Agent-led Commerce @harleyf and @vlaurenlee are both signaling a shift in how commerce works, moving from humans browsing to AI agents helping people shop. While @harleyf emphasizes that Shopify's core job remains building the infrastructure for this change, @vlaurenlee explores the broader vision of building a $100B+ agent-led ecosystem.

The Reality of AI Utility @tobi, @vlaurenlee, and @lulumeservey are all parsing the difference between AI hype and actual utility. @tobi and @vlaurenlee focus on the "addictive" nature of AI-driven efficiency and its immediate impact on technical workflows like rendering engines. In contrast, @lulumeservey highlights a disconnect in the industry, noting that while tech leaders focus on "societal transformation," actual users primarily want AI to help with professional excellence and efficiency.

The Shopify Ecosystem and Expansion @tobi and @harleyf are celebrating major momentum for Shopify, specifically the rapid migration of enterprise brands like Estee Lauder. They are positioning the company as a fast-moving alternative to traditional custom stacks, with @harleyf specifically rallying partners for an upcoming town hall to discuss the next phase of the ecosystem.

Reflecting on an AI memo they wrote a year ago, they've noticed that people are now reflexively turning to AI for engineering tasks [1]. They highlight a specific case where an automated research tool provided a massive speed boost for a rendering engine, though it required human oversight to fix quality trade-offs [1]. This balance between raw speed and product quality is exactly the kind of friction you see when scaling AI infrastructure.

They've been focused on Shopify's enterprise momentum lately, highlighting how quickly they migrated Estee Lauder brands from custom stacks to the platform [1, 2, 5]. They are also pushing for closer ties with developers, promoting a Partner Town Hall and giveaway to get the ecosystem back in sync [6]. On the product front, they're bullish on AI agents, specifically praising a new $65M agentic hiring platform [3] and amplifying the idea that commerce is shifting from human browsing to agent-assisted shopping [10].

Outside of work, they've been vocal about rising antisemitism and campus unrest, specifically calling out the University of Toronto for its frequent negative headlines [8, 9]. They also spent some time sharing local favorites like Yan's [11], celebrating a friend's career milestone [7], and expressing their love for the city [4]. They capped things off by coordinating a meetup over a New York Times feature [12, 13].

They recently shared some thoughts on the psychological pull of AI, arguing that humans are essentially addicted to efficiency [1]. They believe we don't use these tools to find time to relax, but rather to find ways to become even more productive. On the product side, they sat down with Product School to discuss Shopify's shift toward agent-led commerce [2] and followed up to say they enjoyed the conversation [3].

They recently hopped on a podcast to discuss the friction between data and taste, how constraints drive creativity, and why their old playbooks might not work for founders today [2]. On a lighter note, they made it clear they'll only settle for a Pacific Ocean view [1].

They've been thinking about the gap between what AI companies sell and what users actually want. Referencing a massive Anthropic study, they point out that while techies love dreaming about societal transformation and creativity, real-world users mostly want help with professional excellence and efficiency [2]. This creates a branding headache for AI companies trying to speak to both engineers and "normies" simultaneously [1].

On the product and culture front, they argue that generic job posts are a red flag for a stale company culture [6]. They also took a moment to boost a project focused on domestic uranium enrichment [4] and gave props to a few peers for their work and design choices [3][5][8].

They believe we've entered a golden age of creation and reflect on a career spent building tools that put power into people's hands [1]. They also make sure to credit the wider team for the development of News Feed rather than taking sole ownership [1].