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For Nerds

Lad is free because it avoids running expensive centralized infrastructure and instead uses a hybrid approach with direct API access.

How Lad stays free

Lad keeps costs low by not routing every request through a paid backend. Instead, it uses a mix of free data sources and direct API calls, which removes most ongoing server costs.

Groq API key (important)

For AI-powered features, Lad can use a Groq API key that you create yourself. Groq provides free API access (with limits), and you can generate your own key directly from Groq.

You then paste your API key into the app, and Lad uses it to make requests directly to Groq on your behalf.

  • you are using your own API quota, not a shared backend
  • Lad does not need to pay for those requests
  • the app can stay free

How API requests work

When you scan food or describe a meal, Lad may send that input (text or images) to external services like Groq or food databases to generate calorie and macro estimates.

If you have added your own API key, that key is included in the request so the provider can authenticate it.

What this means

  • requests are made directly to third-party services
  • performance depends on those services
  • limits are based on your API provider, not Lad

Important note

API keys are stored on your device using secure storage. When a request is made, the key is sent only to the relevant provider (such as Groq) to authorize that request.