Cohort 5

Build permanent AI muscle: master the foundations of how AI actually works and future-proof tactics on making them work excellently for you.

Sherveen Mashayekhi

Founder & CEO @ Free Agency; Product Leader @ Stella (AI job matching), Toptal

AI Fluency Bootcamp

OpenAI

Midjourney

Anthropic

Google

The challenge in this new AI era: so much is changing, there's so much to learn, and there's so little time. Right? And the problem compounds as more time passes. You might be* using ChatGPT every day, but feel uncertain as to why certain OpenAI models or tools respond the way they do.* getting marginal utility out of AI, but struggling to use the tools in a way that doesn't feel burdensome and high effort.* feeling like everyone else is using techniques and tools that are leaving you behind (should you use Claude Code? hint: yes). Look, even power users who constantly talk to AI products every day aren't getting everything out of it that they should. But it's essential to become excellent at your foundational understanding and usage today, here, in 2025, because things are only getting crazier. The core thesis of this course is to move you beyond 'prompt engineering,' as you've heard described elsewhere. It's more fundamental than that. There are 3 pillars: 1. MODEL MECHANICSFoundational understanding of large language models, transformers, and attention mechanisms – whether you're a chef or lawyer or software engineer, you'll be able to get the why behind large language models, chain of thought, reasoning, tool use, vision, and prompt sensitivity. 2. MENTAL MODELSDurable tactics and frameworks for how to talk to AI across interfaces – move from copy-pasting the latest prompt templates to never using a prompt template again, because you'll know how to engage these models to get 10x better results than your peers. Seriously. 3. FUTURE FORWARDHow generative AI is evolving, from the models to the applications to the future of work – get a lens for what people are talking about inside the research labs, how jobs are definitely change &amp; how they might change, the latest applications, and trends to watch out for. What I seek to give you is not just tactics that work today but permanent understanding that will last as new models are released, new tools are built, and the world changes around us. It's a universal fluency that will keep you ahead. Just as language fluency isn't about memorizing phrases from a travel guidebook, AI fluency isn't about collecting prompts from Twitter. Most courses teach you what to say to an AI chatbot. This course teaches you how to think about AI foundationally. It's the difference between learning to order coffee in French versus understanding why French speakers structure their thoughts the way they do. We'll also cover:• How to consistently and easily judge new models as they're released for task-specific competence• Nuances between reasoning, agentic, task-based, and primitive models• Current power rankings based on real-world application (not biased evals) We'll play with advanced uses of:• Foundational SOTA models, like o3-pro, GPT 4.5, Deep Research, Gemini 2.5 Pro, Claude Sonnet 4• Agentic tools like Claude Code, Warp, Replit, Manus, GenSpark, and Devin• Wrapper tools like Gamma, Napkin, and Perplexity• My cheat code apps to 10x your workflow,&nbsp;both in ease and speed I'll share my theory on&nbsp;the future of work.And the&nbsp;OSD Framework&nbsp;I've developed to help people get ahead of the curve.You'll learn about the 3 core muscles I believe every job will distill down to:•&nbsp;Orchestration, the architect of AI-enabled systems•&nbsp;Supervision, the human-in-the-loop steering or polishing outputs•&nbsp;Delivery, the last-mile getting AI value to its end-user We'll go through CRITICAL concepts most people miss, including:* thinking in tokens* model training and fine-tunes* AI assistants v agents* diffusion and task-specific models* image and video model nuances* third party AI v foundational models* why I think you should NEVER use Perplexity At the end of this 10-day intensive, you'll...• be excellent at getting the outputs you want and need from AI models for any use case, from initial prompts to debugging to systems – seriously, a past student said: "I feel like I went from GPT-4 to GPT-7 after this course."• have seen how the latest models and tools work in their most unleashed format, with an understanding of agents as the future – and how to evaluate them, build them, and use them across use cases and interfaces.• future-proof your skills - because you're going to have a&nbsp;deep understanding&nbsp;of how these products work, you'll remain capable of using them as the models are continuously updated and evolved, even as the rapid pace of AI development continues. This course is for ANYONE who doesn't already consider themselves top 0.5% in both AI skill and ecosystem knowledge, and wants to grow their AI skillset with no-frills, no-BS intensity. No technical expertise required. Past students come from both inside and outside the tech industry, and have included:* product managers, startup founders, and early AI builders* software engineers, designers, marketers, operations leaders* analysts, bankers, and teachers* doctors, lawyers, and academics* chefs, frontline managers, students Want a taste of the course? Check out my video on why I think you're being lied to about AI agents: https://youtu.be/MoMxKF5duXI

Everything's changing. Become top 0.5% at using AI to future-proof yourself.

Non-technical, semi-technical, or technical professionals (throughout knowledge work) looking to gain an upper hand in this AI moment.

Anyone who has felt the gap between AI's potential, what they hear about what it can do, and their ability to access the upside.

NOT for people who already read arXiv papers and know who roon is. NOT for people looking for quick prompt templates.

Who is this course for

What you’ll get out of this course

You'll learn about the cognitive architecture that underpins not just LLMs, but the way that products and apps are built around them. These patterns will work across AI models and will continue working as systems evolve.

Instead of AI prompt templates, learn conversational design patterns

It's hard for even the most AI-passionate people to integrate and reliably, consistency use AI products. I'll give you systems, shortcuts, and methods for making it second nature -- we'll build your AI muscle.

Instead of treating ChatGPT like a magic answer box, you'll make it a constant companion

You'll know why even non-engineers should use Claude Code, how you should judge new tools, methods for integrating AI into your workflows, and feel in command of the future rather than chasing fake Zapier or n8n workflows that overpromise and underdeliver.

Instead of not knowing where to go next, you'll have an AI tech stack

You'll master the art of progressive refinement, building complex outputs and systems, and be able to leverage all of this to be top .5% in your field -- whether that's at work, with a hobby, with a side project, or with something personal.

Instead of being left behind, you'll get and stay ahead of the AI curve

Provide a brief description for each module as a way to sell the value of what students will be learning throughout the course.

First Module

Second Module

Third Module

Course syllabus

What people are saying

Meet your instructor

6 days of live classes

Can't make it to the live classes or want to watch them again later? We'll make each day's content available same-day for all students.

Access recordings forever

There will be several projects and optional group workshops to turn the content into usable muscle - attend live for instructor feedback, or access projects, examples, and templates at your own pace - including permanent access after the course ends.

Daily projects (optional)

Course schedule

This course builds on live workshops and hands-on projects

Active hands-on learning

You’ll be interacting with other learners through breakout rooms and project teams

Interactive and project-based

Join a community of like-minded people who want to learn and grow alongside you

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