Lenny's Reads

Hamza Farooq and Jaya Rajwani, who teach two of the most highly-rated courses on building AI agents, share a practical framework for categorizing and prioritizing your agent initiatives. Drawing on over 50 hours of research and work with Fortune 500 companies, including Jack in the Box, Tripadvisor, and The Home Depot, they explain why most teams get stuck when building agents—and how a three-category taxonomy transforms a confusing backlog into a clear, sequenced roadmap. --- In this episode, you'll learn: • Why prioritizing AI agent initiatives is so hard, and why familiar planning tools like impact-effort matrices break down • The three architectural categories every agent falls into • How to choose the right platform for each category • Success metrics and ROI frameworks tailored to each architectural type • How to quickly course-correct when you’ve picked the wrong architecture --- References • Agent Engineering Bootcamp: https://maven.com/hamza-farooq/agent-engineering-bootcamp • Agentic AI for PMs: https://maven.com/ • AutoGen: https://microsoft.github.io/autogen/ • Claude Code: https://claude.ai/code • CrewAI: https://crewai.com • Google ADK: https://google.github.io/adk-docs/ • Google A2A Protocol: https://google.github.io/A2A/ • Gumloop: https://gumloop.com • Hamza Farooq: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamzafarooq/ • Jaya Rajwani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayarajwani/ • LangGraph: https://langchain-ai.github.io/langgraph/ • Lindy: https://lindy.ai • Make.com: https://make.com • n8n: https://n8n.io • OpenAI AgentKit: https://openai.github.io/openai-agents-python/ • OpenClaw: https://openclaw.ai • Zapier: https://zapier.com --- Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/not-all-ai-agents-are-created-equal Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe --- Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ --- Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast --- About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you'll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

In this episode, my wife Michelle Rial, cartoonist and author, celebrates the launch of her new book "Charts for Babies" by sharing a pep talk for anyone stuck in a creative rut. She walks through 12 tried-and-tested steps designed to lift you out of a creative block and get back to making things that matter. --- In this episode, you'll learn: • Why it's necessary to create work that might feel embarrassing • The simple mindset shift that stops stalling and gets you to just start • How to reframe scorn as a positive signal • The thought process that can help you move out of a state of rumination • How to treat failed ideas as seeds for future breakthroughs --- References: • "Charts for Babies": https://www.amazon.com/Charts-Babies-Picture-Book/dp/1419785184 • How I AI: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/s/how-i-ai • Michelle Rial: https://www.michellerial.com/ --- Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-visual-guide-to-getting-out-of --- Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter:https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe --- Subscribe: • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ --- Follow Lenny: • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast --- About: Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you'll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

Claire Vo went from public OpenClaw skeptic to running nine dedicated AI agents that manage her businesses, write code, close sales deals, and make sure she gets to her kids' basketball games on time. In this episode, she shares her complete power-user's guide to OpenClaw—covering everything from setup and key concepts to practical workflows and building your own team of agents. --- In this episode, you'll learn: • What OpenClaw is and why it's more autonomous and powerful than other AI tools • How to choose the right setup: Mac Mini, VPS, or a hosted option • Six ready-to-copy workflows you can start using immediately • How to run multiple agents with specific roles (Claire's full 9-agent setup) • The best tools and integrations to connect your agents to the real world • Key security considerations and how to think about risk --- References: • 1Password: https://1password.com • Attio: https://attio.com • Brave Search API: https://brave.com/search/api/ • Buffer: https://buffer.com • ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com • ChatPRD: https://chatprd.ai • Claire Vo: https://linkedin.com/in/clairevo • ClaWHub: https://clawhub.com • Claude: https://claude.ai • DigitalOcean: https://digitalocean.com • Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com • Exa: https://exa.ai • Every / Plus One: https://every.to • Firecrawl: https://firecrawl.dev • GitHub: https://github.com • Google Cloud: https://cloud.google.com • Hostinger: https://hostinger.com • How I AI podcast: https://howiai.com • Intercom: https://intercom.com • Linear: https://linear.app • Mac Mini: https://apple.com/mac-mini • Obsidian: https://obsidian.md • OpenClaw: https://openclaw.ai • Perplexity: https://perplexity.ai • Railway: https://railway.app • Render: https://render.com • Slack: https://slack.com • Sonos: https://sonos.com • Telegram: https://telegram.org • TikTok: https://tiktok.com • WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/openclaw-the-complete-guide-to-building Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe --- Subscribe: • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ --- Follow Lenny: • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast --- About: Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

Contrary to what the headlines might be telling you, PM job openings are at their highest point in over three years, AI roles are hockey-sticking, and tech headcount is growing. Today’s episode is our fourth biannual update on the tech job market (the most optimistic yet) and breaks down seven key trends shaping the job landscape right now. In this episode, you'll learn: • Why PMs have reason to be optimistic • How the influx of new AI roles is shaping the industry • The unexpected sign of tech growth • What current job openings look like for design and software engineering roles • Surprising trends across remote job opportunities --- References: • AI Practice Copilot for PM Interviews: https://www.benerez.com/copilot/lenny • Analytical thinking interviews guide: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/analytical-thinking-interviews • Google Career Dreamer: https://grow.google/career-dreamer/home/ • How to pass any first-round interview: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-pass-any-first-round-interview • How to use AI for your job interview: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-use-ai-in-your-next-job-interview • The definitive guide to mastering product sense interviews: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-definitive-guide-to-mastering • TrueUp: https://www.trueup.io/ --- Read the newsletter:https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/191595250?r=1o9eyi Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter:https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe --- Subscribe: • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ --- Follow Lenny: • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast --- About: Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

When Lenny released his full podcast transcript archive, Ben Shih a non-technical designer at Miro — built LennyRPG: a Pokémon-style RPG where you battle podcast guests with product trivia. In this episode, Ben walks through the exact six-step workflow he used to go from sketch to shipped game, including the tools, prompts, and decisions at every stage, along with the broader lessons he learned along the way. --- In this episode, you'll learn: • How to have AI interview you instead of writing the PRD yourself • When to pivot your framework, rather than force the wrong tool • How to systematically process 300+ transcripts into game data • Three core lessons Ben learned from building LennyRPG --- References Ben Shih: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hbshih/ Brian Balfour: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bbalfour/ Claude Code Awesome Skills marketplace: https://github.com/ComposioHQ/awesome-claude-skills LennysData.com: https://lennysdata.com/ LennyRPG: https://www.lennyrpg.fun/ Lenny's Product Pass: https://www.lennysproductpass.com/ OpenGameArt.org: https://opengameart.org/ Phaser 3: https://phaser.io/ RPG-JS: https://github.com/RSamaium/RPG-JS Supabase: https://supabase.com/ Wispr Flow: https://wisprflow.com/ --- Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-i-built-lennyrpg --- Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe --- Subscribe YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ --- Follow Lenny Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast --- About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you'll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

It's never been easier to launch products, which means the biggest challenge product teams are facing is quickly becoming distribution. April Dunford, the world's leading expert on B2B positioning and author of Obviously Awesome, has spent 10 years working with more than 300 companies to help them stand out. In this episode, she goes beyond the basics to share tactics for overcoming four of the trickiest positioning roadblocks teams face. In this episode, you'll learn: • The four roadblocks every team faces when making positioning decisions • Why cross-functional teams almost always disagree on who they compete with • How to break the cycle of product pessimism • Why the "So what?" test is critical for defining your differentiated value • How to use your GTM strategy to drive positioning decisions — References: • April Dunford: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aprildunford/ • April Dunford's guest post on positioning: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/positioning • April Dunford on Lenny's Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdjlCLb9Hl8 • Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com/ • Lenny's Product Pass: https://www.lennysproductpass.com/ — Read the full newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-guide-to-advanced-b2b-positioning Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe — Subscribe: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny: Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast — Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you'll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

When their team underperforms, most managers jump straight to blaming people. Molly Graham—who's worked alongside Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg, and Chamath Palihapitiya—explains how that's one of the biggest leadership traps there is. In this episode, she shares the Waterline Model: a diagnostic model to help uncover the real source of team problems, before touching an org chart. In this episode, you'll learn: • Why blaming people for structural problems is one of the biggest leadership mistakes • The four layers of the Waterline Model, and why that order matters • Why you should always "snorkel before you scuba" • How self-preservation can be a rational response to a faulty environment • How to make clean, decisive calls when you finally reach the individual layer — References: • "Give Away Your Legos": https://review.firstround.com/give-away-your-legos-and-other-commandments-for-scaling-startups/ • Glue Club: https://glueclub.com/ • Molly Graham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mograham/ • Molly Graham on Lenny's podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twzLDx9iers • Lenny's Product Pass: https://www.lennysproductpass.com/ — Read the full newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-debug-a-team-that-isnt-working Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe — Subscribe: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny: Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast — Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you'll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

What if you could get line-by-line feedback on every interview answer you gave, predict questions before you walk in, and surface stories you didn't know you had? Noam Segal, Lenny's Community Research Lead, interviewed over 30 tech professionals about how they use AI throughout the interview process, and used the findings to build a free Claude Code-based interview coach. His coach encodes every successful interview technique he uncovered (and then some), making it an invaluable tool you can plug into your job search today. In this episode, you'll learn: · Why interview prep is broken (and why there's no usable feedback loop) · How the most successful candidates built AI systems to close the gap · What the free AI Interview Coach does and how to set it up · How to stop sounding like every other candidate who prepped with AI · The action checklist for before, during, and after every interview References: · Claude: https://claude.ai/ · Granola: https://granola.ai/ · Claude Code Interview Coach (Github link): https://github.com/noamseg/interview-coach-skill · Lenny's Product Pass: https://lennysproductpass.com/ · Noam Segal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noamsegal · PM Interview Copilot: https://www.benerez.com/copilot · Product sense guide: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-definitive-guide-to-mastering Read the newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-use-ai-in-your-next-job-interview Subscribe to Lenny's Newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Subscribe YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you'll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

Ever run an AI analysis on customer data, only to discover the numbers were fabricated and the insights completely generic? In this episode, Caitlin Sullivan, a user-research veteran who's trained hundreds of product and research professionals, shares her four prompting techniques for getting trustworthy, actionable insights out of any LLM. After 2,000+ hours of testing customer discovery workflows with AI, she's identified the failure modes that break AI analysis and the reliable fixes for each one. In this episode, you'll learn: • How to catch the two types of AI quote hallucinations • Why AI defaults to useless generic themes and insights • Which LLM is best for analysis work (and which one fabricates the most) • How to turn vague signal into actual decision clarity • The final verification pass that stress-tests everything before it hits a deck Referenced: • Caitlin Sullivan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlindsullivan/ • Claude Code for Customer Insights (Maven course): https://maven.com/caitlin/claude-code-insights • Claude: https://www.anthropic.com/claude • ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/ • Gemini: https://gemini.google.com/ • NotebookLM: https://notebooklm.google.com/ • Maze: https://maze.co/ • Whoop: https://www.whoop.com/ Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-do-ai-analysis-you-can-actually Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Subscribe: • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Dr. Marily Nika, longtime AI PM at Google and Meta, shares a simple weekly ritual that rapidly builds AI product sense – the ability to translate probabilistic model behavior into products people can trust. In this episode, Marily walks through the framework for uncovering failure modes before users do. Listen now: YouTube | Apple | Spotify In this episode, you’ll learn • Why Meta added “Product Sense with AI” to its PM interview loop • The rituals that surface hidden failure modes • Why generative models confidently invent structure when confronted with mess • What minimum viable quality (MVQ) means and how to define three critical thresholds • Five strategic context factors that raise or lower your quality bar • Why you need to estimate your AI feature’s cost envelope early • How to design guardrails that protect users from model shortcomings • Four patterns that cover most real-world failure cases Referenced • AI PM Bootcamp & Certification • AI Product Sense & AI PM Interview prep • Dr. Marily Nika: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marilynika/ • How to build AI Product sense (Part 1) • Marily’s AI Product Academy Newsletter • Thriving as a senior IC PM in the AI era About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Your product builder's Product Pass just got even better. In this episode, we introduce the seven new premium partners joining the Product Pass, bringing the total value of a paid newsletter subscription to over $25,000. We cover all the new products, what they do, how people are using them, and the key details you need to know before subscribing. Listen now: YouTube | Apple | Spotify In this episode, you’ll learn: • Key features of each of the seven new products • Applicable, real-world examples of how people are using them • Which products are exclusive to Insider subscribers References: • Affinity • Amp • Canva Business • Duolingo • ElevenLabs • Every • Factory • Flourish • Framer • Harvey • Kernel • Leonardo.Ai • Lovable • Manus • Meta • Metabase • Mozart AI • n8n • Nvidia • Perplexity • Product Pass codes • Railway • Sentry This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

Colin Matthews, shares how ChatGPT apps are emerging as a powerful new distribution channel. In this episode, Colin shares how discovery will become contextual inside ChatGPT, what the architecture looks like, and why ChatGPT apps represent a rare distribution opportunity. He also covers two fast paths you can take to build and deploy your first ChatGPT app. In this episode, you'll learn: • Why chat-native apps could change the tech ecosystem • How users will discover apps contextually inside ChatGPT • The three UI modes for ChatGPT apps • The “one widget per message” constraint • How tools, widgets, and MCP fit together • Two build paths: Replit and Chippy References: • Adobe • AllTrails • Anthropic • Apple • Booking.com • Bolt • Canva • ChatPRD • Chippy • Colin Matthews • Coursera • Datavant • Descript • Devin • DoorDash • Expedia • Figma • Gamma • GitHub • Granola • Instacart • Linear • LinkedIn • Lovable • Magic Patterns • Maven • Mobbin • n8n • OpenAI • Perplexity • PostHog • Railway • Raycast • Replit • Shopify • Spotify • Stripe Atlas • Substack • Superhuman • Vercel • Warp • Wispr Flow • Zillow Read the newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/chatgpt-apps-are-about-to-be-the Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

Noam Segal, AI Insights Manager at Figma, shares the results from our comprehensive survey of 1,750 product managers, engineers, designers, and founders on how AI is reshaping their work. The findings are striking: more than half of respondents are saving at least half a day per week on their most important tasks. Since the quality of AI tools are improving at breakneck speed, Noam reveals we're watching the early innings of a compounding productivity revolution. In this episode, you'll learn: • Why 55% say AI has exceeded expectations and how it's improving work quality • Which roles are winning with AI (and which are struggling) • Where the biggest opportunities are • Which AI tools have product-market fit • Which AI tool dominates for most roles • Why engineers prefer specialized tools • Why 92% report significant downsides to AI tools • What AI agents need to take off References: • Airbnb: https://www.airbnb.com/ • Anthropic: https://www.anthropic.com/ • Build your personal AI copilot: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/build-your-personal-ai-copilot • ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/ • Claude: https://claude.ai/ • Cursor: https://cursor.com/ • Figma: https://www.figma.com/ • Gemini: https://gemini.google.com/ • GitHub: https://github.com/ • Granola: https://www.granola.ai/ • How to build your second brain with ChatGPT: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-build-your-pm-second-brain • Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/ • Lindy: https://www.lindy.ai/ • Lovable: https://lovable.dev/ • Manus: https://manus.im/ • Microsoft Copilot: https://copilot.microsoft.com/ • Midjourney: https://www.midjourney.com/home • Monday.com: https://www.monday.com • n8n: https://n8n.io/ • Noam Segal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noamsegal/ • Notion: https://www.notion.com/ • Perplexity: https://www.perplexity.ai/ • Replit: https://replit.com/ • v0: https://v0.app/ • Zapier: https://zapier.com/ Read the newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/ai-tools-are-overdelivering-results Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, Amir Klein, from monday.com, shares a practical, battle-tested system for building a PM “second brain”. In this episode, Amir explains exactly how to set up a ChatGPT Project with a clear personality, feed it the messy context scattered across your tools, and then put it to work—drafting sign-up forms, spinning up prototypes, and tailoring comms for every audience. Listen now: YouTube | Apple | Spotify In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why context is the PM’s heaviest mental load • How to build a second brain that challenges you and mirrors your taste • The wealth of information your second brain can absorb • A simple loop to keep your second brain fresh • Three end-to-end use case examples References • Amir Klein • Build your personal AI copilot • ChatGPT • Claude • Figma • Gemini • Google Docs • Lovable • monday.com • Notion • Reddit • Slack Read the newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-build-your-pm-second-brain Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.comHow do certain early employees keep picking generational companies—again and again—before the rest of the world catches on? In this episode, we distill lessons from five such super-spotters whose resumes include Palantir, OpenAI, Facebook, Stripe, Linear, Figma, Notion, Slack, Box, Spotify, and Dropbox. You’ll learn the three rare traits they all look for, and how you can apply these signals to your own career and company-building.In this episode, you’ll learn:• How “ludicrous” ambition shows up• The underrated signs of founder greatness• How to evaluate an early product• What a “Jurassic Park” moment in startups means• How to think about risk as an early employee• Tactics to “optimize for serendipity” when breaking into rocket shipsReferences:• Alex Karp: https://x.com/PalantirTech• Bob McGrew: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobmcgrew/• Box: https://www.box.com/• Christina Cordova: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cristinajcordova/• Daniel Ek: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-ek-1b52093a/• Dylan Field: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dylanfield/• Dropbox: https://www.dropbox.com/• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/• Figma: https://www.figma.com/• Hacker News: https://news.ycombinator.com/• Ivan Zhao: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivanhzhao/• Linear: https://linear.app/• Meter: https://www.meter.com/• Notion: https://www.notion.so/• OpenAI: https://openai.com/• Palantir: https://www.palantir.com/• Patrick Collison: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickcollison/• PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/• Rasmus Andersson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rasmusandersson/• Sean Rose: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sean-a-rose/• Slack: https://slack.com/• Soleio: https://www.linkedin.com/in/soleio/• Spotify: https://www.spotify.com/• Stewart Butterfield: https://www.linkedin.com/in/butterfield/• Stripe: https://stripe.com/• Terrence Rohan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terrencerohan/Read the newsletter:• https://open.substack.com/pub/lenny/p/how-to-spot-a-top-1-startup-earlySubscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter:• https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribeSubscribe:• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads• Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj• Substack: https://lennysreads.com/Follow Lenny:• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/• Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcastAbout:Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

AI gave everyone speed - but that same speed flooded every distribution channel. Search traffic's down, inboxes are overrun, and even virality is harder when everyone's shipping quickly. In this episode, Emily Kramer reveals the strategy behind today's breakout companies: ecosystem. Instead of going direct, win through partners, creators, communities, and integrations that already have your audience's trust. If you're still relying on the old playbook in an AI-saturated world, this episode will help you rewire your strategy. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why classic inbound, outbound, virality, events, and lifecycle are weakening in the AI era • What an ecosystem flywheel is and how it compounds credibility and distribution • The six most common ecosystem motions • How fast-growing teams such as Supabase, Clay, Lovable, and more are using an ecosystem strategy • How to pick partners using “coverage” and “composition” instead of vanity reach • What a win-win-win relationship looks like in an ecosystem • How to start an ecosystem strategy, prove it, then expand without diluting the signal References: • Aaron Cort: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaroncort/ • AirOps: https://www.airops.com/ • Anthropic: https://www.anthropic.com/ • Arrows: https://www.arrows.to/ • Astro: https://www.astro.build/ • Baseten: https://www.baseten.co/ • Carta: https://carta.com/ • Clay: https://www.clay.com/ • Clio: https://www.clio.com/ • Craft Ventures: https://www.craftventures.com/ • Daniel Zarick: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielzarick/ • Elena Verna: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elenaverna/ • ElevenLabs: https://elevenlabs.io/ • Emily Kramer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilykramer/ • Emily Kramer's newsletter: https://newsletter.mkt1.co/ • Ethan Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethanls/ • Gamma: https://gamma.app/ • GC AI: https://gc.ai/ • Graphite: https://graphite.dev/ • Grant Lee: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grantslee/ • HubSpot: https://www.hubspot.com/ • Lenny's Product Pass: https://lennysproductpass.com/ • Lovable: https://lovable.dev/ • Mercury: https://mercury.com/ • Midjourney: https://www.midjourney.com/ • Navattic: https://www.navattic.com/ • Supabase: https://supabase.com/ • “The ultimate guide to AEO” Lenny’s Podcast episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT7kq-R3Gjc • Tom Orbach: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomorbach/ • Tracksuit: https://www.tracksuit.com/ • Upstart: https://www.upstart.com/ • Vanta: https://www.vanta.com/ • Vercel: https://vercel.com/ • Wiz: https://www.wiz.io/ Read the newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/ecosystem-is-the-next-big-growth Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Your product builder’s starter pack keeps getting better. In this episode, we continue the guide to getting maximum value from the Product Pass, with seven tools that have reshaped how I prototype, research, take notes, manage email, and move faster every single day. There’s also a new perk for Insiders: 40% off Stripe Atlas to go from idea to incorporated startup without the tax/legal slog. In this episode, you’ll learn • Why Lovable has become my go-to for vibe-coding apps and prototypes • How Bolt plugs into frontier coding agents so you can keep your favorite setup and still ship fast • How Granola quietly captures meetings from your device audio and turns notes into shareable, searchable summaries • What makes ChatPRD a PM-native copilot for specs, templates, and Linear workflows • Five Superhuman power moves beyond inbox zero • Everyday Raycast workflows that make it an instant Spotlight replacement • Why Perplexity’s Comet browser became my default for deep research and agentic browsing • Plus a bunch of practical examples that you can copy References: • Anton Osika: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonosika/ • Bolt: https://bolt.new/ • “Building Lovable” podcast episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZtGxNs9AVg • ChatGPT: https://openai.com/ • ChatPRD: https://www.chatprd.ai/lenny • Claire Vo: https://clairevo.com/ • Claude Code: https://www.claude.com/product/claude-code • Comet: https://www.perplexity.ai/comet • Cursor: https://cursor.com/ • Eric Simons: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-simons-a464a664/ • Gamma: https://gamma.app/ • GitHub: https://github.com/ • Granola: https://www.granola.ai/ • “Inside Bolt” podcast episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L22DtAHLmzs • Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/ • Linear: https://linear.app/ • Lovable: https://lovable.dev/ • Magic Patterns: https://www.magicpatterns.com/ • Perplexity: https://www.perplexity.ai/ • Rahul Vohra: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulvohra/ • Raycast: https://www.raycast.com/ • Stripe Atlas: https://stripe.com/atlas • Superhuman: https://superhuman.com/ • “Superhuman’s secret to success” podcast episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0igjSRZyX-w • Tailor Labs: https://www.tailoredlabsai.com/ • Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/part-2-of-how-to-get-the-most-out Subscribe • Lenny’s Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • X/Twitter: https://x.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com If you’re trying to feel better, build longer, and avoid quietly poisoning yourself along the way, this episode’s for you. After a run of injuries, weird labs, and a “half-man/half-plastic” toxin screen, I went deep on cleaning up my life. Enter: Justin Mares, founder/operator (Kettle & Fire, Perfect Keto, Surely, Truemed), and meticulous health nerd who has spent hundreds of hours testing what’s actually worth buying. In this episode, we walk through Justin’s guide for safer, higher-quality living so you can stay healthy, perform your best, and continue to build amazing products. In this episode, you’ll learn: • The 80/20 of great sleep (and why temperature control and magnesium often matter most) • What to wear (and avoid) to reduce PFAS, phthalates, and dye exposure on skin • A sourcing playbook for nutrient-dense, low-toxin food • Supplements that you actually need and why • Practical toxin-mitigation at home: air, water, lighting, EMFs, kitchens, and cleaning • Low-effort swaps for everyday products (deodorant, soaps, skincare, blue-light blockers) References: • Andrew Huberman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-huberman/ • Bryan Johnson: https://x.com/bryan_johnson • Chemicals in Textiles: https://www.kemi.se/en/publications/reports/2014/report-6-14-chemicals-in-textiles • How to Prevent & Treat Colds & Flu: https://www.hubermanlab.com/episode/how-to-prevent-treat-colds-flu • Justin Mares: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinmares/ • Levels: https://www.levelshealth.com/ • Rhonda Patrick: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrhonda/ • Surely: https://drinksurely.com/ • The Great American Poisoning: https://justinmares.substack.com/p/the-great-american-poisoning • Tim Ferriss: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timferriss/ • Truemed: https://www.truemed.com/ • What are EMFs?: https://andybromberg.com/rational-guide-to-emfs Sleep: • Avocado mattress: https://www.avocadogreenmattress.com/ • Coyuchi sheets: https://www.coyuchi.com/collections/sheet-sets • Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/ • Essentia mattress: https://myessentia.com/ • Hästens: https://hastens.com/us/ • Naturepedic mattress: https://www.naturepedic.com/ • Woolshire pillow: https://thewoolshire.com/products/wool-pillow Clothing: • Caraway: https://www.carawayhome.com/ • Faherty: https://fahertybrand.com/ • Industry of All Nations: https://industryofallnations.com/collections/underwear • Nads: https://nadsunder.com/ • Pact: https://wearpact.com/ • Paka: https://www.pakaapparel.com/ • Wax London: https://waxlondon.com/collections/organic-cotton Food: • Beeswax wraps: https://www.amazon.com/Bees-Wrap-Assorted-Sustainable-Alternative/dp/B0126LMDFK • Force of Nature beef: https://forceofnature.com/products/regenerative-beef-ancestral-blend • Groundwork coffee: https://www.groundworkcoffee.com/collections/regenerative-organic-certified • Jacob protein bar: https://eatjacob.com/ • Kettle & Fire bone broth: http://kettleandfire.com/ • Maui Nui meat sticks: https://mauinuivenison.com/products/snack-membership • Maui Nui Organ Blend: https://mauinuivenison.com/products/organ-blend-supplement • Radius: https://www.eatradius.com/ • White Oak Pastures meats: https://whiteoakpastures.com/ Supplements: • AHCC: https://www.amazon.com/Premium-Kinoko-Platinum-AHCC-Supplement/dp/B00HG0YZMG/ref=sr_1_6_pp • Astaxanthin: https://www.amazon.com/Pure-Synergy-SuperPure%C2%AE-Astaxanthin-Antioxidant/dp/B07KX3NZJ5/ • Equip protein: https://equipfoods.com/ • Lineage: https://lineageprovisions.com/products/creatine-monohydrate • Momentous creatine: https://www.livemomentous.com/products/creatine-monohydrate • Momentous magnesium L-threonate: https://www.livemomentous.com/products/magnesium-threonate • Orgain: https://www.orgain.com/ • Perfect Keto: https://shop.perfectketo.com/products/grass-fed-collagen-with-mct • Thorne B complex: https://www.amazon.com/Thorne-Methyl-Guard-Plus-methylation-homocysteine/dp/B00O5AHC4S/ • Toku: https://tokuhealth.com/ • Viraldine: https://www.amazon.com/VIRALDINE-Povidone-Iodine-Designed-Congestion-applications/dp/B0CTWWS1DK Toxin mitigation: • Aquasana: https://www.aquasana.com/ • Circadian bulbs: https://thehealthyhome.shop/collections/lights • Inuspheresis: https://www.inuspheresis.com/ • Jaspr: https://jaspr.co/ • Lightwork: https://lightworkhome.com/ • Ophora: https://www.ophorawater.com/whole-home/ • PowerScale: https://www.amazon.com/Powerscale-Generator-Vegetable-Multipurpose-Pesticides/dp/B0D8DM18HV/ref=sr_1_17 • Proxima: https://www.proxima.health/ • PuroAir: https://getpuroair.com/?utm_source=shop_truemed • Renovera: https://www.amazon.com/Renovera-Vegetable-Infant-Friendly-Powdered-Produce/dp/B07R3W8H41/ • Rorra: https://rorra.com/products/countertop-system?utm_source=shop_truemed • Smart plug: https://www.amazon.com/Govee-WiFi-Outlet/dp/B08731J1L4/ref=sr_1_6 • Teakhaus: https://teakhaus.com/collections/cutting-boards Everyday items: • Alitura Meteorite scrub: https://alitura.com/collections/skincare/products/the-meteorite-facial-scrub?selling_plan=4148527355 • Alitura Pearl cleanser: https://alitura.com/collections/skincare/products/alitura-pearl-cleanser • Branch Basics: https://branchbasics.com/ • Chroma blue-light glasses: https://getchroma.co/collections/blue-light-blocking-glasses • Dr Bronner's soaps: https://www.drbronner.com/ • Kari Gran sunscreen: https://karigran.com/products/essential-spf • Mirror Skin serum: https://mymirrorskin.com/ • Native deodorant: https://www.nativecos.com/ • Primally Pure deodorant: https://primallypure.com/collections/deodorant • Ra Optics blue-light glasses: https://raoptics.com/ • Shwally tallow balm: https://www.shwallyhome.com/collections/our-balms/products/shwally-face-and-body-balm • Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-builders-guide-to-living-a-long: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-builders-guide-to-living-a-long Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Claude Code isn't just for developers - it’s actually one of the most underrated AI tools for non-technical people. In this episode, I share 50 ways to use it: decluttering your hard drive, enhancing images, synthesizing customer calls, drafting presentations, and more, all collected from 500+ stories shared by this community. If you've been sleeping on Claude Code, then this episode is your wake-up call. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Exactly how to install and launch Claude Code on Mac and Windows • Five ways I used it this month • 45 creative non-technical workflows, from file organization, to lead discovery, roadmap support, and social listening • Ten more detailed advanced Claude Code use cases References: • Adobe: https://www.adobe.com/ • Apple: https://www.apple.com/ • arXiv: https://arxiv.org/ • Asana: https://asana.com/ • Brex: https://www.brex.com/ • ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/ • Claude Code: https://www.claude.com/product/claude-code • Clay: https://clay.com/ • Cursor: https://cursor.sh/ • Dan Shipper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danshipper/ • Docker: https://www.docker.com/ • Fireflies: https://fireflies.ai/ • Gemini: https://gemini.google.com/ • Git: https://git-scm.com/ • GitHub: https://github.com/ • Gmail: https://mail.google.com/ • Homebrew: https://brew.sh/ • Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/ • Jira: https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira • Linear: https://linear.app/ • Mercury: https://mercury.com/ • Microsoft: https://www.microsoft.com/ • Notion: https://www.notion.com/ • OpenAI: https://openai.com/ • Playwright: https://playwright.dev/ • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/ • Slack: https://slack.com/ • VS Code: https://code.visualstudio.com/ • Warp: https://www.warp.dev/ • X (Twitter): https://x.com/ Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter • Substack: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Read the post • Substack: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/everyone-should-be-using-claude-code Subscribe to Lenny's Reads YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.comIf feedback is a gift, why does it often feel so difficult? In this episode, we break down executive coach Jack Cohen’s evidence-based GAIN framework - a simple, memorable way to give feedback that actually lands. Whether you manage a team or want to nudge a peer, this is a step-by-step playbook for feedback that strengthens relationships, drives behavior change, and leaves people feeling supported and motivated to change. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why we struggle to give tough feedback • How “start with the Goal” flips defensiveness into motivation • Why great feedback names Actions and Impacts, not judgments • How acknowledging your contribution disarms resistance • Scripts that make tough conversations feel collaborative • A framing that helps preserve ambition and psychological safety • A Stanford-tested “wise feedback” sentence that boosts follow-through • The 3 Ws framework to lock in change • A live case study: a VP uses GAIN to unwind a founder’s micromanaging habit References: • Amy Edmondson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amycedmondson/ • “Breaking the cycle of mistrust: Wise interventions to provide critical feedback across the racial divide”: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-28213-001 • Brian Martin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-e-martin-50575a2b/ • Carol Dweck: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carol-dweck-4618236/ • Cycle of conflict or cycle of connection?: https://speakerdeck.com/jackcohen/cycle-of-conflict-or-cycle-of-connection • FeedbackGPT: https://maven.com/p/6f79f8/feedback-gpt-give-feedback-people-thank-you-for • “Framing for Learning: Lessons in Successful Technology Implementation: https://www.notion.so/27d43d3a2709810a9f8de040eea2b01a?pvs=21” • How to become a supermanager with AI: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-become-a-supermanager-with • How to motivate your team for free: https://actionablewisdom.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-motivate-your-team-for-free • Jack Cohen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackadamcohen/ • John Gottman: https://www.gottman.com/author/john-gottman-ph-d/ • ManagerGPT: The AI Tools and Human Systems to Scale Yourself and Your Team Fast: https://maven.com/actionablefeedback/managergpt • Nischal Nadhamuni: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nishchaln/ • Nonviolent Communication (book): https://www.amazon.ca/Nonviolent-Communication-Language-Life-Changing-Relationships/dp/189200528X • “On the elicitation of preferences for alternative therapies”: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7070445/ • “Praise for intelligence can undermine children's motivation and performance: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9686450/” • Radical Candor (book): https://www.amazon.ca/Radical-Candor-Kick-Ass-Without-Humanity/dp/1250103509 • Satya Nadella: https://www.linkedin.com/in/satyanadella/ • Sheryl Sandberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheryl-sandberg-5126652/ • Slack: https://slack.com/ • Stanford University: https://www.stanford.edu/ • Tal Raviv: https://www.linkedin.com/in/talsraviv/ • “The effectiveness of the “But-you-are-free” technique: Meta-analysis and re-examination of the technique: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344807911_The_effectiveness_of_the_But-you-are-free_technique_Meta-analysis_and_re-examination_of_the_technique” • The Founder’s Dilemmas: Anticipating and Avoiding the Pitfalls That Can Sink a Startup (book): https://www.amazon.com/Founders-Dilemmas-Anticipating-Foundation-Entrepreneurship/dp/0691158304 • The GAIN Feedback Template: https://maven.com/p/ad08cc/the-gain-feedback-template • Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/introducing-the-gain-framework-for Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com If you’ve been wondering how to get real value from the subscriber product pass, this episode is for you. I break down exactly how I’m using eight of the tools today - from what they’re great at, what surprised me, and where they slot into a modern PM’s stack. Consider this your field guide to turning these tools into real workflow improvements In this episode, you’ll learn: • What each tool actually does for PMs (beyond the tagline): where it shines vs. falls short • How to vibe code entire apps with Replit, including auth, DB, testing, and auto-fix loops • Why Warp turns your terminal into an agentic sidekick • Linear’s sweet spot for teams • When voice beats typing: workflows where Wispr Flow is faster and more accurate • Rapid content creation with Gamma 3.0, including decks, landing pages, and shareable summaries • Fast prototyping with Magic Patterns using your own component library • How non-video-people ship great video with Descript + Underlord • Smart real-life examples of how PMs and teams are using each tool right now References: • Read the post: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-product • A peek at an upcoming episode on evals: https://the-rise-of-ai-evals-q62i0s7.gamma.site/ • Announcing 15+ free premium tools available exclusively to paid annual subscribers: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/productpass • Ben Horowitz’s episode on leadership: https://gamma.app/docs/10-Hard-Truths-That-Built-Billion-Dollar-Companies-onh55jsg26xrzp5 • Brendan Foody’s story of Mercor: https://ai-revolutions-hidden-bo-3k6n3li.gamma.site/ • Creating a unique resume: https://suchita-kaundin-bsb2sbo.gamma.site/ • Ethan Smith’s episode on AEO: https://gamma.app/docs/Mastering-Answer-Engine-Optimization-n4gxgak9z9tpzhc • Lenny’s product pass: https://lennysproductpass.com/ • Turning PRDs into decks: https://x.com/clairevo/status/1968002491724988923 • Yoto: https://us.yotoplay.com/ Tools + use-case examples: Descript: https://descript.com/lenny • Creating ads: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvBGR5cSeNw • Creating avatar-based demos: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/burkhauser_guys-now-on-descript-you-can-instantly-create-activity-7320888554761453568-Eex_ • Adding big juicy text to videos: https://youtube.com/shorts/phEBSCJP8xw• Creating a rough cut with AI: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/RtC7_wQ1Arg • Creating YouTube Shorts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rXZkt6YkZw • Underlord example: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/fatemeh-alavizadeh_ever-wonder-how-ai-actually-thinks-about-activity-7350929550232444928-fc6s Gamma: https://gamma.app/partners/lenny • Gamma 3.0: https://x.com/thisisgrantlee/status/1967943621782413388 • Generating custom decks for each sales outreach: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/yonathan-cohen_gamma-30-just-dropped-i-built-a-29-reply-activity-7373718410439942144-sKqM/ • Creating landing pages: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/charlie-hills_how-to-make-a-landing-page-in-5-minutes-activity-7321473049843621888-BTLe/ • Turning meeting notes into a deck and follow-up email: https://x.com/riyazmd774/status/1967978262015160802 • The story of Gamma: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/20/technology/ai-silicon-valley-start-ups.html • Turn Granola notes into presentations with Gamma: https://zapier.com/templates/details/meeting-notes-to-presentations-granola-gamma Linear: https://linear.app/ • Claire at ChatPRD on building an agent in Linear: https://linear.app/integrations/chatprd • How Commure is building dashboards to monitor their team’s progress: https://linear.app/now/commure-dashboards in Linear • Linear’s secret to building beloved B2B products with Nan Yu (their Head of Product): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTr21kgCFF4 • How Linear uses Linear to manage their own customer feedback: https://linear.app/now/how-we-think-about-customer-experience-at-linear Magic Patterns: https://magicpatterns.link/lpp1 • Copy-and-pasting PRDs, creating a Magic Patterns prototype, and then: https://magicpatterns.link/llp1x sharing with engineering • Creating personalized customer demos: https://magicpatterns.link/lpp1lu • Skipping Figma entirely: https://magicpatterns.link/llp1jh when prototyping • Magic Patterns tutorials: https://www.magicpatterns.com/docs/documentation/ai-prototyping-course/introduction Mobbin: https://mobbin.com/lenny • Copy-and-pasting best-in-class flows into your Figma: https://youtu.be/E4idM0hC_AY?si=tJA95mUdzSmya0Wa&t=1537 • Designing a viral app: https://youtu.be/T64X2GUoDwc?si=8f98NKkKPygr9QHS&t=360 • Elevating your design taste: https://youtu.be/8mMH6Pq8qnE?si=xCt-KLIZsOhxrV-v&t=533 • Getting design inspiration: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C3px5ESAwxA/ • Studying in the best way: https://x.com/rexan_wong/status/1967789508717650388 Replit: https://replit.com/?utm_source=lenny&utm_medium=lenny&utm_campaign=v2 • Building a fully featured website for Saastr: https://x.com/jasonlk/status/1967408276825575753 • Building a social networking platform (in 193 minutes): https://x.com/anthropiast/status/1966109218479714593 • Coming up with startup ideas: https://x.com/daniel_mac8/status/1966260595143094534 • Vibe-coding automations: https://x.com/omarsar0/status/1966949907149058551 • Taking on Upwork projects: https://x.com/niconley/status/1966505076849074618 Warp: http://go.warp.dev/lenny • How Warp helps a dad teach his kids how to build websites: https://x.com/some_user123/status/1950443062016041377 • Building a Strava clone: https://youtu.be/cmHheGcDWTQ • Converting MRI imaging files to JPEGs: https://x.com/aaronwhite/status/1958281839333794057?s=46 • Warp tutorials: https://warp.dev/university Wispr Flow: https://wisprflow.ai/ • Doctors transcribing their notes: https://x.com/RutaB_/status/1956099269544567236 • Slow typers speeding up their workflows: https://x.com/rywiggs/status/1937991165217017879 • Talking to chatbots: https://x.com/MatthewGattozzi/status/1967952481419403609 • Vibe coding: https://x.com/tankots/status/1891138380404060298 • Writing: https://x.com/deedydas/status/1930130567649210879 This is a public episode. 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If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why product sense isn’t magic: it’s a muscle you can train * How to build product sense by developing deeper user empathy * Why watching real users interact with products sharpens your intuition * How to reverse-engineer everyday products to uncover what makes them work * How creativity plays a key role in building great products * What you can learn by studying how top product thinkers make decisions * Why staying curious about new technology trends fuels innovation * How to tell if your product sense is actually improving over time Listen now: YouTube | Apple | Spotify References: * A comprehensive survey of Product Management * Anthropic * Are You Solving the Right Problems? * Balaji Srinivasan * Bangaly Kaba * Braze * Camille Edwards * Cash App * Carta * Courtney Lessard * David Lieb * Elad Gil * Erin Teague * How to Do a Product Critique * How to Get Startup Ideas * Inspired * Intro to the Design of Everyday Things * Jules Walter * Julie Zhuo * Lawrence Ripsher * Marty Cagan * Naval Ravikant * Paul Graham * Rahul Vohra * Shreyas Doshi * Slack * Stewart Butterfield * Stripe * Superhuman * Textract (Amazon) * The First Secret of Great Design * Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg * Todd Sherman * Tony Fadell * Uber * Venmo * Why now This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber, add the private feed to your podcast app at https://add.lennysreads.com In this episode, we dive into the fast-emerging discipline of AI evaluation with Hamel Husain and Shreya Shankar, creators of AI Evals for Engineers & PMs, the #1 highest-grossing course on Maven. After training 2000+ PMs and engineers across 500+ companies, Hamel and Shreya reveal the complete playbook for building evaluations that actually improve your AI product: moving beyond vanity dashboards, to a system that drives continuous improvement. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why most AI eval dashboards fail to deliver real product improvements • How to use error analysis to uncover your product’s most critical failure modes • The role of a “principal domain expert” in setting a consistent quality bar • Techniques for transforming messy error notes into a clean taxonomy of failures • When to use code-based checks vs. LLM-as-a-judge evaluators • How to build trust in your evals with human-labeled ground-truth datasets • Why binary pass/fail labels outperform Likert scales in practice • Evaluation strategies for complex systems: multi-turn conversations, RAG pipelines, and agentic workflows • How CI safety nets and production monitoring work together to create a flywheel of continuous product improvement References: • Read the newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-eval-systems-that-improve • AI Evals for Engineers & PMs: https://maven.com/parlance-labs/evals • A Field Guide to Rapidly Improving AI Products: https://hamel.dev/blog/posts/field-guide/ • Aligning LLM-Assisted Evaluation of LLM Outputs with Human Preferences: https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.12272 • Aman Khan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanberkeley/ • Anthropic: https://www.anthropic.com/ • Arize Phoenix: https://phoenix.arize.com/ • Braintrust: https://www.braintrust.dev/ • Beyond vibe checks: A PM’s complete guide to evals: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/beyond-vibe-checks-a-pms-complete • Frequently Asked Questions (And Answers) About AI Evals: https://hamel.dev/blog/posts/evals-faq/ • Hamel Husain: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamelhusain/ • LangSmith: https://smith.langchain.com/ • Not Dead Yet: On RAG: https://hamel.dev/notes/llm/rag/not_dead.html • OpenAI: https://openai.com/ • Shreya Shankar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shrshnk/ Listen: • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Follow Lenny: • Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast Subscribe • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ Follow Lenny • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast About Welcome to Lenny's Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

In this episode, naming expert David Placek shares his foundational principles that helped him create some of the world’s most iconic brands: BlackBerry, Azure, Sonos, and Impossible Foods, to name a few. Whether you’re launching a new company or naming a product, this episode will sharpen how you think about brand strategy and help you avoid costly mistakes. If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com: https://add.lennysreads.com/ Listen now: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why naming is the single highest-leverage brand decision you’ll make • The 3 pillars of effective names • How invented names outperform descriptive ones (and cost less to build) • Why brainstorming rarely works - and what to do instead • The story behind Intel’s Pentium and how one name changed the industry • Why “Swiffer” made mopping fun • How Vercel went from “Zeit” to a name built for momentum • The 6 challenges every name must overcome in today’s AI-driven world • What not to do: common naming traps that lead to forgettable brands References: • AMD: https://www.amd.com/ • Azure: https://azure.microsoft.com/ • BlackBerry: https://www.blackberry.com/ • Codeium: https://codeium.com/ • Dell: https://www.dell.com/ • HP: https://www.hp.com/ • Impossible Foods: https://impossiblefoods.com/ • Intel: https://www.intel.com/ • Lexicon Branding: https://www.lexiconbranding.com/ • Microsoft: https://www.microsoft.com/ • Navan: https://navan.com/ • Procter & Gamble: https://us.pg.com/ • Sonos: https://www.sonos.com/ • Subaru: https://www.subaru.com/ • Vercel: https://vercel.com/ To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

In this episode, Aishwarya Reganti and Kiriti Badam introduce a powerful new framework for building AI products: the Continuous Calibration/Continuous Development (CC/CD) framework. If you’ve ever shipped an AI demo that looked magical but struggled to scale, this framework will resonate. The CC/CD framework provides a practical and structured approach to navigating these realities and building AI systems that are stable, intentional, and trustworthy. Listen:  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe In this episode, you’ll learn: • The two core differences every AI builder must account for: non-determinism and the agency–control tradeoff • The six phases of the CC/CD loop • How to scope capabilities across different versions of your product to gradually earn trust and agency • The role of reference datasets in taming unpredictability and guiding evals • How to design application-specific evals that act as the equivalent of tests for AI • Why control handoffs are essential for maintaining user trust • How to transform deployment from a finish line into the start of continuous calibration • Why you should never “jump to full agency” before the system earns it • How to apply the CC/CD loop with real-world examples: customer support, marketing assistants, and coding copilots References: • Beyond vibe checks: A PM’s complete guide to evals: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/beyond-vibe-checks-a-pms-complete • “Building agentic AI applications with a problem-first approach” [Maven course]: https://maven.com/aishwarya-kiriti/genai-system-design • Cursor: https://cursor.com • “Don’t build AI products like traditional software” [Free lightning talk]: https://maven.com/p/88a325/don-t-build-ai-products-like-traditional-software • GitHub Copilot: https://github.com/features/copilot • Why premature pptimization is the root of all evil: https://stackify.com/premature-optimization-evil/ • Why your AI product needs a different development lifecycle: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/48e7fb02-1fc1-4bb7-bf85-85f4165e8225 To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, I share another 10 must-read essays that continue to shape how I think about product, startups, and career. Whether you’re scaling a startup, leading a team, or sharpening your thinking, this episode will expand your perspective and give you practical tools you can use immediately. Listen now: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why solving the right problem for the right audience is obvious - yet essential • Why leaders must take full responsibility for any communication discrepancies • How to use the SCQA (Situation, Complication, Question, Answer) framework for concise, persuasive messaging • Why sales, often overlooked, is critical to your product’s success • A tremendously clarifying way to think about your market • The four types of “fit” every startup needs • What we get wrong about our definition of a startup • How to start giving away your Legos • How reframing what you’re selling can strengthen your positioning • What “Schlep blindness” is - and how founders can avoid it References: References: • Building Products: https://medium.com/the-year-of-the-looking-glass/building-products-91aa93bea4bb • Communication is the Job: https://boz.com/articles/communication-is-the-job • Distribution: https://a16z.com/distribution/ • Eigenquestions: The Art of Framing Problems: https://coda.io/@shishir/eigenquestions-the-art-of-framing-problems • Executive Communication: https://www.heavybit.com/library/video/executive-communication/ • Give Away Your Legos: https://review.firstround.com/give-away-your-legos-and-other-commandments-for-scaling-startups/ • How to Work with Designers: https://medium.com/the-year-of-the-looking-glass/how-to-work-with-designers-6c975dede146 • Product Management Mental Models for Everyone: https://blackboxofpm.com/product-management-mental-models-for-everyone-31e7828cb50b • Schlep Blindness: https://www.paulgraham.com/schlep.html • Startup = Growth: https://paulgraham.com/growth.html • The Four Fits: https://brianbalfour.com/four-fits-growth-framework • The Market Curve: https://medium.com/sequoia-capital/the-market-curve-44097b626f6d • The Next Feature Fallacy: https://andrewchen.com/the-next-feature-fallacy-the-fallacy-that-the-next-new-feature-will-suddenly-make-people-use-your-product/ • We Don’t Sell Saddles Here: https://medium.com/@stewart/we-dont-sell-saddles-here-4c59524d650d • What Makes a Strong Product Culture?: https://www.bringthedonuts.com/essays/what-makes-a-strong-product-culture/ To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you're a premium subscriber, get the full episodes in your podcast feed by visiting https://add.lennysreads.com Read the full post: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/c674cb15-93c5-44f0-9a11-33ca626b8179 Peter Yang interviewed leaders at six of the most AI-forward companies—Zapier, Ramp, Duolingo, Shopify, Intercom, and Whoop—to uncover 25 real-world tactics for driving employee AI adoption. If your team is still struggling to get value from AI tools, this episode is packed with practical advice, internal playbooks, and strategies you can use right away. In this episode, you’ll learn • The five steps to driving AI adoption at your company • Why vague AI-first mandates don’t work—and what to do instead • How to track and reward adoption, usage, and outcomes • How to cut through red tape and unblock company-wide access • How to turn AI power users into internal teachers • Which high-impact tasks top companies are automating first • What separates real AI adoption from flashy demo theater References • Gallup poll: https://www.gallup.com/workplace/691643/work-nearly-doubled-two-years.aspx • Hilary Gridley’s 30 days of GPT: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1zJ4rbi9YcQuGqGxc6-AQD0-44oT9l4Eyono0AdpgJbA/edit?gid=0#gid=0 • How Zapier measures AI fluency: https://x.com/wadefoster/status/1930680089651425452 • Tobi Lütke’s AI memo: https://x.com/tobi/status/1909251946235437514?lang=en • Zapier’s code red playbook: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zbkjL0d-ev87PO0yKJBBMlliByVaUIREKNQfvtVwXbg/ To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you're a premium subscriber, get the full episodes in your podcast feed by visiting https://add.lennysreads.com Read the full post: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/build-your-personal-ai-copilot Tal Raviv went from an AI skeptic to teaching over 20,000 tech workers how to use AI to move faster at work. In this episode, he shares a step-by-step guide to building your own AI copilot using ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or M365 Copilot. If you're still wondering how to leverage AI, start here. In this episode, you'll learn • How AI copilots become thinking partners that know you and your work inside out • Why Tal prefers the term context engineering • The four-step framework for building a useful copilot • Dozens of example prompts for strategic thinking, learning, and productivity • How to output structured documents, prototypes, and automations • How to create a copilot that gets smarter with every project • What's next: AI copilots that push you to be better References • A guide to AI prototyping for product managers: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-guide-to-ai-prototyping-for-product • Becoming a super IC: Lessons from 12 years as a PM individual contributor | Tal Raviv: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFhurV1l6Jk&t=975s • How Experienced Growth PMs Analyze Data with AI: https://maven.com/p/eddc27/how-experienced-growth-p-ms-analyze-data-with-ai • How to book Tal for one-day team workshops: https://talraviv.co/ • Make product management fun again with AI agents: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/i/162096097/ai-agent-builder-prompt • Oleksii Monchyk: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oleksii-monchyk-91ba09171/?originalSubdomain=de • OpenAI researcher on why soft skills are the future of work | Karina Nguyen: https://youtu.be/DeskgjrLxxs?si=4boISMhdv6pSkiOc&t=3071 • Product manager is an unfair role. So work unfairly: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/i/151079492/get-a-head-start-on-discovery-with-product-scrapbooking • Student Example #1: Career development copilot for women: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sblODeX-FGk • Student Example #2: Onboarding copilot for new PMs: https://darshen.substack.com/p/the-pm-onboarding-copilot • Tal’s “Build Your Personal PM Productivity System & AI Copilot” course in September: https://maven.com/tal-raviv/product-manager-productivity-system?promoCode=LENNYSLIST (use code LENNYSLIST for $100 off) • Tal’s free guide and live demos of advanced copilot use cases: https://talraviv.co/ • Tal’s upcoming free lightning lesson on how to use Cursor as a PM copilot: https://maven.com/p/0a96cb/cursor-isn-t-just-for-coding-how-ai-native-p-ms-work Listen: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads | Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 | Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj | Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe Follow Lenny: Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/lennysan | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ | Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast Follow Tal: Twitter/X: https://x.com/talraviv | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/talsraviv Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com I share seven timeless essays that have shaped how I think about product, startups, and career. These are the pieces I quote often, revisit regularly, and think about long after reading. You likely haven’t come across most of them—but they’re must-reads for any … To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

Ben Erez is a former PM at Meta, the first PM at three different startups, and now a full-time interview coach and educator. In this episode, Ben shares the five-part framework he developed after studying dozens of mock interviews, interviewing 50+ candidates at Facebook, and coaching hundreds of PMs through their job searches. It’s designed to help you master one of the most misunderstood stages of the PM interview loop: the product sense interview. If you’re a premium subscriber: Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com: https://add.lennysreads.com/ Subscribe:  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj In this episode, you’ll learn • Ben’s five-part framework for acing product sense interviews • How to set assumptions and lead with structure • How to define a clear mission that guides every decision • A process for segmenting users and developing strong personas • How to map user journeys and surface high-impact problems • A method for brainstorming, prioritizing, and scoping solutions • Lessons from mock-examples (Claude, Meta, and Netflix) • Common pitfalls to avoid, and how to practice effectively References • AI Practice Copilot for Product Sense & Analytical Thinking Interviews: https://payhip.com/b/LCkbr • Attentive: https://www.attentive.com/ • How to Ace Product Sense PM Interviews: https://maven.com/p/af5908/how-to-ace-product-sense-pm-interviews • Lewis Lin’s PM Question Bank: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1rz10oEeLx-eGnilahKczYPhGfCUzIEKL-xRnjoQ-SX4/edit?gid=1024620532#gid=1024620532 • Product Sense Interview Template: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1-jdZAVtLuk8dUnf9peUKlNkguSOuAk5VdMPTmgr9Kns/edit • Recorded Mock of PS Response: https://grain.com/share/recording/be7899c9-f09e-4a18-93ec-ef40e7a26fac/Sex5ycmtyfFMOytY9K16yYQAx5p7lEn7X8D0fy2b and the Completed Template: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1WV2kQNdM_kKHvr6Wsq0Znx7-r1gLK0qTOcuZg3LPqwo/edit?usp=sharing • The Definitive Guide to Mastering Analytical Thinking Interviews: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/8fe3dc12-1ed3-4876-a73d-2be943f18204 Follow Lenny:  • Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast Follow Ben:  • Twitter/X: https://x.com/ViableBen • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benerez/ • Newsletter: https://benerez.substack.com/ About Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Ben Erez is a former PM at Facebook, the first PM at multiple startups, and now a full-time interview coach and educator. In this episode, he shares the five-part framework he’s used to help hundreds of PMs land roles at top companies. It’s the most practical, e… To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at https://add.lennysreads.com You’ve probably heard terms like LLM, transformer, and hallucination, but do you really know what they mean? In this episode, I walk through 20 of the most common AI terms with dead-simple explanations you can actually understand (and use). In this episode, you’ll learn • What a “model” actually is • The difference between pre-training, fine-tuning, and RLHF • What transformers are—and why they changed everything • How prompt engineering and RAG improve model outputs • What AGI and ASI really mean • The difference between LLMs, GenAI, and GPT • Why models hallucinate (and how to prevent it) • What synthetic data is—and why it matters • How vibe coding works and what agents can actually do • What MCP, inference, and tokens are in plain English Referenced • A complete guide on RLHF • AGI vs ASI • Andrej Karpathy on LLMs • Andrej Karpathy on vibe coding • Anthropic’s guide on building effective agents • Anthropic’s guide to reducing hallucinations • Fine-tuning vs RAG vs prompt engineering • Guide to model context protocol (MCP) • How LLMs work • How fine-tuning works • How top models tokenize words • How training and pre-training works • Ilya Sutskever on AGI • Ilya Sutskever on next-word prediction • Lenny’s Podcast on prompt engineering • Make product management fun again with AI agents • RLHF explainer • Sam Altman on synthetic data • Technical deep dive on transformers • What are transformers? Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast About Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Three weeks ago, Noam Segal and I shared data showing that 84% of tech workers feel burned out. That left one big question: Who are the 16% who aren’t? This episode is their playbook. We analyzed 175 follow-up surveys and spoke with 15 “burnout conquerors” to understand how they’ve cracked the code. In this episode, you’ll learn • The five-part “ARMOR” framework for burnout protection • The habits, systems, and beliefs that keep burnout at bay • How to set boundaries that actually hold • How to prioritize mental and physical wellbeing, without guilt • Early warning signals that most people miss • How to take rhythmic, reflective, and restorative breaks • How to choose roles based on energy, not ego • Why relationships, not perks are your best defense References • Conversations online about the first sentiment survey • How tech workers really feel about work right now • Make product management fun again with AI agents • Managing up • The burnout check • The “How I Work” template Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast About Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber • Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com About Colin Matthews was a longtime PM and is the creator of my favorite AI prototyping course, AI Prototyping for Product Managers. He already has two posts in my all-time top 10 — and I wouldn’t be surprised if this becomes his third. In this post, Colin shares his hands-on playbook for turning AI prototyping from scattered experiments into a repeatable, team-wide workflow. In this episode, you’ll learn • Colin’s go-to template prompt for rapid prototyping • A six-step guide for shipping fast • How to build reusable component libraries for high-quality mocks • Three tactics to generate better components • What “baselines and forks” are and how they streamline workflows • Where prototypes fit into the product development lifecycle • Common mistakes teams make with AI tooling • Plus: time-saving prompts, tool comparisons, and a better way to add your logo Referenced • Read this post • AI prototyping for product managers • A guide to AI prototyping for product managers • Become a more technical product manager • Bolt • Book a place in Colin’s free 45-minute live online class, coming up on July 8th • Book a place in Colin’s AI Prototyping for Product Managers, which kicks off again on June 30th (use code LENNYSLIST to get $100 off) • Book Colin for one-day team workshops • Cursor • Figma’s MCP • Magic Patterns • Unsplash • v0 Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast Follow Colin: LinkedIn To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Together with Noam Segal, we unpack the most surprising insights from a sweeping new study of over 8,200 tech professionals—across roles, company sizes, and work setups. In this episode, you’ll learn • Why burnout is rampant • Who’s thriving in tech right now (and who’s not) • The shocking stat: Only 1 in 4 workers think their manager is effective • How sentiment shifts between remote, hybrid, and in-office setups • Why you might want to switch to a smaller company • What’s driving the mid-career slump—and how to escape it • The clarity gap that’s holding people back • Why women are more engaged but more burned-out than men • How AI is fueling both career anxiety and reinvention Referenced • Become better at managing up • Lennybot manager prompts • Start your own company • Take the burnout check • The SOLO method Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter | LinkedIn | Podcast Follow Noam: Twitter/X | LinkedIn About Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Saumil Mehta shares his hard-earned framework for becoming a high-impact “manager of managers” — and why skip level leaders, not more middle managers, are the key to scaling product teams. In this episode, you’ll learn * When a manager struggles, look one level up * Why the jump from line manager to skip lead is so tough * The “API endpoint” trick for leading through layers * How to get feedback without undermining your managers * Why covering for a weak manager can backfire * How to match people to the right projects * A simple 2×2 for knowing when to step in or step back * First-week habits that set skip leads up for success Referenced * High Output Management * Jeff Weiner’s Essay * Read the newsletter * Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter | LinkedIn | Podcast Follow Saumil: Twitter/X | LinkedIn This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

The product job market is flipping. In this post, I break down the latest 2025 data – what’s growing, what’s fading, and where the real opportunities are right now. — In this episode, you’ll learn: • How layoffs are finally slowing after four tough years • Which roles are bouncing back fastest • What Big Tech is pouring billions into, and how it could unlock new hiring • The new baseline for remote-friendly jobs • Where the most AI roles are opening up, and which city leads by far Who’s hiring: The top 20 companies for PMs and AI PMs • Two rising trends changing how PMs work and get hired — References • Browse all open PM roles • Part 1: New Data on the product job market • Part 2: State of the product job market • TrueUp • Read the newsletter • Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter — Subscribe to Lenny's Reads • YouTube • Apple • Spotify • Substack — Follow Lenny Twitter LinkedIn Podcast To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

Jacob Warwick gives a masterclass on how to negotiate like a top-tier product leader, using a five-part framework that’s helped thousands secure compensation packages 2-4x above the posted range. — In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why negotiation is about value, not tactics • A five-step playbook for comp negotiation • How to uncover intel others miss, like hidden power and future pain points • Questions and scripts that shift you from applicant to collaborator • Real-world stories of product leaders who doubled their compensation • Tactics to build advocates, cross-team support, and momentum • How to navigate complexity without losing leverage • What to do after the offer to lock in long-term upside • A case study on how one leader turned chaos into a $1.4M offer — Read the full post: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ultimate-guide-to-negotiating?r=1o9eyi — Subscribe to Lenny’s Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe — Subscribe to Lenny’s Reads: • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreads • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693 • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypTooj?nd=1&dlsi=ab893d56bd4a4050 • Substack: https://lennysreads.com/ — Follow Lenny: • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ • Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@lennyspodcast — About: Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

In this episode, you’ll learn * The six behaviors that separate “agents” from ordinary AI tools * How to spot an ideal low-risk, high-impact task to automate first * The five-question checklist that keeps your agent safe, scoped, and effective * Smart ways to control cost, curb hallucinations, and satisfy your security team * AI prompts you can copy-paste to identify the right platform for your agent and generate workflows in plain English * Techniques for testing, iterating, and promoting your agent from “intern” to trusted teammate * Where agents are headed next and what that means for your role as a PM References * Zapier Agents * Gumloop * Cassidy * Manus * Lindy * Relay Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, you’ll learn * Why senior ICs often out-earn managers, and how to pick the right path * How moving to a Tier 1 city can supercharge your salary * Cash versus equity: how to think about your comp tradeoffs * The career levels where PM salaries really take off * Why CPOs are cashing in like never before * How far behind UK and European PM salaries actually are * How to game your comp strategy based on your goals Referenced * Pave * Levels.fyi Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why AI assistants like ChatGPT have become more essential than Gmail or Slack * How Linear is chipping away at Jira’s dominance * Why Notion is winning across multiple categories * How Figma continues to own design workflows, and where Canva is catching up * The surprising role of Slack and Notion in CRM and customer support * Why developers are flocking to AI-native coding tools like Cursor * Three meta-trends reshaping tech stacks: bundling, craft, and mix-and-match flexibility Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast About Welcome to Lenny’s Reads, where every week you’ll find a fresh audio version of my newsletter about building product, driving growth, and accelerating your career, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, you’ll learn * How YC pivoted from consumer startups to B2B software * The new bets YC is making, and what it signals about the future of startups * Why solo founders are struggling to get into YC * How US startups dominate YC’s biggest wins, and why * Why YC-backed companies survive longer than almost anyone else Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com In this episode, you’ll learn * Why most product strategies fail * How to bridge vision and execution * The five Strategy Blocks that turn fuzzy ideas into focused action * How to get stakeholders aligned fast using a shared strategy language * How Meta, Headspace, and VRChat used this framework to unlock real growth * How to apply Strategy Blocks to your team today — whether you’re a PM, a founder, or a product leader Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

If you’re a premium subscriber Add the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com Many of you have told me that you’d prefer to listen to this newsletter instead of read it. I’m excited to share that now you can. Introducing Lenny’s Reads: an audio podcast edition of Lenny’s Newsletter. Every newsletter post will now be transformed into an audio podcast, read to you by the soothing voice of Lennybot. Our goal is to ship an audio version of each post 48 hours after it goes live. If you’re a paid subscriber, you’ll get the full post. If you’re a free subscriber, you’ll get the free preview. We’re excited to hear what you think! Subscribe: YouTube | Apple | Spotify Follow Lenny: Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Podcast This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe