When you meet Michael Ahn, you quickly realize you’re talking to a storyteller at heart. His career has spanned journalism, film, video games, Fortune 500 branding—and now, AI agents. At every step, the thread that ties it all together is his passion for helping people tell better stories.
In this week’s Prompted: Builder Stories, Michael shares how he brings a creative writer’s mindset into the world of agent building, and why he believes the next wave of builders won’t come from traditional tech backgrounds at all—they’ll come from storytellers.
Writing and Building: The Same Creative Process
Michael doesn’t see agent building as a purely technical exercise. For him, it feels a lot like writing:
“When you write, you write a first draft. It's usually really bad, but there’s some element of it that you like or you surprise yourself ... And that's like creating an agent.”
That willingness to draft, revise, and refine is what gives his agents depth and usefulness. Instead of chasing perfection, Michael embraces iteration—the same way a writer shapes a rough draft into a story worth telling.
AI as the “Smart but Slightly Sociopathic Intern”
One of Michael’s favorite analogies perfectly captures how he sees AI:
“AI is like a really smart but slightly sociopathic intern. You say, hey, write me the first draft of this story. And it'll do it ... but you’ll look at it and think, this is okay ... this is terrible. I could do better than this.”
For Michael, this isn’t a weakness—it’s the point. Agents aren’t supposed to do the whole job for you. They’re supposed to get you started, spark new ideas, and give you a leg up.
Making the User the Protagonist
Whether he’s designing a book recommender, a social justice research tool, or an animal fostering agent, Michael’s goal is always the same: to make the user the hero of the story. His agents are designed to surprise people with fresh insights, not to hand them polished, final answers.
That philosophy is why his work resonates so strongly. It’s not about replacing creativity. It’s about amplifying it.
The Future of Agent Building Is Wide Open
Michael is adamant that you don’t need to be technical to build something meaningful:
“If you could speak, you could probably create an agent. I know this sounds like a sales pitch, but it’s just a fact.”
For him, life experience, empathy, and curiosity matter more than code. And as he reminds us, no one is too late to get started:
“Anyone who feels like they've aged out or they can't do it—I think that's 100% wrong. They can do it.”
Why Michael’s Story Matters
Michael Ahn’s journey proves that AI isn’t just for engineers. It’s for teachers, writers, creatives, and problem solvers of all kinds. If you’ve ever felt like AI was happening to you instead of something you could shape yourself, his story is your invitation to start building.
