Why AI Feels Fast But Doesn't Feel Easier
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About this episode
If you've been using AI tools and quietly wondering whether they're actually saving you time, or whether you're just doing the same work in a different order, this conversation is for you.
I sat down with Max Kirchoff, a principal technologist and product-focused engineer who writes about the intersection of humans and machines on his Substack, Human of the Loop. What I love about Max is that he's not afraid to say most of us have been getting AI wrong, not because the tools aren't powerful, but because we keep bolting them onto the way we already work instead of pausing to rethink the work itself.
We get into the four layers of work and where AI actually pays off, why "building trust with AI" is the wrong frame, and what leaders are missing when they chase efficiency instead of growth. If you've been feeling the dissonance between how fast AI lets you start things and how the work itself doesn't always feel easier, you're going to find a lot here.
Key Takeaways:
AI doesn’t fail because the tools are weak; it fails when you bolt it onto workflows you haven’t rethought.
Most people apply AI at the task level; the real leverage is at the workflow layer and above.
You can’t build trust with an LLM the way you build it with a person.
The shift that’s making everyone anxious isn’t AI itself.
Leaders who chase AI for efficiency miss the bigger opportunity: growth.
Adoption follows the leader. If you want your team to learn AI, demonstrate that you’re learning it too.
The most underrated skill in the AI era is curiosity.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:46 Who is Max Kirchoff?
03:00 What “human in the loop” actually means
05:15 How to navigate AI tools effectively
10:37 Why you can’t trust AI the way you trust a person
15:48 The 4 layers of work
19:22 How to spot assumptions running your workflow
22:40 The evolution of programming languages and abstraction layers
28:31 The shift that’s making everyone anxious
29:36 What leaders keep getting wrong about AI adoption
31:39 Investing in human skills for AI integration
33:28 Why “let them fail” is an AI strategy
37:36 Curiosity as the self-starter skill
41:21 If only people knew…
42:35 Where to find Max
Resources Mentioned:
AI Broke the Rhythm of Work
High Output Management by Andrew Grove
Claude AI Model
ChatGPT by OpenAI
Perplexity Search Engine
Connect with Max:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxkirchoff/
Human of the Loop Substack: https://www.humanoftheloop.com/
Connect with Me:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracyannclark08/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buildingthinkers/
Building Thinkers Newsletter: https://building-thinkers.kit.com/24cdc43dcf
More About Building Thinkers:
I'm your host, Tracy Clark, and this is where potential becomes reality through deliberate curiosity, reflection, practice, and play. The Building Thinkers podcast is based on the realization that there's exponential potential in the things we build.
And so, in my little corner of the internet and podcasting land, I want to take my 12 favorite problems, these are my constant curiosities, and I want to go deeper. I want to build thinkers. This is a community of multi-potentialites who may be disoriented by all the possibilities of success we envision but haven't yet achieved.
If any of that sounds like you, come listen in. Welcome to the Building Thinkers podcast.
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