Here’s an unpopular opinion I heard:
Tools like Replit or Lovable? Without lock-in, they’ll become worthless.
Because now—for the first time—you can ask a service to recreate itself. Literally regenerate its own code stack.
That means software can be duplicated on demand. APIs can be discovered, validated, and orchestrated automatically. Interfaces adapt in real time. Codebases become prompts.
So unless your product runs on data no one else can access—or you’ve built a strong network effect—open-source AI will eat your moat.
Maybe the future isn’t products, maybe it’s protocols.
Anyway, here’s what’s been going on this week:
📈 How are companies using AI?
➜ Credit Card Design by Prompt. Mastercard launched an AI-powered Design Studio that lets card issuers generate branded card art in seconds. No agency, no wait time—just input and output.
PYMNTS
➜ Store Assistants, Upgraded. Guitar Center now has an AI assistant helping customers on the sales floor—giving real-time product info, availability, and even recommendations. Time to rock and AI roll!
Retail Dive
➜ Fighting Fraud at Scale. Walmart is using AI to crack down on fraudulent sellers across its massive marketplace. Basically an AI enforcement, policing the digital shelves 24/7.
Yahoo Finance
➜ AI Agents, Not Just Dashboards. Pipe is rolling out AI agents that can autonomously manage tasks across finance, ops, and GTM workflows. These aren’t just dashboards, they’re doers.
Finextra
➜ AI You Can Wear. Amazon just debuted “Bee,” a prototype wearable AI that offers real-time assistance via audio. It’s low-profile, voice-first, and designed for on-the-go cognition.
CNBC
