Only the International Secret Agents Will Survive!
talking about AI without "talking about AI"
AI and the accompanying conversations around it are all the rage right now.
I can almost hear the collective “Oh no, here we go…”
Let’s take a deep breath- it’s not going to be like that tonight.
Fear Not
Most of the discourse and content surrounding AI is operating on a spectrum from “look how cool and smart I am and you should tell me that” to “if AI isn’t brushing your teeth and calling your mother for you by now, you’re DONE FOR!”
This isn’t that.
Tipping My Hat to the Outliers
Sure, I’m not going to gaslight people (never did have ex accuse me of that either, that’s a flex).
There certainly are outliers in the AI age.
People running Polymarket bots, bros with Mac mini’s ripping OpenClaw to outsource every task imaginable, vibe coders shipping apps overnight.
Frankly, it’s awesome.
But if you have just as much a chance at decoding ancient hieroglyphics as you do understanding that last blurb, it’s not a sign to panic.
The Only AI Skill You Really Need
I’ll spare you the cute run-up this time out.
The bedrock, foundational skill for the AI age? Simple.
It’s agency.
Agency, in its literal definition, is defined as the capacity to act intentionally and influence outcomes rather than passively reacting to circumstances.
Kinda beautiful tbh.
What’s even better?
Everybody has it in them.
Becoming an International Secret Agent
No, I’m not talking about the male urge to actually do it, though we love our 007 cosplay when we’re dressed well and committing minor traffic violations on a sunny Friday afternoon.
Plus, as any veteran Bond fan knows- an agent can be female (and it’s no exaggeration a lot of them tend to be more ruthless and more effective)
This article is for everybody.
So, how does this actually get accomplished?
Let’s get some qualifiers out of the way before we delve deeper.
First off, you don’t have to be the smartest or most technically adept to win in the AI age (this is terrific news for yours truly).
The winners are the ones who, no matter what hand they’ve been dealt in the world of natural skills and abilities, adopt the tools and put them to use.
The Mission
Notice I didn’t say attach emotionality to these tools- they’re neither deities or Skynet-esque enemies.
Rather, the ones who win are the ones who see this new age for what it is, in a matter-of-fact manner.
AI is cutting the velvet ropes in our world and lighting permission structures on fire.
There are fewer and fewer gatekeepers by the day.
I mean, somebody could run an AI scraper to dig up every article about AI, decide they love this one, and it does 100K views.
Completely organic growth, independent of the bouncer at the door.
Sure, the other side of this can be terrifying in a way.
When we eliminate the “boogeyman” of the permission structure, we also abdicate that very structure of blame and misplaced responsibility.
After the initial shudders of anxiety at this realization subside, the calming breeze of self-sufficiency usually follows right after.
Trust me on that one.
The mission is to use these tools to your advantage to reach whatever it is you’re reaching for quicker.
It’s as simple as that.
“Okay, but what do I actually do”
Got you.
Think of the AI age and becoming proficient in it as simply answering this question:
What can this help me do faster, better, or more freely?
This would be the part where I plug in like, 20 examples of things AI can do for you.
That’s A. boring content and B. obnoxiously trying to hold the reader’s hand.
Don’t care for either of those things over here.
Moving along, let’s still use this Substack as an example.
The last thing I’d do is copy and paste an article I had AI write for me.
Not only would it be complete slop, but it would also be instantly detectable to anyone with a modicum of taste (destroying my credibility in the process).
This is a perfect example of why agency in the AI age is actually awesome.
The very things you can’t automate- taste, proclivities, an eye for trends or topics, viewpoints- increase in value exponentially.
Do I have Claude or ChatGPT write my articles?
Hell no.
Do I ask them “hey, what are the ten things I gush about the most and the ten things I bitch about the most and what are 20 or 30 different article topics that can spawn from this?”
Absolutely.
Did I use it to code my new home page layout?
(Please tell me you noticed…)
Yes.
Did I create a “Substack system” based on my burst-executor work style, conjoined with my “nighttime creative” archetype, as determined by cross-referencing my Oura Ring sleep stats?
Yeah, I did that too.
Do I copy and paste drafts for feedback, so I can find typos or if I’m being hypocritical, like as if I said “I’m not gonna hold the reader’s hand because that’s obnoxious” and then realize I gave like 5 AI frameworks to use anyway?
Yes.
While I’m completely violating my own protocols, I’ll throw in this unrelated tidbit- you can also use AI to assess a photo of your limb lengths and muscle insertions to find the best exercises for you to do in the gym.
Effective like clockwork.
Wrapping Up at the M16 Building
AI isn’t some modern age monster here to tear down the walls of life as you know it.
It’s an aid that can amplify the gifts you have, the human ingenuity that will only become more invaluable as we go on.
That’s a massive whitepill.
Think about it- you get acquainted with AI, and you’ve got machines at the ready, streamlining your workflows, amplifying your voice and your skills, all the while expediting the BS you don’t want to deal with so you don’t waste more time on it.
That’s a pretty powerful feeling.
You might start convincing yourself you’re some sort of futuristic international super spy or something.
Love always,
John Abbate
2.20.2026
PS: for those of you old enough to remember- doesn’t this make you just want to run around Silo with dual Moonraker lasers? What a shame this game was pre-online FPS era.