Becoming AI-Native Without a Technical Background
How to become AI-native without a technical background. The mental models and AI workflows I use to ship real products with no coding degree.
You no longer need a degree to be considered AI-native.
Take it from me. I went to school and obtained a business degree. The most coding I did was an intro to Python course (which I struggled to pass) and some SQL & R for my statistics and data analytics classes. And for a while, I let this limit me.
But here's what I came to realize: becoming AI-native without a technical background is less about learning to code and more about applying the right mental models to problems while using AI as your force multiplier.
Where AI shows up in my work
Today, I use AI agents in almost every part of my work:
- Market research
- Idea generation
- Startup pitch decks
- Creating dev tickets and running sprints
- Prototypes
- Design briefs
- Internal tooling
- Financial modelling
I've even stepped into the development realm and committed code to the GitHub repo of an active product with real users. All of this with no formal degree or training in software engineering.
Why this blog exists
And I get it. Starting off is INTIMIDATING. It's so easy to post AI slop on the internet that everyone seems like an AI expert nowadays, and it's hard to know where to fix your gaze. This is a space where I tell you the things that have been tried, tested and proven.
My goal with this blog is to take you through the mental models and step-by-step AI workflows I use in my career and personal projects, where I work in lean, AI-native teams. A lot of these are things I learned myself from countless blogs, YouTube videos and trial & error. Some are things I learned from working with some of the most capable AI operators I have ever met.
Whether you want to start your own AI-native business or you want AI to be a force multiplier at work, this will change the way you work.
Disclaimer: if you work in a setting with a lot of guard rails & yellow-tape around AI use, this probably isn't the right place for you. But if you're ready to move fast & experiment in a setting where the sky is the limit, you've found the perfect place.
For more context on my core beliefs on AI, read the Manifesto.