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The AI Renaissance: How AI Transformed My Writing, Coding, and Learning

Paul Duvall

• 7 min read
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In 2023, AI didn’t just become another tool – it became my indispensable partner. Suddenly, tasks that once felt like hurdles became collaborative opportunities, sparking a renewed sense of creativity and efficiency in my daily life. Over the past 20 months, tools like ChatGPT, Windsurf, and other AI-driven platforms completely reshaped my approach to writing, coding, learning, and even parenting. It's not an exaggeration to say that AI has initiated a personal renaissance, allowing me to tackle tasks with a fresh perspective and enhanced efficiency.

For years, as co-founder and CTO of Stelligent, some of my work centered around MLOps (implementing best practices for managing machine learning workflows). However, it wasn’t until 2023 that AI tools became integral to my daily routine. This shift has not only reshaped my professional workflows, boosting productivity, but has also influenced how I support my family and explore new creative avenues. From refining written communication to reigniting my passion for coding and revolutionizing how I approach learning, AI’s role in my life is not just additive—it's truly essential.

Enhancing Productivity Through Writing Assistance

AI has been a game-changer in how I approach written communication, transforming tedious tasks into more efficient and creative processes.

Better Trello Cards & GitHub Issues

Project management has never been clearer. By leveraging the power of ChatGPT, I’ve transitioned to creating actionable user stories for Trello cards and GitHub issues. For example, instead of vague issue descriptions, I now craft user stories like, “As a [customer role], I need a rewritten issue description with specific action items and measurable outcomes so that I can execute efficiently and track progress.” This approach enhances clarity, facilitates collaboration, and ensures that every task has a clear purpose and definition of done, empowering both team members and my future self to take focused action and deliver value incrementally.

Email Refinement

Drafting emails used to be a time-consuming chore. Now, I quickly jot down my rough ideas, then let AI do the heavy lifting. By prompting, "Refine this email for clarity, professionalism, and conciseness," I transform my initial thoughts into polished, professional messages ready to send. This not only saves me considerable time but allows me to focus on more strategic work, knowing my communications are always clear and effective.

Blogging and Newsletter Creation

My approach to content creation now involves a two-step process. I still draft complete initial versions myself to ensure my voice is reflected in the content. Then, I invite ChatGPT to serve as an expert editor. For example, by using a prompt like “Act as a professional editor. Please improve the clarity, structure, and tone of this blog post," it transforms my draft into a more compelling piece. AI excels at identifying areas where my points might lack clarity or when my tone could be more engaging, resulting in pieces that resonate more effectively with my audience.

AI as a Thought Partner

AI's ability to function as a thought partner has been one of the most surprising and valuable applications I've found.

Brainstorming and Idea Validation

I regularly consult ChatGPT to challenge assumptions and test different perspectives. When working through a particularly sticky problem, I might use a prompt like, “Challenge my assumptions about [specific problem] and suggest three alternative approaches.” This interaction prompts me to consider a full range of possibilities, ensuring my ideas are more robust and well-rounded than before.

Data-Driven Insights

When preparing presentations or making complex decisions, I lean heavily on AI to quickly surface relevant data, analyze trends, and provide actionable recommendations. For instance, I might upload some information and ask, "Summarize these data points and identify key trends that can inform my decision regarding [specific situation]." This allows me to quickly identify and act on key insights, enabling more confident decision-making.

Iterative Prompt Refinement

Working effectively with AI means mastering the art of prompt refinement. It's rarely perfect on the first try. I’ve experimented with rewording and giving more context to get better results. For example, I've refined my prompt, "Summarize this text," by adding "Summarize this text in 150 words, focusing on actionable insights relevant to AWS infrastructure" to get much more relevant information. Over time, I’ve built a repertoire of prompts, allowing me to tailor AI’s feedback based on the task at hand. For instance, prompting ChatGPT to “Act as an AWS solutions architect” yields much more specific and practical advice when exploring new AWS services.

Summary of my Favorite Prompts 

  • “Act as a Product Owner and rewrite this task description to include clearly defined action items and measurable outcomes.”
  • “Refine this email for clarity, professionalism, and conciseness."
  • “Act as a professional editor. Please improve the clarity, structure, and tone of this blog post."
  • “Challenge my assumptions about [specific problem] and suggest three alternative approaches.”
  • "Summarize these data points and identify key trends that can inform my decision regarding [specific situation]."
  • "Summarize this text in 150 words, focusing on actionable insights relevant to AWS"

Supporting My Kids' Learning

While concerns about academic integrity are legitimate, I’ve found AI to be an exceptional educational tool when used with responsibility and care, especially when combined with other learning techniques like spaced repetition.

Custom Practice Tests

I use ChatGPT to create tailored practice questions based on my kids' study guides, leveraging the power of active recall—a scientifically proven learning method that strengthens memory by actively retrieving information. For example, if my child is reviewing notes on a specific historical event, I might use a prompt like, "Generate ten multiple-choice questions based on the attached notes, focusing on key dates, names, and events." This approach not only reinforces their understanding but also engages them in a more interactive and effective study process.

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I've personally applied this method in preparing for my recent AWS AI certification, crafting customized practice tests to target key concepts and deepen my mastery of the material. It’s a versatile technique that works across different subjects and ages, whether for school exams or professional certifications.

Detailed Answer Feedback

After my children complete these practice tests, I upload their answers, and ChatGPT acts as a virtual tutor, explaining why each response is correct or incorrect, pinpointing areas for improvement. This approach has been particularly helpful for math and science topics, where detailed explanations are crucial. I act as the final arbiter, ensuring the guidance aligns with the learning objectives and is delivered in a constructive and appropriate manner. This process ensures the AI is used to facilitate learning and not replace it. I'm also trying to be proactive and have begun to explore tools like Khanmigo which add guardrails to ensure responsible AI usage.

Coding with AI

AI has rekindled my passion for coding and has changed my approach to building applications.

AI-Driven Code Development

Throughout my career as a CTO, founder, and author, I’ve consistently coded, though my development work over the past decade has been more sporadic and less of a daily practice—until the emergence of generative AI.

Leveraging the power of ChatGPT, I used prompts like, "Refactor this Python function to improve performance and readability, focusing on optimizing resource usage in AWS." AI not only helped me optimize and expand the project’s functionality but also modernized it by seamlessly integrating AWS services like Lambda, EventBridge, and CloudWatch—tools I’ve worked with extensively over the years. This hands-on engagement made the project not only more powerful but also a much more enjoyable and immersive experience, reigniting my passion for building and problem-solving through code.

Leveraging Windsurf and Other Tools

Over the past year, I’ve experimented with several AI-driven IDEs to extend the capabilities of ChatGPT, including Amazon CodeWhisperer/Q Developer and Cursor. While I initially found some of these tools lacking key features, my perspective changed in November 2024 when I discovered Codeium’s Windsurf.

Windsurf was transformative, offering a unique "point of use" capability that sets it apart—it doesn’t just suggest improvements or edits; it can execute recommendations directly within the IDE on your code, rather than requiring a separate process or working only on isolated snippets. This seamless integration supercharged my development process, enabling me to build applications in days that previously would have taken weeks or even months.

The speed and efficiency this tool provides are genuinely game-changing. Given the rapid advancements in AI-driven development environments, I’m excited to see even more sophisticated and integrated tools emerging in the near future.

Summary of my Favorite Prompts for Coding:

  • “Refactor this Python function to improve performance and readability, focusing on optimizing resource usage in AWS.”
  • "Generate CloudFormation templates for deploying [AWS service], ensuring security best practices are included."
  • "Create a GitHub Actions workflow that builds and deploys the application on every commit. Include steps for formatting checks, static analysis (excluding third-party libraries), and secrets scanning."

My AI-driven coding efforts span personal finance tools, social media schedulers, real-time advisors, and automated GitHub issue code generation, showcasing AI’s ability to enhance creativity and efficiency across diverse applications.

Other Tools for Everyday Life

Beyond ChatGPT, I’ve started using NotebookLM to organize and synthesize large amounts of information. Its ability to quickly summarize, and identify key insights has been helpful in extracting value from my existing materials. Though I'm still experimenting with NotebookLM, its seamless integration with Google Docs and other tools suggests it will become increasingly important for quickly accessing and revisiting key insights.

Emerging Innovations and the Future of AI

In December of 2024, Google AI Studio introduced Gemini 2.0 Flash Experimental, offering exciting multimodal capabilities, including native image and audio generation, and real-time tool integration. These advancements available through the Gemini API in Google AI Studio and Vertex AI, promise much more dynamic, interactive AI-driven applications. 

During my time at AWS, I had the opportunity to use Bedrock and briefly experiment with CodeWhisperer/Q Developer. While these tools initially trailed behind emerging alternatives, AWS’s history of innovation makes improvements very likely in the near future, including Amazon Nova announced at re:Invent 2024. This rapid pace of innovation in AI is exciting to witness, and will no doubt change the tools we use, and how we build them.

Reflecting on AI's Impact

Daily use of AI has not only saved me time but has also fueled a sense of renewed creativity and innovation. AI has brought me back to daily coding, improved my writing, and provided new avenues to enhance my children's learning. Whether serving as a thought partner, productivity enhancer, or educational aid, AI has become indispensable.

If you haven't already embraced AI in your own life, consider starting small. Experiment with a single prompt or use case, and see what happens. AI has the power to transform how we work, learn, and create. By engaging thoughtfully, you can unlock new efficiencies, gain fresh perspectives, and perhaps most importantly, carve out more time to focus on what truly matters.