Everyone’s trying to bolt ChatGPT onto half-finished projects like duct-taping a jet engine to a tricycle.
“Now with AI!”
Okay — but what does it do?
”Enhance user experience.”
How?
”Let me ask ChatGPT!”
Nope.
Not magic. Just confusion — for your users, your roadmap, and your focus.
The Cult of “Smart”
AI is the new microservices.
Once a niche solution for real problems, now a fashion statement.
A performance tax. A complexity bomb. A product distraction.
Here’s the pattern:
- Dev builds half a to-do app
- Panics about differentiation
- Bolts on GPT: “Now you can talk to your tasks!”
- Still a bad app — now with hallucinations
Shipping something useful is already hard.
Shipping something useful and unpredictable? Good luck.
If You Want to Use AI — Earn It
Before you write a single API call to OpenAI, ask:
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- Do I have a real problem AI can solve better than anything else?
- Will users understand and benefit from it instantly?
-
Can I support this feature without wrecking UX or burning cash?
- ❓ Do I have a real problem AI can solve better than anything else?
- 💡 Will users understand and benefit from it instantly?
- 💸 Can I support this feature without wrecking UX or burning cash?
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If the answer isn’t a hard yes, AI is a distraction — not a differentiator.
AI Works Best as a Power Tool — Not a Party Trick
The best uses of AI today are invisible and boring:
- Figma’s smart alignment nudges
- Notion’s auto-summaries and fill-ins
- Linear’s issue labeling and routing
Each saves time.
Each augments a good product — not masks a bad one.
No big pop-ups. No “Look at me, I’m AI!” moments. Just tools doing work.
TL;DR (Because You Skim)
If your app isn’t useful without AI,
it won’t be useful with it.
Build something real.
Then — and only then — make it smarter.
Until then?
Skip the jet engine. Ride the tricycle.