Pragmatic AI with Matt Stauffer

The Pragmatic AI Podcast is sponsored by Tighten.  T-I-G-H-T-E-N. We will take your AI ideas, prototypes or even vibe-coded apps, and we'll take them to production. Scalable and secure. Check us out at tighten.com.

In this episode, Matt Stauffer talks with AI strategist Blessing Richardson about how businesses can use AI in practical, responsible ways. They explore the importance of data literacy, building personal AI tools, and creating a culture of experimentation inside organizations. The conversation also looks at the deeper questions: how AI is changing the way we work, how it affects us as humans, and what the future of AI in business might look like.

• Matt Stauffer on Twitter 
• Tighten Website 
• Blessing’s Blog 
• Blessing on LinkedIn 
• Blessing on Threads 
• Sayla 
• Coda

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Editing and transcription sponsored by Tighten.

The Pragmatic AI Podcast is sponsored by Tighten.  T-I-G-H-T-E-N. We will take your AI ideas, prototypes or even vibe-coded apps, and we'll take them to production. Scalable and secure. Check us out at tighten.com.

In this episode of Pragmatic AI, Matt Stauffer and Jordan Keller discuss how AI is reshaping writing, content creation, and the people who make their living with words.

They unpack Jordan’s wide-ranging career, the pressure writers are feeling as AI floods the internet with passable content, and why taste and discernment matter more than ever. They explore where AI can genuinely help, especially in research and synthesis, and where it still falls short in originality and creative depth.

The conversation also touches on decentralization, ownership, and what it means to build a voice in a world where anyone can generate text in seconds.

• Matt Stauffer on Twitter 
• Tighten Website 
• Jordan Keller on Bluesky
• Jordan Keller Website 

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Editing and transcription sponsored by Tighten.

The Pragmatic AI Podcast is sponsored by Tighten.  T-I-G-H-T-E-N. We will take your AI ideas, prototypes or even vibe-coded apps, and we'll take them to production. Scalable and secure. Check us out at tighten.com.

In this episode of Pragmatic AI, Matt Stauffer interviews Jeffrey Way, the creator of Laracasts, to talk about what AI is really doing to developer education. They explore how AI is changing the landscape of developer education, the challenges it presents, and the need for educational platforms to adapt. Jeffrey shares the tension many educators feel right now: excitement about what AI makes possible, mixed with the uncertainty of what it replaces. The conversation moves beyond developers, exploring how AI changes the way non-technical people learn, build, and participate in the software world.

• Matt Stauffer on Twitter
• Tighten Website 
• Jeffrey Way on Twitter 
• Laracasts 
• MIT Technology Review - AI’s Energy Footprint 
• Her Movie 

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Editing and transcription sponsored by Tighten.

The Pragmatic AI Podcast is sponsored by Tighten.  T-I-G-H-T-E-N. We will take your AI ideas, prototypes or even vibe-coded apps, and we'll take them to production. Scalable and secure. Check us out at tighten.com.

In this episode, Matt Stauffer sits down with Adam Wathan, creator of Tailwind CSS, to talk about the very real impact AI is having on product companies, open source communities, and the broader tech landscape. Adam shares how AI has affected Tailwind’s business, including revenue shifts and the difficult decision to make layoffs.

They discuss the emotional weight of leading through change, the search for new opportunities in an AI-shaped world, and what it means for developer education moving forward. Adam emphasizes that while AI is reshaping how we build, developers must adapt to AI tools while maintaining the human element of software development.

• Matt Stauffer on Twitter 
• Tighten Website 
• Adam Wathan on Twitter 
• Tailwind CSS 
• Adam’s Podcast Episode Re: Layoffs 
• Buy Back Your Time Book 

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Editing and transcription sponsored by Tighten.

The Pragmatic AI Podcast is sponsored by Tighten.  T-I-G-H-T-E-N. We will take your AI ideas, prototypes or even vibe-coded apps, and we'll take them to production. Scalable and secure. Check us out at tighten.com.

In this episode of Pragmatic AI, host Matt Stauffer interviews Aaron Francis, a Laravel developer and co-founder of Try Hard Studios. They discuss Aaron's journey from being a software developer to an educator, the impact of AI on the development landscape, and the importance of adapting to new technologies. Aaron shares his insights on the challenges and opportunities presented by AI, the shift in developer education, and his current ventures, including faster.dev, which focuses on teaching engineers how to use AI effectively. The conversation also touches on the quality of code produced by AI and the importance of maintaining standards in software development.

• Matt Stauffer on Twitter
• Tighten Website
• Aaron Francis on Twitter
• Aaron Francis Website 
• Try Hard Studios
• Faster.dev 
• Mostly Technical Podcast

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Editing and transcription sponsored by Tighten.

AI is *everywhere*, like it or not. Everyone's either hating or hyping. But where do you find the middle?

New podcast alert! First episode drops 2/10/26. Short, practical interviews w/builders, founders, & researchers using & studying real-world AI.