Welcome, AI Explorers

🧠 TL;DR - This Day in AI

Humans vs AI in a live coding contest raises a simple question: when a clock is running, who ships better work. Inside: ten fast Nano Banana image recipes, GPT 5 tips that actually help, a few sharp tools, quick news you will care about, simple ways to earn, and a one line question for you.

In today’s AI Spotlight :

• 🎟️ Partner of the day: Pioneer by Fin

• 🔍 On my radar

• 🛠️ Hands on AI

• 🧰 AI ToolsBox Spotlight

• ⚡ Prompt Power

• 🗞️ Quick Bytes

• ✉️ Ending note

  Read time: 4 minutes

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🤖 Seeing working agents , not slides

 Why register now?

• Hear what actually moved metrics

• Steal repeatable ideas you can try next week

Shape the future of AI customer service at Pioneer

Pioneer is a summit for the most forward-thinking leaders in AI customer service—a gathering place to connect, learn, and inspire one another, and to explore the latest opportunities and challenges transforming service with AI Agents.

At Pioneer, you’ll hear from leaders at companies like Anthropic, [solidcore], Rocket Money, and more about how teams customize, test, and continuously improve Fin across every channel. The minds and builders behind Fin will also be on hand to demonstrate the growing capabilities of our #1 AI Agent.

See how today’s service leaders are cultivating smarter support systems, and why the future of customer service will never be the same.

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On my radar

AI FUTURE

Humans vs AI, a live coding face off

Can a model beat a team of pros when the timer is running

A public contest where people and model assisted teams ship code under time pressure is moving from talk to test. The format forces choices in design, tests, and team handoffs between person and assistant. The real skill may be directing intelligence rather than typing every line. That is why this matters.

Snapshot

• Humans still win more often today, but models are closing gaps on routine tasks

• Expect clean room rules and full logs so judges can see what was human and what was model

• The next twist is mixed teams, where the best player is the one who frames goals, names edge cases, and stops wrong turns

What is the underlying point
If the job becomes directing intelligence, the winner is the person who is clear, tests well, and manages risk. That is a shift in what we call talent.

Hands on AI

Nano Banana: ten fast use cases you can try today

Nano Banana is a free image tool from Google Gemini for text to image and a simple photo editor. Keep prompts short, add style words at the end, and use plain backgrounds for edits.

1) Product photo on white
Upload → Remove background → Add white background → Shadow → Export
Mini prompt: ceramic coffee mug on clean white table, soft studio light

2) Social post header
Text to Image → Landscape → Prompt → Add brand color block → Title text
Mini prompt: minimal desk scene with notebook and pen, bright daylight

3) YouTube thumbnail base
Text to Image → Bold color background → Cutout subject in editor → Big text
Mini prompt: gradient background with simple pattern, high contrast, empty center

4) App icon idea
Square canvas → Prompt → Export SVG or PNG
Mini prompt: flat icon of friendly owl, clear outline, vector look

5) Blog hero image
16:9 → Wide scene → Light vignette
Mini prompt: city skyline at sunrise, warm light, calm mood

6) Slides visual
16:9 → Simple shape graphic → Export transparent PNG
Mini prompt: abstract circles and lines, clean geometry, minimal

7) Portrait background swap
Upload headshot → Remove background → Add blurred office → Export
Mini prompt: soft bokeh office, natural light, neutral colors

8) Ad creative variations
Save a base prompt → Duplicate and change one element only → Export three
Mini prompt: running shoes on reflective floor, dynamic angle, motion blur

9) Infographic icons
Generate five icons with same style words and line weight
Mini prompt: set of simple line icons for time, cost, quality, risk, scope

10) Storyboard frames
Make a 3 by 2 grid → Generate six frames → Label each → Export
Mini prompt: six frames of user opens app, taps button, sees result, consistent character

Pro tips

• Reuse your best three style words

• Keep faces natural

• When stuck, reduce detail words

AI Toolbox Spotlight

Trending AI tools

• 🧭 Kuse: a visual research board where you drop notes, images, and links, then ask across everything to get summaries with citations.

• 🧸 Gizmo: AI quizzes which makes learning easy

• 🎙️ Podzy: turn any newsletter into a podcast into short clips and highlights with salt and pepper edits ready for social.

  POLL: Which would you try first this week? Click your choice below

  Nano Banana image edits Google “Vids” quick video Claude agent in Chrome

  Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

Power Prompt

Trending AI tools

GPT 5 tips and tricks that work

A. The three step directive
 Task in one line → Guardrails as rules → Format you want back

Paste ready template (use as is)

You are an expert assistant for <topic>.

Task: Solve <one narrow job>.

Guardrails: Use plain English, avoid jargon, cite numbers if used, keep to <N> bullets.

Format: Return JSON with keys { "summary": "", "steps": [], "pitfalls": [] }.

Self check: Before final, list 3 checks you applied in one line each.

B. Chain of checks
Ask for two passes: write, then verify
Add: Now re read your answer. Mark weak claims with [CHECK] and provide a source or remove it.

C. Time box for speed
Add: Stop at ten minutes. If not done, output what you have and list next steps.

D. Counter prompt
Add: Give the strongest counterpoint in one short paragraph, then refine your answer in two new bullets.

E. Evidence first mode
Add: Start with a numbered list of sources with one line on why each is strong. Only then write the answer.

Quick Bytes

Other Trending news

• Google Vids opens up to everyone, so expect a flood of quick explainers made from docs and slides

• Nano Banana keeps rising, thanks to fast edits and no fuss photo fixes

• IBM and AMD form a quantum plus AI center to chase new hardware and algorithms

• YouTube creators report quiet AI tweaks on shorts, so watch your masters and keep copies

Closing Remark

We are all learning to direct intelligence. What part of your day will you hand over first, and what will you keep as your own craft

Hit reply and tell me your honest take—I’ll feature the best responses in next week’s edition.

Until next time, stay curious and keep exploring!

Srini

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