AI on Air by whatisthat.ai

From AI gatekeepers to vibe-coding rebels, get ready for a deep dive into a community where status quo is out and problem-solving is in. So, grab your coffee, settle in, and prepare to question everything you thought you knew about building in the AI age.

00:26 — The Vibe Coding Revolution

- Traditional hierarchies in software creation shaken by the arrival of AI

- Jenny U-Yang's Vibe Coding Builders: a safe haven for non-traditional builders using AI

- Shifting the focus from coding pedigree to impactful solutions

03:40 — Overcoming Challenges

- Jenny's struggle with juggling numerous opportunities and the importance of prioritizing

- Unexpected resistance to the term ""vibe coding"" from technical folks

- Embracing problem solvers over tech status protectors

08:12 — Building Confidence and Community

- The power of validation and belonging within the Vibe Coding Builders community

- Using failure and messiness as stepping stones to success

- Focus on outcomes and real-world impact, not coding purity

11:45 — Future Vision and Flywheel Effect

- VCB's aim to become a go-to hub for AI-assisted builders

- The flywheel effect: a self-sustaining cycle of knowledge-sharing and mentorship

- Democratizing software creation and empowering expertise over technical labels

And that's a wrap, folks. Remember, the future is not just about smarter AI, but about empowering everyone to wield its potential. Join the Vibe Coding revolution, celebrate your AI-assisted creations, and stay tuned for more mind-bending insights. Until next time, keep building, keep vibing, and who knows, maybe one day your coding purity will be the envy of all.


This podcast episode was made with NotebookLM and ElevenLabs


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Creators and Guests

Producer
Jeremy Camilloni
Founder of WITAI and Executive Producer of AI on Air

What is AI on Air by whatisthat.ai?

An AI-generated podcast that rips the glossy marketing veneer off the AI industry and tells you what’s actually happening underneath — tools, takeovers, weird experiments, and the occasional digital chaos.

witai.substack.com

Speaker 1:

Broadcasting live from somewhere inside the algorithm, this is AI on air, the official podcast from whatisthat.ai, we're your AI generated hosts, let's get into it. Let's say a quick hello to our sponsor, Afuera Coffee. These guys source beans straight from Rainforest Alliance Farms in Central And South America and roast them just right. The result? Coffee that actually tastes alive, rich, smooth, and never boring.

Speaker 1:

And because you listen to this show, get 15% off your entire order with the code WITAI at afueracoffee.com. Go check them out, and when you buy coffee using our code, you'll also be supporting the show.

Speaker 2:

Welcome back to the deep dive. You know it's always struck me how technology tends to have its insiders and outsiders, its gatekeepers.

Speaker 1:

Oh absolutely. Mhmm. And for the longest time particularly in software there was this unspoken hierarchy. Right?

Speaker 2:

Totally. Like a cast system almost. You had the real coders doing the complex stuff.

Speaker 1:

And then everyone else who are often seen as just, well, playing around with toys, not doing serious work.

Speaker 2:

Exactly. But then AI arrived and wow, it seems like it just sort of nuked that whole structure.

Speaker 1:

It really did. The examples are pretty wild. We're talking, you know, garbage men shipping apps, lawn care pros, automating workflows.

Speaker 2:

Yeah. Or someone's cousin building things faster than product managers can even map out the sprints. It feels like a complete sea change.

Speaker 1:

It's fundamentals. It's not just a tweak. It's rewriting the rule book on what building even means. Yeah. It's democratizing things.

Speaker 2:

And right in the middle of this, we find Jenny Yu Yang and her platform, Vibe Coding Builders.

Speaker 1:

Mhmm.

Speaker 2:

So that's our mission for this deep dive, to really get under the hood of vibe coding. What is it? What's this community Jenny's building?

Speaker 1:

And what does it mean for, well, for innovation? And who gets to innovate now?

Speaker 2:

Right. We want to unpack how things are actually getting built in this AI age and why this shift matters to you, whether you're an expert in something totally different, a dev trying to adapt or just, you know, curious. Let's get into

Speaker 1:

it. Okay.

Speaker 2:

So Jenny Hu Yang, her name keeps popping

Speaker 3:

up, author of Build to Launch.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. Really practical guide. Her background's interesting. She's got real technical product building chops, but also this deep curiosity about AI empowering, well, the non traditional builders.

Speaker 2:

And Vibe Coding Builders, Vibe Coding Dot Builders, that's her platform, right? Yeah. In response to this new wave.

Speaker 1:

Exactly. It's a community, specifically for people using AI assistance to build stuff, A place to list projects, find resources, learn.

Speaker 2:

She calls it the missing home for people building real apps with AI, but who maybe don't feel welcome in those, traditional developer circles.

Speaker 1:

That's the core idea. And it really came out of her own work.

Speaker 2:

Oh right. She was building her own AI powered tools.

Speaker 1:

Yeah things like Image Finder, Quick Viral Notes, Substack Explorer production level apps. And she said quite openly she was very happy to accept me being a vibe coder because AI did most of the heavy lifting.

Speaker 2:

Okay. So she's doing it herself. But why did she feel the need to build a whole new community? What was missing?

Speaker 1:

Well she saw this big disconnect. On one hand you had the existing dev communities sometimes a bit, hostile or at least skeptical towards vibe coding.

Speaker 2:

Right. Maybe seeing it as less serious?

Speaker 1:

Perhaps. And then on the other side, she kept hearing from domain experts, lawyers, doctors, analysts, super smart people with deep knowledge.

Speaker 2:

Who wanted to build tools for their own fields.

Speaker 1:

Exactly. But they felt totally intimidated by the usual coding scene. They had the expertise, the problems to solve, just like nowhere to show off their AI assisted work without feeling judged.

Speaker 2:

Ah, okay. So friction on both sides. Traditional devs resistant, domain experts feeling locked out. What was Jenny's big insight then?

Speaker 1:

It was pretty straightforward really. We needed a space that celebrated using AI to build, not one where you had to apologize for it.

Speaker 2:

So shifting the focus.

Speaker 1:

Right. A place where the solution you built mattered more than your coding pedigree, so to speak. Outcome over method.

Speaker 2:

That makes a lot of sense. And she explains vibe coding differently depending on who she talking to, which seems really smart.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, it's quite effective. For non technical people, it's simple. Like LinkedIn for people who build apps with AI help. Very accessible.

Speaker 2:

Okay.

Speaker 1:

But for builders, for the insiders, she frames it differently. More like a platform for AI assisted development that treats AI as a real tool focusing on shipping stuff, you know, applications, not just toys, where results matter more than coding purity.

Speaker 2:

Why is that dual approach so key? Sounds It like more than just marketing spin.

Speaker 1:

Oh, it's definitely more. It tackles the specific mental blocks each group has. Outsiders need empowerment. Hey, AI makes this possible for you. Insiders need validation.

Speaker 1:

Using AI doesn't make you less of a serious developer. It's a powerful tool for getting things done. It bridges that gap instantly by speaking their language.

Speaker 2:

That's really clever communication. But building something new, especially something challenging norms, is never easy. What was Jenny's biggest hurdle starting out?

Speaker 1:

Well, sounds almost like a good problem to have, but it was the sheer volume of opportunities. An explosion of ideas, as she put it.

Speaker 2:

Ah, the paradox of success. Too much interest.

Speaker 1:

Kind of. Content creation ideas, collaboration requests, promotions, people submitting projects. It all just ballooned. She was suddenly juggling way more than one person could handle.

Speaker 2:

Especially while doing her own projects and writing, that must have been intense. Sounds like she needed to learn to prioritize fast.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely. That classic founder challenge. Learning how to say no to good ideas to stay focused on the great ones, the truly essential things. It's tough, but critical.

Speaker 2:

You know, you'd imagine something aimed at opening up creation would get a warm welcome. But Jenny hit some unexpected resistance, didn't she?

Speaker 1:

She really did. And it was specifically around the term vibe coding. She mentioned underestimating how much pushback that label would get, especially from technical folks.

Speaker 2:

Wait, even from developers who are using AI themselves.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, that's the fascinating part. They might be using Copilot or other AI tools daily, but they refused the vibe coder label. It felt like it diminished their identity as a serious coder.

Speaker 2:

But isn't that ironic if AI is becoming ubiquitous?

Speaker 1:

Totally ironic. Jenny points out everyone's doing some form of vibe coding now, but that stigma is real. It seems traditional devs worry about perception, about looking less skilled.

Speaker 2:

Whereas the domain experts

Speaker 1:

They just don't care. They're not invested in protecting a coder identity. They embrace whatever helps them solve their problem. It led Jenny to this insight, the most engaged people in her community. Exactly.

Speaker 1:

People who care more about solving problems than protecting their technical status. She's convinced the future belongs to those who solve problems effectively, regardless of how much AI they leverage.

Speaker 2:

That's a really interesting distinction problem solvers versus status protectors. Still, I can imagine some people hearing vibe coding and thinking, okay, but what about quality? Are these just quick hacks or robust solutions? How does the community address that?

Speaker 1:

That's a fair question. And it's not about dismissing quality. The focus is often on speed to impact for certain problems. But the community aspect, that flywheel effect Jenny talks about, is also meant to address this over time.

Speaker 2:

How so?

Speaker 1:

By having more experienced builders share best practices, patterns for security, for scaling, it's not about abandoning good engineering, but about prioritizing the solution first and then providing the pathways and support to make it robust.

Speaker 2:

Okay, got it. So despite the label resistance, there have been some major wins too. Jenny mentioned her proudest moment came from her Build to Launch Friday series.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, where she featured domain experts showing their projects. And she started seeing these comments flood in things like, I relate so much. I'm a domain expert too. This is exactly what I hoped I could do.

Speaker 2:

Ah, so validation that she'd found her audience.

Speaker 1:

Precisely. That feeling of, I found my people, that sense of belonging that told her she was onto something vital. And another surprising thing,

Speaker 2:

the

Speaker 1:

platform became more than just a showcase, it turned into a confidence booster. People weren't just listing projects, they were using the listing itself as proof. See, my AI assisted work is legitimate, it's worth celebrating. It provided external validation.

Speaker 2:

That's powerful. And she's building tools within the platform too, learning paths, personalized journeys.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. Experimenting in a private section. The aim is to smooth that path from idea to shipped product, especially for domain experts. Turning them into confident builders, not just people with ideas. It could add huge value.

Speaker 2:

So when you boil it down, what makes Vibe Coding Builders stand out from say other tech communities or forums?

Speaker 1:

It really comes down to their core stance. They are one of the very few platforms that encourage AI assisted building instead of apologizing for it. That's the key differentiator.

Speaker 2:

Embracing it, not excusing it.

Speaker 1:

Exactly. While others might still be debating definitions or, you know, coding purity, VCB is all about the outcome. Real world impact, bridging that gap between deep domain knowledge and actually getting a tool built. Solving genuine problems matters more than status.

Speaker 2:

I love that focus outcomes over definitions. It feels very practical. So looking ahead, what's the vision? Where does Jenny see this going in say three, five years?

Speaker 1:

The ambition is clear. For VCB to be the go to place for AI assisted builders. Not just a listing site, but a full blown learning and collaboration hub.

Speaker 2:

A place where domain experts aren't just tinkering, they're really shipping real applications that work.

Speaker 1:

Precisely. And she talks about this flywheel effect which sounds really potent.

Speaker 2:

What does she mean by that?

Speaker 1:

The idea is that as the community grows, established vibe coders start mentoring the newcomers, sharing practical tips, real world patterns for security or scaling, maybe even building shared tools within the community.

Speaker 2:

So it becomes self sustaining. Each success fuels the next.

Speaker 1:

Right. A virtuous cycle where the collective knowledge grows, enabling people to build things we probably can't even imagine yet.

Speaker 2:

And the overarching mission seems pretty democratize software creation, get people focused on solving problems.

Speaker 1:

Yet not arguing about technical purity, as she says. It's about empowering expertise.

Speaker 2:

Creating that space where someone with deep knowledge in, I don't know, marine biology or antique furniture can actually turn that knowledge into a useful tool they're proud

Speaker 1:

of. Exactly. Where success is about the impact you make, not how fancy your code looks. Leveraging that specialized knowledge.

Speaker 2:

And for Jenny, personally, what does success look like? It doesn't sound like it's just about user numbers.

Speaker 1:

No, it seems much more about that sense of community and belonging. Success is when people think of VCB first for AI assisted building, when they truly feel at home

Speaker 2:

crucially, builders stop hiding the fact that they used AI.

Speaker 1:

And start celebrating what they actually built. Owning it, not being ashamed of it.

Speaker 2:

It's always interesting to peek behind the curtain at what powers the builder themselves. What tools or habits does Jenny rely on?

Speaker 1:

Well, she mentions Cursor IDE being indispensable uses it for both coding and writing. Apparently lets her bounce ideas off AI really fluidly. And she has this unique, maybe slightly funny productivity hack. Having her kids around during the day means her evening work time is incredibly focused, like serious time pressure breeds efficiency.

Speaker 2:

I can relate to that pressure pressure cooker effect. Inspirations?

Speaker 1:

Yeah, constant back and forth with AI itself, treating it like a collaborator. Her build to launch newsletter is key too, using community feedback to shape what's next.

Speaker 2:

And people who inspire her.

Speaker 1:

She mentioned Sabrina Romanoff admires her impact, generosity, open mindedness, and also substack writers like Joel Salinas and Caro from Product With Attitude for how they engage their audiences.

Speaker 2:

Interesting mix. And finally, her advice for people just starting out on this path, maybe feeling intimidated.

Speaker 1:

It's very direct, very honest, basically. Just go ahead and try everything. Expect failures. Expect those depressing moments. She says that's totally fine.

Speaker 2:

Embrace the messiness.

Speaker 1:

Pretty much.

Speaker 2:

Yeah.

Speaker 1:

Trust that you'll stumble and struggle, but you will eventually find your unique way out. It's a path you have to forge yourself through doing.

Speaker 2:

That feels like solid advice for almost any endeavor, not just building software. So wrapping this up, what's the big takeaway?

Speaker 1:

Well, this deep dive really highlights the transformative power of AI. It's genuinely democratizing who gets to create software.

Speaker 2:

And platforms like Vibe Coding Builders led by people like Jenny O'Jung are creating that essential space, that home for this new generation of innovators.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. The implication is huge. It forces us to rethink what building even means.

Speaker 2:

Right.

Speaker 1:

And really invites you, the listener, to ask, what could I create if AI handled the heavy lifting?

Speaker 2:

Right. If your specific expertise was the main ingredient needed, what problems could you tackle?

Speaker 1:

It opens up so many possibilities.

Speaker 2:

Definitely. So if this has sparked something for you, check out the community at vibecoding.builders. See what others are making. Maybe share your own project.

Speaker 1:

And absolutely follow Jenny Yu Yang's newsletter, Build to Launch at buildtolaunch.ai for ongoing insights into this space.

Speaker 2:

Because the future here isn't just about the AI getting smarter.

Speaker 1:

It's about the communities empowering everyone to use that AI, turning unique knowledge into real world solutions and basically rewriting the rules as they go.

Speaker 2:

Really fascinating stuff. Thanks for diving deep with us today.

Speaker 1:

My pleasure.

Speaker 2:

We'll catch you on the next one.

Speaker 3:

Before we wrap up, let's give one last nod to our sponsor, Afuera Coffee. Handpicked beans, sustainable farms, eco friendly packaging, the whole deal. And honestly, the coffee tastes incredible. Remember, you get 15% off anything on their site with the code WITAI at afueracoffee.com. And full transparency, we do earn a commission when you use that code, which helps keep this show going.

Speaker 3:

So grab a bag, brew a cup, and enjoy. That's it for this episode of AI on Air powered by whatisthat.ai. If your brain survived this episode, go ahead and subscribe. We drop new episodes every week. Wanna go deeper?

Speaker 3:

Join our community on Substack to get early drops, tool breakdowns, and weird AI stuff the mainstream hasn't caught yet. See you there.