A few days back I told you this community is now Augmented Intelligence.
Today I want to share exactly what that means.
This took 3 days, even with AI. But it’s worth it.
We’re articulating the culture we’re creating and this is a key step.
I want these to be so true I can defend them under pressure, even without notes.
Two instincts show up with AI: shrink what you do, or expand what you can do and who you can be.
We choose expansion.
We don’t use AI to opt out of the work we dislike; we use it to see more, think deeper, build better.
I’ve codified this into 12 principles.
Here they are.
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The Augmenter's Code
#1: "I use AI to do more, not less."
AI can help you do less while accomplishing more. When AI gives everyone this efficiency gain, the question becomes: what do you do with it? Pocket the savings or reinvest for impact? Augmenters reinvest to fuel even more impact.
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#2: "I want to be better through AI, not just have better AI."
Better models arrive. Everyone gets them, and with it, expectations rise. But models shouldn't do your thinking for you. The edge is becoming a better human through AI, not waiting for AI to eliminate the need.
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#3: "I use AI as a Mirror, not an Oracle."
We use AI as a mirror, not a fortune teller. A mirror shows you how you think so you can decide. An oracle tells you what to think so you don’t have to. Augmenters choose the mirror to see ourselves clearly, then decide.
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#4: "I don't prompt AI. I let AI prompt me."
Prompt engineering: spending 30 minutes crafting the perfect input. Human engineering: AI questions you, gets what it needs, and challenges your BS along the way. One optimizes prompts. The other optimizes you. We do the latter.
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#5: "I use AI as a starting point, not the final answer."
People expect AI to hand them finished products. That's how we get AI slop. AI provides a good starting point. But excellence comes from the work you do after - the refining, challenging, iterating.
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#6: "I seek my blind spots by having the AI challenge me."
Instead of affirming our beliefs, Augmenters use AI to detect our limiting beliefs. To ask the questions we couldn’t ask ourselves, and surface what we need to see but don’t.
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#7: "I use AI to help me think, not think for me."
Most people use AI to get answers. But Augmenters use AI to get questions, not just answers. Instead of asking AI for knowledge, we generate our own insights through dialogue with AI.
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#8: "I don't need to 'master' AI. I just need to work with it."
Treating AI as a partner shifts safety from control to coherence. We integrate it into how we think and build, favoring systems that sharpen judgment and respect choice. Safety through alignment, not domination.
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#9: "I choose substance, not hype."
Impressive demos are easy. Durable results are rare. We pick approaches that work the same on day 30 as day 1, with clear limits and honest costs. If it doesn’t last, we pass.
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#10: "I value quality AI use cases over quantity."
Most AI tools are jack of all trades, master of none. We'd rather have ten specialized tools each excelling in one domain than one "all-in-one" doing everything with mediocrity.
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#11: "I focus on what's practical with AI right now, not endless potential."
Everyone's eyes are on the horizon. That means they miss what's here and now. Augmenters build with what actually works today, not tomorrow's maybes.
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#12: "I develop capability over time, not dependency."
Tools can come and go, but capability stays. Instead of chasing hacks, Augmenters invest in skills that endure. We use AI to expand what we can do, who we can be. With practice, our judgment and synthesis sharpen.
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If this rings true, you’re an Augmenter.
Reply with the number that hit hardest (#1–#12).
FELIX