Sign in Subscribe

AI-Shaped Problems - All Things Product Podcast with Teresa Torres & Petra Wille

AI-Shaped Problems - All Things Product Podcast with Teresa Torres & Petra Wille

Listen to this episode on: Spotify | Apple Podcasts

Think you don't have big enough problems for AI to help with? Think again.

In this episode, Petra and Teresa tackle one of the most common blockers people face when starting out with AI: not knowing where to begin. It's not a lack of problems — it's a lack of exposure. Teresa shares the daily habit that took her from feeling behind to using AI every single day, and why starting small (and terrible) is exactly the right approach.

They also dig into the noise problem: why you don't need MCP servers, plugins, or the latest AI app to get real value, and how focusing on a specific task is the fastest path to learning what AI is actually good at.

If you've been waiting for the "right" moment to start, this episode is your nudge.

One of the most common things Petra hears from her coaching clients: "I don't have big enough problems to use AI for." Teresa's take? That's not the problem. The real blocker is that you don't know what AI is good at until you start using it — and you can't start using it well until you know what it's good at.

In this episode, Petra and Teresa share how to break out of that loop.

What you'll hear:

  • The daily habit Teresa used to go from feeling behind to using AI confidently every day
  • Why starting with terrible results is actually the point
  • How to filter out the noise (MCP servers, plugins, new apps) and stay focused on what matters
  • Why finding community — whether that's show-and-tell sessions, YouTube, or local meetups — accelerates learning faster than any tool
  • A simple first prompt for anyone who doesn't know where to start

Key takeaway:

If you have a to-do list, you have problems AI can help with. Start with one. Give it 15 minutes. It'll probably be bad — and that's exactly right.

Timestamps

00:00 Intro — are people's problems too small for AI?
02:15 Teresa's daily habit: test one to-do item with AI every day
06:40 The "feeling behind" problem — and why everyone feels that way
09:00 Petra's time-boxing approach vs. Teresa's task-first approach
11:30 Blog posts and show-and-tell: how community builds momentum
15:45 You don't need MCP servers or Claude Code to get started
19:10 Bias toward action: just type "I have to do this — how can you help?"
22:00 Petra's MidJourney story — iterating from terrible to good
23:30 Wrap-up: 15 minutes a day, just play

Resources & Links:

Mentioned in this episode:

Join the Conversation:

Have thoughts on this episode? Leave a comment below.

Full Transcript

Full transcripts are only available for paid subscribers.

Read next