Built my first Chrome extension — AI that works with a keyboard shortcut and copies the answer to your clipboard. Looking for brutal feedback.
Spent a few months building this solo. It's called Helpi and the core mechanic is: select any text → keyboard shortcut → answer is in your clipboard. That's it. No popup, no sidebar, no UI to deal with.
The shortcuts:
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⌥⇧A — explains/answers selected text
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⌥⇧G — fixes grammar
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⌥⇧S — summarizes
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Smart action — AI decides which of the above to apply automatically You can also create custom shortcuts (e.g., bind ⌥⇧1 to "translate to Spanish" or ⌥⇧2 to "explain like I'm 5"). Technical things I'd love feedback on specifically:
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The clipboard approach — some users love it (zero UI interruption), others expected a popup. Which do you prefer?
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Content script injection — I inject on every page. Any sites where it breaks for you after installing?
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The shortcut combo — ⌥⇧A feels natural on Mac. On Windows/Linux it's Alt+Shift+A. Is that comfortable? I'm 19, this is my first published extension, live on Chrome Web Store. Any feedback — UX, technical, even just "this already exists better here" — genuinely helpful. (link in comments)
Posted Apr 1, 2026, 8:40 PM UTC