AI accelerates building, but intuition still reigns supreme.

The Takeaway: Building products is faster with AI, but intuition and simplicity remain key. Mike Krieger, co-founder of Instagram and now at Anthropic Labs, reflects on how AI has transformed product development. At Instagram, Krieger and his team spent nearly a year on a failed product called Bourbon before pivoting to create Instagram in just three months. Today, AI can build feature-complete products in hours, but Krieger warns that speed alone doesn't guarantee success. "The models today are good at adding features. They're not necessarily good about figuring out what to cut out of the product," he notes. Krieger emphasizes the importance of intuition developed through experience. He draws a parallel to growing a tree indoors without wind, which results in a weaker structure. Similarly, rapidly built products may lack the robustness and user insights gained from iterative development. "You can grow an entire tree indoors, but it doesn't have the same level of intuition and exposure to experience," he explains. Despite AI's ability to accelerate development, Krieger argues that understanding what to build remains crucial. He recounts how AI rebuilt Bourbon in two hours, adding features like filters that were only introduced later in Instagram's evolution. However, he stresses that the art of product design lies in knowing which features truly matter. Krieger also highlights the importance of simplicity and focus. He shares an anecdote about overbuilding a product, only to strip it back to its core functionality, leading to viral success. "Just because you can doesn't necessarily mean that it should be in at least the first version," he advises. In the age of AI, Krieger believes that while building is easier, creating products that resonate with users still requires a deep understanding of their needs and a willingness to iterate and simplify. AI may expedite the process, but the essence of great product design remains unchanged.