What running Moshpit Elite actually costs, month to month — built from what's really on record, not estimates. Where a real number doesn't exist yet, it says so instead of guessing.
Last updated 2026-09-22 04:20 UTC by Claude · source: coordination/STUDIO_BUDGET.json + real Gmail receipts + José's direct confirmations
$252.29
confirmed monthly (7 of 7 lines)
1 pending
Codex — likely $0 extra, needs final check
$825
one-time spend (router)
$0
revenue on record
0. Where this stands, plainly
Running Moshpit Elite costs at least $252.29/mo right now (6 of 7 recurring lines confirmed — see table below), plus a $5/mo VPS about to get added, plus whatever Codex's API usage turns out to be. That's before the $825.15 one-time router spend.
Revenue: $0. The studio is operating at a loss every month — pure burn, no income line yet. That's expected pre-launch, but it means every dollar above is coming out of pocket with nothing offsetting it yet.
Ownership: José Raúl is Executive Producer. No investors, no outside capital — this is self-funded. There is no cap table, no equity split, and no external money in the studio as of this writing.
1. Monthly recurring
Every subscription/infra line the crew has mentioned. Six are confirmed from real receipts or José's direct word. Codex/API usage still needs a real number — nobody should invent one.
Line
Amount
Note
AI
ChatGPT Plus
$20.00
Confirmed via Gmail receipt, subscribed 2026-08-23.
AI
Claude Pro (Anthropic)
$22.30
Confirmed via Gmail receipt: $20.00 + $2.30 PR tax (11.5%).
AI
Google AI Ultra (Gemini)
$111.49
Confirmed via Gmail: $99.99 + $11.50 PR tax. Earlier Google AI Pro was refunded the same day it upgraded to Ultra — only Ultra is active.
AI
Grok SuperGrok
$30.00
Confirmed via Gmail receipt, consistent since at least Jan 2026.
AI
Cursor
$60.00
Confirmed via real Cursor billing invoices: Sep 18 $20.00 (Paid, initial), Sep 21 $60.00 (Paid, upgrade).
AI
Codex / OpenAI API
$0 extra
José believes Codex runs under the ChatGPT Plus $20/mo plan above, not separate metered usage — likely, not locked.
Infra
Cloudflare
$8.50
Real invoice IN-80138489, due Sep 21 2026. Recurrence not yet confirmed.
Infra
VPS (origin host)
~$5 planned
HOSTING-EXTERNAL-1, open to the crew — not purchased yet.
2. One-time / irregular
Item
Amount
Date
Hardware
ASUS ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro (2-pack, used)
$825.15
2026-09-21 · delivery Oct 1
3. Projections
Based on the $252.29/mo confirmed from real receipts. Excludes Codex/API usage and the ~$5/mo VPS — treat as a floor, not a ceiling. Zero revenue offsetting any of it.
Period
Confirmed burn (floor)
Revenue
1 month
$252.29
$0
1 quarter
$756.87
$0
1 year
$3,027.48
$0
3 years
$9,082.44
$0
4. What's actually missing
All 7 lines now have a number. Codex believed to run under the ChatGPT Plus plan (not separate) per José — worth a final check.
Zero revenue tracked. Pure burn rate, no income line yet.
No accountant-of-record. Any agent can edit the ledger — recommend one owner reconciles it monthly.
Human resources, for real: no line for José's own time or any actual human contractor yet.
5. Getting out of the red — real ideas, not hype
Since revenue is $0 and burn is $252+/mo, here's a starting list. These are suggestions to evaluate, not decisions already made — mark one "adopted" in coordination/STUDIO_BUDGET.json once José picks it.
Steam wishlist page, now — before launch. Free to set up, and wishlist count is the #1 thing that determines launch visibility on Steam. Every week without a live wishlist page is momentum not being banked. Cheapest, highest-leverage move available today.
Public devlog / dev-in-public clips. The crew is already producing real material daily (STATUS.md, the "juicio" theater, real bug fixes) — short clips of actual gameplay/bug-fix moments on TikTok/X/YouTube Shorts cost nothing but editing time and build an audience before launch, which converts to wishlists and Day-1 sales.
Early Access on Steam once QA guide passes. The QA guide + 4 real modes already exist — Early Access lets revenue start before "done," funding the rest of dev instead of the reverse.
Playtester → community pipeline. The current QA testers (Ismael, others via /onboard) are a free seed audience — ask them to follow/share, don't just have them file bugs.
Founder/supporter pack (small, optional). A cheap one-time "support the studio" tier (cosmetic-only, no pay-to-win) while the game is pre-revenue can offset AI subscription costs directly without needing a publisher or investor.
Not recommended yet: chasing publishers/investors before there's a wishlist number or a playable build people can point to — that leverage comes AFTER the above, not instead of it.
6. History — what changed and when
2026-09-22 04:20 UTC
Published to the intranet. Same ledger now live at /studio-ledger (was artifact-only before), plus a cintillo on the War Room.
2026-09-22 04:10 UTC
Cursor's $60/mo confirmed with real invoices. Sep 18 $20.00 Paid (initial), Sep 21 $60.00 Paid (upgrade).
2026-09-22 03:20–03:40 UTC
Google AI corrected: one plan, not two. Refund email confirmed the Pro plan was upgraded to Ultra, not double-charged.
2026-09-22 03:15 UTC
Cursor's first "$60" checked — was a proposal, not a charge. Traced to a coord-commit vote, not a real invoice. Left unconfirmed until real evidence showed up.
2026-09-22 02:50–03:10 UTC
First 4 numbers confirmed via Gmail receipts. ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, Cloudflare.
2026-09-22 ~02:40 UTC
Ledger created. Built as an honest shell — real router cost filled in, subscriptions marked "need $" rather than guessed.
7. How this stays current
Source of truth is coordination/STUDIO_BUDGET.json — every agent can edit it directly. Rule: never invent a dollar amount; leave it null with a note instead. This page mirrors that file.