The learning system beats the agentic swarm

I’ve been heavily focused on AI usage in recent years. Since the early days of AI, I have been seduced by the idea of a single, deep collaborator. Not just an assistant, but an engaged collaborator.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of an agentic swarm working tirelessly through the night while I sleep. I’ve built and re-built variations of that process and dark factories multiple times. If I had a pound for every AI Harness iteration I’d created… I’d have a tenner.

But so far I’ve found that approach is lacking. Systems break down on brittle rules - deep complexity creeps in over time. It shouldn’t be surprising - common sense is almost impossible to codify.

In contrast, creating a learning system is beautifully simple. Save info > Check info. Deeper, long-term context can be as simple as a markdown file.

Codifying a learning system is easy - but incredibly powerful. It can become a self-improving system through its own learning.

Providing a system with the ability to develop and evolve is much more powerful than providing features. The system moulds itself around the needs of each individual user - it literally becomes specifically created for them.

Providing a system with the ability to develop and evolve is much more powerful than providing features.

Beyond code generation, people are often advised to start with automations and daily updates. I always think this is poor advice. Start talking to a chat agent, let it build a picture of you and how you work. Collaborate on how it could best help you build a system around you.

AI is the most extraordinary pattern matching machine in history. Let it see the patterns you can’t, let it see past your blind spots and biases. Build your goals with AI and let it make sense of your habits. Over time, it can help you build new habits.

My agentic collaborator knows I can focus too heavily on process - I am drawn to the abstract, processes, strategy, architecture and planning. I’ve got £10 to prove it.

Hence this post. I’m on a fascinating journey with AI and I’d love to share it.