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Hey Product Fans!

Welcome to this week’s 🌮 Product Tapas your go-to for the tastiest bites from the world of Product and Tech.

If you’ve been forwarded this or just stumbled upon it, you’re in for a treat. For the best reading experience, check out the web version and sign up for future editions here.

What’s on the menu this week? 🧑‍🍳

📰 Not Boring – The UK AI sector is now worth $230B, making it Europe’s largest AI market, with startups raising $1.03B in Q1 2025. Meanwhile, A16z is seeking a record $20B for US AI startups, and Google is rolling out automation flows and podcast-style summaries in Workspace. Plus, Google are on fire, from powering Reddit’s conversational search tool, to topping the charts and launching a new vibecoding tool Firebase Studio. Oh, and Artisan, the “stop hiring humans” AI startup, just raised $25M—ironically, they’re still hiring humans.

⌚️ Productivity Tapas – This week’s tools include two interesting examples for extracting structured data, and natural language SQL and Python analytics. Plus how to get full encrypted generative AI and a way to build a self-organising knowledge base.

🍔 Blog Bites – John Cutler explores how to build shared understanding at scale, Peter Ramsay is back with yet more clever UX patterns that delight users, and Margaret Mitchell and others discuss why handing full control to AI agents could be a huge mistake. As ever, essential reads for product teams.

🎙️ Pod Shots – This week’s featured podcast is a deep dive with Stephen Chau, co-founder of Cove and the mastermind behind Uber Eats’ $25B rise. He shares insights on building generative UIs, creating AI-powered apps, and the skills product managers need to thrive in the AI era.

Plenty to get stuck into - off we go! 🚀

📰 Not boring

• Tech Nation UK AI report is out. The UK AI sector is worth $230B, making it the largest AI market in Europe, AI startups raised $1.03B in Q1 2025, the strongest first quarter in 3 years, 76% of UK tech leaders say AI is driving their business growth

• A16z is seeking $20B to put toward US AI startups; more than VCs have raised in total this year and the largest fund in the company’s history

• In Google related news

  • Google Workspace gets automation flows and podcast-style summaries. More impressive stuff here

  • Gemini helps decode weather, maps, and other real-world trends across different models (e.g. how climate change impacts public health etc.).

  • Google announces new vibecoding tool Firebase Studio

  • Plus Reddit’s conversational AI search tool leverages Google Gemini

• And sort of related, here’s a Hacker News thread on why search engines are still required given how LLMs still get a lot of very important things wrong

• New LLM review suggests Gemini offers the best value with top accuracy and speed. While GPT-4o and Claude 3.5 Sonnet perform well, they don't justify their significantly higher cost. Newer models like Claude 3.7 Sonnet and GPT-4.5 tend to be more creative but potentially less precise for specific tasks

• Samsung’s SmartThings app gets more home automation capabilities

• Artisan, the ‘stop hiring humans’ AI agent startup, raises $25M — and is still hiring humans 

• Tapestry’s app can now de-dupe your social feeds

• Snapchat rolls out Sponsored AI Lenses for brands

• Devin has created a Linear integration to supposedly have Devin comment on your entire backlog including code changes/effort required….

• Instagram tests locked reels that can be accessed with secret codes (goal seems to be increasing fomo & demand for creators)

  • They’re also beefing up Instagram search to compete with TikTok (finally)

• On the other side of the equation, Trump extends TikTok's sell-by deadline again

  • Whilst Amazon said to be joining the race to buy TikTok too

• On Trump, here’s a summary of the impact of April 2 tariffs on IT spending

• And Apple stockpiled iPhones to avoid tariffs and keep prices low for a while

• Shopify CEO says no new hires unless you can prove you can’t do it with AI 1st

• AI companions are the final stage of digital addiction, and lawmakers are taking aim

• This is highly amusing - “Let’s not reinvent the ocean” - the Ford exec who collected malapropisms. We need to talk about the elephant in the closet. LINK [from Benedict Evans’ newsletter]

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⌚️ Productivity Tapas: Time-Saving Tools & GPTs

• Kadoa: Extract structured data from websites with predefined templates, auto-detect features, and easy data transformation

• Fabi.ai: Natural language SQL & Python analytics. Easily interrogate your data by chatting to it

• Privatemode: Fully encrypted generative AI service

• Recall: Summarise anything, forget nothing. Transforms your scattered content into a self-organising knowledge base that grows the more you use it

Remember, as a Product Tapas Pro subscriber you can access the full time saving tools database for fast approaching 400 time-saving tools relevant for product managers and founders 🔥.

Check the link here to access.

🍔 Blog Bites - Essential Reads for Product Teams

Strategy: Building Shared Understanding at Scale

John Cutler explores how organisations can develop and maintain shared understanding as they grow, highlighting the challenges and opportunities in scaling organisational knowledge.

💡 Shared understanding isn't about everyone knowing everything. It's about having enough context to make good decisions and knowing where to find more information when needed. Read the full article here.

UX Bites

Peter Ramsay is back again with more of his clever UX patterns that create memorable user experiences through small but impactful interactions. From playful chatbots to hidden easter eggs, these examples show how brands can inject personality into their digital products. Read the full article here.

💡 "The best micro-interactions don't just delight users - they serve a purpose while adding personality to the product experience."

Opinion: Why Handing Over Total Control to AI Agents Would Be a Huge Mistake

Margaret Mitchell, Avijit Ghosh, Sasha Luccioni, and Giada Pistilli argue that while AI agents offer exciting possibilities, ceding full control to them poses significant risks. They advocate for maintaining human oversight to ensure safety, privacy, and ethical use. Read the full article here.

💡 "The more autonomous an AI system is, the more we cede human control—and the greater the potential for harm."

🎙️ Pod Shots - Bitesized Podcast Summaries

Remember, Product Tapas Pro subscribers get access to an ever growing database of all the top Podcast summaries we’ve ever created. 

Check it out here

🚀 From Uber Eats to AI Innovation: Stephen Chau’s Vision for the Future

In his latest episode, Peter Yang sat down with Stephen Chau, co-founder of Cove and the mastermind behind Uber Eats’ meteoric rise to a $25 billion business. Stephen shares his journey from leading product teams at Uber to building Cove, a Sequoia-backed startup that reimagines how we work with AI. With a focus on creating a groundbreaking visual interface for AI collaboration, Stephen discusses the limitations of chatbots, the potential of generative UIs, and the skills product managers need to thrive in the AI era.

 🎥Watch the full episode here

📆 Published: April 6th, 2025

🕒 Estimated Reading Time: 3 mins. Time saved: 54 mins🔥

🌟 What is Cove?

Cove is a visual workspace that allows users to collaborate with AI in a more intuitive and interactive way. Unlike traditional chatbots, Cove offers a canvas-like interface where users can create, edit, and share content seamlessly.

Key Features:

• Dynamic Workspaces: Cove builds a workspace tailored to your task, breaking down problems and helping you make progress.

• Editable Content: Users can directly edit AI-generated content without needing to re-prompt the system.

• Multiplayer Collaboration: Multiple users can work together in real-time, invoking AI to assist with tasks simultaneously.

• AI Apps: Cove enables users to build AI-powered applications directly within the workspace, leveraging context from uploaded files, videos, and more.

Stephen’s Vision: “The right UI for generative AI might be a generative UI—an interface that adapts in real-time to what you’re trying to do.”

🖥️ Demo: Planning a Trip to Japan with Cove

Stephen demonstrates Cove’s capabilities by planning a family trip to Japan. The workspace dynamically generates cards for cities, itineraries, and user preferences, showcasing how AI can assist with complex tasks.

Step-by-Step Process:

1. Define the Task: Stephen inputs, “Help me plan a trip to Tokyo, Kanazawa, and Osaka with my family.”

2. Dynamic Workspace: Cove creates cards for city comparisons, itineraries, and user preferences (e.g., travel style, interests).

3. Iterative Collaboration: Users can add new cards (e.g., “Kid-friendly museums in Tokyo”) and ask Cove to fill in details like photos and links.

4. Real-Time Updates: Changes in one card (e.g., travel preferences) automatically update related cards (e.g., the itinerary).

Key Takeaways:

• Context Awareness: Cove uses implicit and explicit context to refine its outputs.

• Seamless Collaboration: Users can share workspaces with others, enabling real-time collaboration and feedback.

• Flexibility: The interface supports various content types, including URLs, PDFs, and YouTube videos.

Stephen’s Tip: “Cove is designed to feel like working with a human collaborator—iterative, flexible, and context-aware.”

🛠️ Building AI Apps in Cove

One of Cove’s standout features is the ability to create AI-powered applications directly within the workspace. Stephen demonstrates this by building a multiple-choice quiz app based on a YouTube lecture.

Key Features:

• Automatic Transcription: Cove transcribes uploaded videos and uses the content as context for AI tasks.

• App Creation: Users can prompt Cove to build apps (e.g., quizzes, visualizations) that leverage workspace data.

• Interactive Learning: Apps can be shared and used collaboratively, making them ideal for educational and team settings.

Practical Example: Aquarium Project

Stephen shares how his 11-year-old daughter used Cove to manage her aquarium project:

1. Learning Phase: She researched the water cycling process and created a card to track progress.

2. App Creation: She built an app to log water measurements and visualise the cycling process.

3. Problem-Solving: When snails appeared in the aquarium, she created a snail identification app to determine their species.

Stephen’s Insight: “When you put the power of app creation into the hands of users, especially in a collaborative workspace, the possibilities are endless.”

🌍 The Future of AI Interfaces

Stephen envisions a future where AI interfaces move beyond chat threads to fully generative UIs that adapt to user needs in real-time.

Key Takeaways:

• Generative UIs: The workspace itself could transform dynamically based on the user’s task, creating a more intuitive and efficient experience.

• AI as a Thought Partner: Stephen compares the ideal AI collaboration to the partnership between John Lennon and Paul McCartney—creative, iterative, and synergistic.

• Orchestration of Agents: Cove aims to provide a central hub for managing multiple AI agents, enabling seamless task delegation and integration.

Stephen’s Vision: “AI is at the DOS stage right now. Just as GUIs revolutionised computing, generative UIs will unlock the full potential of AI.”

🔑 Lessons from Uber Eats

Stephen reflects on his time at Uber, where he helped build Uber Eats into a $25 billion business. He shares insights on the skills and strategies that made the team successful.

Key Takeaways:

1. Team Composition: The initial team was a mix of Uber veterans and newcomers, combining deep institutional knowledge with fresh perspectives.

2. Ambition and Clarity: The team aimed to build a business as large as Uber’s rideshare division, using this ambitious goal as a guiding principle.

3. Patience and Buy-In: Leadership provided the time and resources needed to iterate and pivot, ensuring the team could find the right product-market fit.

Stephen’s Tip: “To build a successful new business within a larger company, you need a mix of ambition, patience, and the right team dynamics.”

🧠 Skills for the AI Era

Stephen offers advice for product managers looking to thrive in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.

Key Takeaways:

1. Rethink Your Relationship with AI: Treat AI as a collaborative thought partner, not just a tool for executing tasks.

2. Develop Intuition: Spend time tinkering with AI tools to build a deep understanding of their capabilities and limitations.

3. Embrace Generalism: As AI tools empower individuals to do more, the demand for versatile, generalist skills will increase.

Stephen’s Tip: “Jump in and start experimenting with AI. The barriers are low, and the best way to learn is by doing.”

 🎥Watch the full episode here

📅Timestamps:

• (00:00) The future of AI is generative UI

• (01:53) Demoing Cove's visual AI interface for trip planning

• (05:02) Beyond chatbots: Co-creating with AI in a natural way

• (09:01) Context-aware AI that updates content automatically

• (11:11) Putting AI to the test to list premium Japanese snacks

• (14:02) Building AI apps directly within your workspace

• (16:35) Demoing real world use cases for visual AI interfaces

• (27:39) Generative UI and just-in-time AI apps

• (31:16) Why chatbots are the "DOS stage" of AI interfaces

• (45:44) The secret to building Uber Eats to $25B

• (54:51) The best way to build your AI product sense

That’s a wrap.

As always, the journey doesn't end here!

Please share and let us know what you would like to see more or less of so we can continue to improve your Product Tapas. 🚀👋

Alastair 🍽️.