Embarrassing AI #53: Almost cheating in a hackathon with AI

Things built: 23 People watching: 19 Cashflow:-$172

The app I made to teach me to play Tom Waits placed in the top 3 for a hackathon I competed in. The final placement will be revealed next week.

It almost feels like cheating because all I’m doing is high level architecture and high level product design. All of the rest of it was decided by the AI, the text, the daily steps through the entire year, the examples, the button placement, the different pages, which was then tweaked following my feedback.

Then again, everyone else in the hackathon cheated the exact same way.

Makes you think about the blind spots we are creating by trusting the AI coders to make decisions. Because they are so competent, and being able to see versioning of an idea in the space of minutes rather than days just feels so great. But in the scheme of things, they are working based on a finite set of models, so on average we are going to get a very particular kind of coding. Some of it very useful, some of it slop, all of it coming from the same source.

Some of us will get better at adding our own angle to what Claude and his friends come up with, many others of us will be more than happy to let the 🤖 decide.

Seeing where the human in the loop will shake out will be very interesting.

I have a version of the “How to build a Directory Guide” done. Technically it’s fine, but it just feels a little too AI. It needs a bit of a human touch.

I also want to have a landing page for it ready that incorporates Barry the Bee (say his name!). So I’ve started working on that too.

Tools I am using to fake being an expert.

1. Beehiiv (The Platform)

"I tried other platforms, but Beehiiv is the only one that makes growth feel like a game. It’s what runs this newsletter. The Deal: You get a free trial + 20% off (I get a commission to keep the lights on)."

2. Wispr Flow (The Time Saver)

"I hate typing. This tool turns my rambling voice notes into perfect text. It’s the only way I can write this much every day. The Deal: We both get a free month if you try it."

3. Emergent (The Coding Cheat)

"I am not a coder. Emergent is my 'vibe coding' partner that writes the messy parts for me. Essential if you want to build apps without a CS degree."

🧘‍♂ Last Word.

The building never stops.

Making daily progress,

P.S. Did I do something totally backwards today? Or do you have a better prompt for this? Hit reply and tell me. I’m here to learn just as much as you are. (I read every single email).