AI KUNG FU

I knew it was a matter of time before I became Keanu

With this fast-moving time in AI, effort beats perfection. Subscribe for weekly fresh takes that won’t make you scratch your eyes out

In the Blink of AI

Sometimes I lie to myself and pretend guests aren’t a big deal in order to not spiral. This was one of those times:

Jeanne DeWitt Grosser, COO of Vercel shared on this week’s episode:

• AI agent marketing failed last year - what’s changed since

• The sales vs. engineering team skit from 2015 still hits

• What Jeanne built on Claude on the flight over

• Why v0 is the vibe coding application I get the most DM’s about

Rant of the Week

My genuine condolences to anyone who has been through a recent redundancy. Block, Atlassian and Wisetech have been in the headlines, using AI as the scapegoat for job cuts - but like most things, there’s layers to this shit

Have you spoken to people who were laid off 'due to AI’? I have - and there is often no mature AI application or process to fill their roles. If there’s no replacement, it reeks of “AI Washing” - financially or optically motivated cuts. Especially for publicly listed companies, this is a way to win back investor confidence

Many say post-pandemic over-hiring correction hasn’t fully played out and companies are blaming AI instead of confessing ‘bloat’ in the business. “They had record profits?! Why are they cutting?” (think Big Tech, Banking, Block). When businesses are thriving but still cutting headcount, the company genuinely needs less humans

We’ll dig our way out! We’ve got a post-pandemic stew going of correction + rising rates + smaller AI enabled teams doing more. Are new roles being created fast enough to absorb displaced workers? My gut read is sadly, no - I fear it will get worse before it gets better

Steal This Before I Build It

I live outside of space and time. Here are my (genius) OpenClaw / vibe code ideas:

1. “I know Kung Fu” has lived rent free in my mind since The Matrix came out in ‘99 and it’s about time Elon did something that didn’t trigger me. Neuralink, how ‘bout you get that AI chip sorted before I do

2. We get it guys, you’re midlife - no need to share the intricacies of Padel court booking logistics. Install Simone’s smacking hand with a mic and powered by Gemini so that any word related to racket sports gets met with the big wack-o

3. Turns out “vibes” isn’t the best podcast guest curation strategy - who knew! Claude built a submission form to auto research and rank guests against my checklist and our top-performing episode data - but now the hard part, integrating it into my already vibe-coded Lovable website ….

What I Paid For

• Yoto: The choke-hold this ridiculous product has on our household. Each card costs $20! But it’s the only thing keeping our children IN THEIR BEDS

• Performance Coffee: Hideous branding, awesome product. I go with the OG and can almost feel myself becoming more brilliant every day

• Remarkable: I WANT one so bad! Mostly to look cool, but the cost vs. ROI is really not maths-ing

• Runnin’ Down a Dream: I’ve started, and BG is the king. Someone talk to me about this book I beg you!

Jobs I Almost Applied For

• Principal Technology Consultant, Microsoft (Sydney)

• Community Program Lead, Lovable (Stockholm)

• Gorilla Supervisor, Taronga Zoo (Sydney)

Where You’ll Find Me

• Mar 17: Spilling the Tea on Tech at Southstart (Adelaide) AKA TOMORROW!

• Mar 18: Mahjong Girls Night 6.30pm (Sydney)

• Mar 19: OpenAI Builder Lounge 2.30pm (Sydney)

• Mar 19: Less, Actually 6pm (Sydney)

Today’s subscriber segment:

• YikesAI: “We need to slow down AI” - smart people sound dumb when they say this

• FAQ: The real reason I said no to your podcast guest pitch

• “I’m sick of the same people at every tech event” Why this hasn’t been solved, and my behind the scenes cooking

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