Side projects do not need a full brand process. They need a name that fits in a tweet, a .com that costs $11, and zero second-guessing two months from now.
The fastest path. Open the generator. Pick the industry that vaguely matches your project. SaaS for tools, AI for ML projects, Creator for media tools, Climate for green tech. Pick the tone that matches your vibe. Minimal for a clean indie aesthetic, Playful for something fun, Bold for something opinionated. Length Short.
Reroll three to five times. The first batch usually has one obvious winner and three runners-up. The second batch has different winners. By the third reroll, you have a shortlist of five that all clear .com.
Skip the trademark step for unfunded side projects in non-conflicting categories. The risk of trademark issues is real but small if you are not raising money or running paid ads. If the project takes off, do the trademark check then. The cost of waiting is usually cheaper than the cost of a 30-minute USPTO search per candidate at the side-project stage.
Buy the .com. $11 at any major registrar. Set autorenew. Move on.
The whole loop is fifteen minutes if you avoid the trap of debating with yourself. Pick a tone, hit reroll three times, lock the favorite, buy the domain. The side project that ships with a real name gets shared. The one with project-name-final-final-2.pages.dev does not.