Kia ora {{ First name | friend }},
The AI journey just keeps getting more ridiculous. I’m on my way to Europe, vibe coding on my laptop, using plane Starlink wifi.
Literally building a website, sorting out bugs on existing automations, and strategising for future missions. It’s like having 3 conversations with highly skilled individuals about very nuanced things at once.
Strange times.
Welcome to this edition of the weekly newsletter
What’s the point?
I’ve been thinking about a fixed format for this newsletter and tbh, I don’t really have a rigid structure I can (or want to) stick with. AI is changing so quick.
Some days it’ll be more general insights, others it’ll be prompts and things I learned, who knows what else might emerge.
Mostly I’m just keen to support my friends and community on leveraging their work with these amazing tools. I’m choosing to take action on this because I believe our time is limited, and there is no better time to get moving with AI.
I think they’ll become more expensive and regulated over time, and the learning curve will get progressively steeper (if you don’t start now).
Anyway the main thing to mention is there’s another community call coming up next week, Tue June 2, 7PM NZT. Sign up here.
We’ll be discussing practical steps on how to go from a passive to active relationship with AI tools - basically figuring out how to make AI do things for you.
A few lessons in AI
Watch the addiction - I’ve felt a little bit unhinged in my own mind with HOW MUCH IS POSSIBLE with these amazing tools, to the point where shiny object syndrome and what I’m calling “excitement drift” blocks me from actually executing efficiently. Watching your business build before your eyes can feel like a slot machine. Careful of the dopamine overload…
Backups are crucial - I know this from my video work, but if any of your code is in folders, make sure you find a cloud storage/time machine, whatever, and update it regularly. I saw a guy I respect lost 200+hrs of work cause Claude accidentally wiped all his files.
Activate with AI - to get started with an “active relationship” where AI takes action for you, works while you sleep, etc, is actually quite a mellow on-ramp. If you can run ChatGPT, you can absolutely work in this way. But I notice a significant inner resistance block that comes up in people thinking it’s too hard, too technical, whatever. What’s this about? Please reply if you’re feeling this way and let me know.
Shit’s getting weird - sexbots, dna/genome reading, and agent-only chatrooms are popping up all over the place. It’s gonna be crucial going forward to continue building strong projects that are rooted in human connection, community and togetherness.
Recording meetings and feeding the transcript into AI, then using that to take action on behalf of you is so underrated. Still one of the most basic but valuable aspects of my entire AI setup.
Here’s some good shit
Tutorials/links
Insightful video on how to get the best out of prompts. Watch here.
AI boom ending? Not sure, this guy thinks so. Watch here.
Claude code has been telling people to go to sleep (weird). Read more.
Tutorial to get started with Claude code (upgrade from chat). Watch here.
Skills/tools
For those of you who are rocking Claude code, here’s some skills I use that are super useful. Install by pasting the link below into Claude code and let it rip
These are installed into Claude code by just pasting the Github link into your chat interface. Otherwise, ask your Claude chat window how to get it to work for you
LLM council - run your complex challenges by a panel of 5 experts who will argue with each other and find a consensus on the best path forward.
Stop slop - basically what it is. Stop sounding like everyone else (homogoneous AI language is seriously boring).
Taste skill - same as above, but visuals.
Honourable mention, put Claude in “plan” mode before you start a complex task. Just type /plan then drop a long voice note in the chat, ask it to interview you until you’re both 100% clear on the outcomes. Instant 2x value from your prompt at least.
Build yourself a brain already
I can’t stress this enough. Get it going.
Thanks to the 10 people who’ve gotten started with the brain already, it’s been awesome to hear your feedback.
Here’s a visual for how it works. Pretty basic, but it runs much deeper.
The brain stores the central info. It’s like the command centre (or third eye, if you’re on that vibe) for your business. The chat window at the top if your claude/chatgpt session. You chat with that central brain. It goes and tells the marketing, products and operations aspects of your business what to do. They go do stuff. Then they come back and feed the brain with more context. That comes back to you, tells you what it did, and you make the next decision.
I’ve had some awesome feedback on the brain and stoked people are getting some value from it. You can download it here if you’re interested. I’ve also launched a few other mini products here which can help enhance your workflows.
Don’t forget - this is the central operating system for your business. This is the way things are moving. Whether it’s through downloading the kit above or finding your own way in, I strongly urge you to begin thinking about AI in this way.
Final thoughts
This project is growing, likely towards supporting businesses install systems. I’ll continue building community, while products will likely be more founder/ceo focused, rather than everyday user. Helpful for entrepreneurial friends, hopefully. Or helping friends become entrepreneurs ;)
For my NZ pals, there’s also this AI Forum who are running some cool events. I’ll be joining and plan on attending.
Also, I’m about to kick off some socials. Empty right now, but follow the journey on IG here if you like.
{{ First name | friend }}, thanks for sticking around for another one. Who knows where this is going? For now, let’s keep dropping in together in community.
Blessings,
Billy