea to consider the costs. Thankfully there is an app for that. AI Builder Calculator let's you input what AI tools you will need and how many users will be accessing your app's AI features and gives you the price it will cost you.

AI Builder cost calculator

What are preview features?

AI Builder was released for public preview on June 10, 2019 in Europe and the United States. Preview release features are subject to change and may have restricted functionality before the official release for general availability. Preview releases are not meant for production use. You can try them out and influence the final product by giving feedback.

The General Availability (GA) release will occur in a phased manner, with some features remaining in preview status while others are released for GA. You can check out the release status on the AI Builder documentation.

AI Builder Preview features notice