add AI to the products and features you want to ship, don't add AI to the ones that don't.
You want to start with at least an AI Roadmap that outlines whatever you want to do, and sprinkle in some AI love.
Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
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Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#22Without knowing more it’s hard to come up with specifics. There are different ways to play the AI game, from framework/architecture, model, data, fine tuning, to simple integration. You can do as simple as writing a mcp server to interface with your product and call it AI enabled.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#23From what I've seen, anyone giving you definitive answers is blowing smoke. I've seen teams go for AI, do it well, and succeed. I've also seen teams go for AI, f it up, and all get fired as the company shuts down.
The question is whether the key value of your product can benefit from the strengths of AI? If not, don't go there. If so, you then need to determine if your team can actually deliver an AI-driven vision that enhances the existing value prop. Again, if not, don't go there. If so, do it.
But from your description, your CEO is not asking those questions - they are asking, "How do we get more funding?" Which tells me that your CEO doesn't give a crap about building a product, they are just trying to make money and get some nice bullet points on their resume about the size of a company they led.
That puts you in the position of choosing whether you want to go on a VC-driven startup ride just to have the experience, or whether you want a product-driven role. People have their reasons for both directions, but if you want a product-driven role, you are out of alignment with your CEO and probably shouldn't work for them.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#24> The argument seems to be that they've realized the only way to achieve the next round of funding is to be "AI-first".
This is the argument for virtually every company going AI-first: it's just a way to scam VCs.
It seems crazy but it really works.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#25This is normal. It doesn't even have anything to do with AI.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#26Unless you own the business, you work for your investors. If investors only want AI, then you will either be forced to do that (whatever it means), do something else but make it look to them like AI, convince them they're wrong, or quit. Things are a little more nuanced if your existing investors side with you but all new investors are AI-driven. Then you don't have to quit, but you do have to run the business withou…
The ceo likely has more voting shares alone. The issue for a cashflow negative business is attracting new money.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#27> The argument seems to be that they've realized the only way to achieve the next round of funding is to be "AI-first". This is the argument for virtually every company going AI-first : it's just a way to scam VCs. It seems crazy but it really works.
Is it really scamming VCs, if they're the loudest cheerleaders for AI?
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#28The problem here is that your company is on the "get the next round of funding" train instead of on the "get revenue from customers" train. It's a bigger problem then irrational love of AI. You will consistently sacrifice the product and your customers in favor of whatever people think will get you the next round of funding. If you manage to solve your current funding crisis by convincing some investor that you have an AI plan, don't worry, you'll have another crisis in a few months.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#29Unless you own the business, you work for your investors. If investors only want AI, then you will either be forced to do that (whatever it means), do something else but make it look to them like AI, convince them they're wrong, or quit. Things are a little more nuanced if your existing investors side with you but all new investors are AI-driven. Then you don't have to quit, but you do have to run the business withou…
At a smart business, you work for your customers. If you're at a company that works for your investors, you're going to have this problem over and over again. In fact, you might as well give up on the idea of planning and decision making based on what would be best for the product and your customers.
Re: Ask HN: My CEO wants to go hard on AI. What do I do?
#30Talk to your product owner and get the scoop. Maybe they're cooking up some new features that could really benefit from AI? Keep in mind there's always a buzzword du jour game being played to maximize VC investment. Help your company play that game and help them drive toward answering the questions you've asked. It's win-win from your perspective.