Realitycraft

Realitycraft: Intro to GenAI & Creative Worldbuilding

Evo Heyning

CEO at Realitycraft, Author and Creative Producer

From open source to local models, a quick survey of the field and tools available to storytellers and creators

Where do you get started with generative AI on your own art?

Engaging new tools includes assessing capacity and ability to meet your use cases combined with ethical choices made

How do I handle the unpredictability of new tools?

Not every world needs every tool to create it fully -- and not every tool is right for every platform, ecosystem & use

Is it ok to try generative media for my work? What are risks

If you’re a software engineer or data scientist, chances are you’ve built or seen a proof of concept (POC) for a generative AI app. It’s exciting at first, an impressive demo that showcases the potential of large language models. Here’s the problem: that’s where it usually stops. These POCs often fail to scale into reliable, production-ready applications. The result? Endless iteration cycles, unreliable outputs, and frustration as teams struggle in what we call “POC purgatory.” It doesn’t have to be this way. With the right principles, processes, and workflows, you can build LLM applications that work in production, without overcomplicating pipelines or chasing trends. This course focuses on the iterative development, evaluation, and debugging practices that make AI systems production-ready. You'll learn how to build with state-of-the-art tools like RAG, fine-tuning, MCP, and agents, but the emphasis is on building scalable, robust systems, ensuring you leave with the mindset and skills to adapt as the technology evolves. You’ll not only learn how to design, test, and deploy generative AI applications, but also how to iterate and improve rapidly. This is about creating AI systems that solve real problems, deliver real value, and scale with confidence. What to ExpectThis is a highly interactive course designed to get you results. Across live workshops, discussions, and hands-on projects, you’ll build your skills while solving real-world challenges. •	Live coding sessions to design and refine LLM applications.•	Hands on exercises to explore how small changes can dramatically improve reliability.•	Discussions on user-centric development and integrating feedback loops.•	Expert-led Q&amp;As to help you tackle your toughest challenges. What You’ll Learn •	How to transform POC demos into production-grade applications.•	Strategies for managing non-determinism and optimizing outputs through prompt engineering.•	How to monitor, log, and debug AI systems to ensure reliability and performance.•	Best practices for handling structured outputs and integrating function calling into your applications.•	Building workflows for iterative development and experimentation.•	Practical skills through hands-on app development, including creating a Generative AI app to query PDFs. Bonus Perks All students receive over $500 credits to build with from top companies. We'll announce additional partner credits soon. Past cohorts have typically received $1,500+ in total credits; one cohort topped $2,500 when multiple partners stacked. (Actual amounts vary.) You will receive - $500 in Modal credits for cloud compute (confirmed).- Additional partner credits: announcing soon.- Past totals: $1,500+ typical; one cohort &gt;$2,500.- Recent partners: Google Cloud &amp; Gemini, Hugging Face Pro, Braintrust, Baseten, Chroma Cloud, Pydantic Logfire, Prodigy, Learn Prompting Plus, Replicate, and Mistral. Guest lectures Learn directly from practitioners shipping AI/LLM systems in production. This cohort's guest speakers will include We'll announce guest speakers soon. Enrollment includes on-demand access to all recorded guest talks from prior cohorts (plus slides/resources). Previous guest speakers in previous cohorts include: - Jason Liu (Instructor, 567 Labs)- Shreya Shankar (UC Berkeley, ex-Google Brain)- Zach Mueller (Hugging Face)- Paige Bailey (Google DeepMind)- Ines Montani (Explosion AI, spaCy)- Alan Nichol (Rasa)- Nathan Danielsen (Carvana)- Charles Frye (Modal)- John Berryman (Arcturus, ex-Github)- Skylar Payne (AI executive for startups. Ex-Google. Ex-LinkedIn)- Vincent Warmerdarm (marimo)- Samuel Colvin (Pydantic, Logfire)- Hamel Husain (Parlance Labs)- Samuel Colvin (Pydantic)- Jeff Huber (Chroma)- Natalia Rodnova (Eon)- Thomas Wiecki (PyMC Labs)- Ravin Kumar (DeepMind) This Course Is For •	Data scientists and machine learning engineers who are sick of unreliable POCs and want to ship reliable LLM applications.•	Software engineers who want to learn how to build generative AI systems and master the LLM software development lifecycle. This Course Is Not For Those •	Looking for an introductory course in AI: some programming knowledge is required.•	Expecting ready-made solutions for AI problems without active participation.•	Unable to commit to hands-on projects, live discussions, and iterative development exercises. Why Take This Course By the end of this course, you’ll: •	Understand the first principles of generative AI development.•	Gain hands-on experience building robust, scalable applications.•	Learn how to troubleshoot, monitor, and optimize AI systems for production.•	Develop workflows to iterate and refine AI applications effectively.•	Leave with the confidence to deploy reliable AI systems at scale.

Master the patterns and processes that underpin successful GenAI app development

Course syllabus

Mondays and Wednesdays

To ensure hands-on practical time, there will be project work to complete throughout the course.

Weekly projects

Course schedule

Data scientists, machine learning engineers who are sick &amp; tired of seeing and building prototypes &amp; want to ship reliable LLM applications

Software engineers who want to learn how to build Generative AI systems and learn the LLM software development lifecycle.

Who is this course for

What you’ll get out of this course

You’ve seen impressive generative AI demos, but how do you take them to production? In this course, you’ll learn the exact workflows, tools, and engineering practices needed to turn concepts into reliable, scalable applications that deliver real value.

Move beyond POCs and build production-ready AI systems

Struggling with inconsistent outputs? Through interactive exercises, you’ll explore proven techniques for optimizing prompts and ensuring your AI delivers actionable results in production settings.

Master prompt engineering for reliable results

When your AI application breaks, you’ll know exactly how to fix it. We’ll walk you through real-world debugging sessions, monitoring techniques, and tools to ensure your systems stay reliable at scale.

 Learn to debug and monitor AI systems like a pro

Learn everything you need to build robust and reliable agentic systems, from incorporating tool-calling, memory and retrieval to augmented LLM workflows and beyond.

Build State-Of-The-Art AI Agents

Stop wasting time in endless iteration cycles. Through guided projects, you’ll discover how to set up workflows that refine your applications faster and with less frustration, and how to use "Evals" and LLM Judges to guide your software development lifecycle.

Accelerate your development process with iterative workflows, best-in-class "Evals", and LLMs-as-Jduge

Tired of theoretical knowledge? You’ll build a fully functional app that uses text and image models to query PDFs, giving you practical experience solving complex real-world problems.

Develop hands-on expertise by building GenAI and LLM apps

Whether you’re looking to lead AI projects, impress stakeholders, or level up your technical expertise, this course gives you the tools to stand out as an AI/ML practitioner.

Advance your career with practical, proven techniques

Leave the course with a project you can add to your portfolio, demonstrate to your boss, or use to showcase your ability to deploy reliable AI systems.

Showcase Tangible Results

Build AI-powered software reliably & from first principles. Learn the GenAI software development lifecycle: agents, evals, iteration & more

Hugo Bowne-Anderson

Host of Vanishing Gradients podcast; ex-Outerbounds; expert in DS/ML.

Stefan Krawczyk

Agentforce; Ex-Stitch Fix; 13+ Years building / productionizing data, ML, Agents

Cohort 4

Cohort 5

Utilize proven creative thinking techniques with GenAI as a catalyst to overcome mental blocks and constraints to build robust product plans

First-to-market product exec; Author

Apple

Amazon

T-Mobile

Best Buy

Leslie Grandy

Global, first-to-market product exec; Author; Lead Executive in Residence

Cohort 1

Cohort 2

Although prompt engineering is suitable for personalized productivity tasks, such as writing PRDs, and clearly defined problems, like conducting a competitive analysis, it isn't the path to thinking big. Students gain proficiency in applying six discrete, structured creative thinking techniques to solve problems with Generative AI as a collaborative partner.This interactive course, based on my award-winning new book CREATIVE VELOCITY: PROPELLING BREAKTHROUGH IDEAS IN THE AGE OF GENERATIVE AI (WILEY, MAY 2025), unlocks the power and immediate actionability of frameworks like SCAMPER, Generic Parts Technique, and Contradictory Thinking, to manage risk, overcome functional fixations, and effectively address major business, customer, and product challenges and improve strategic thinking.THIS COURSE IS FOR YOU IF YOU FACE THESE CHALLENGES:➡️ Information gaps – making critical product decisions without precedent➡️ Growth plateaus – needing to discover untapped market segments or expansion opportunities➡️ Operating constraints – working within tight budgets or resource limitations➡️ Leadership expectations – demonstrating strategic thinking skills to advance your product management career

Use GenAI for strategic product thinking, not just your tasks and busy work.

Leverage AI as a strategic thinking partner to broaden your field of vision.

Create resilient plans by finding hidden or faulty assumptions that create risk

Ideate like a zero-gravity thinker leveraging structured frameworks

Product leaders who need practical, repeatable techniques to tackle operational constraints, market disruption, or growth challenges.

Startup Founders looking to build resilient plans while navigating limited resources and funding, information gaps, and product-market fit.

Senior leaders who want to empower employees to leverage AI to imagine innovative solutions, accelerate growth, &amp; improve customer outcomes

Navigate through the hype and become a better leader in the AI era.

Human-first CTO. 20 years in tech.

The Motley Fool

Jim Amos

Human-first CTO. 20+ years in software engineering and management

Cohort 3

Every day brings new AI breakthroughs and corporate announcements about AI adoption. It behooves every professional to learn the benefits and applications of this technology, but it’s not easy to parse signals from noise, fact from fiction, or reality from hype. The stakes are high, and so are the chances you’ll be led astray by fictitious claims that don’t stand up to scrutiny and won’t deliver long-term ROI. Leaders are struggling to know why, how, when, or even if their organization should embrace AI. Aspiring leaders are being told they must embrace an “AI-first” mindset without any proof it’ll benefit their teams. There’s so much uncertainty that leaders are turning to experts to guide their path. But there’s a huge gap in what’s being taught. ChatGPT prompt training, agentic product management courses, or AI-first leadership guides are plentiful, but there are very few voices exploring this transformation through a critical lens.My goal is to present a down-to-earth flip-side to the current AI mania you'll need if you’re going to operate as a conscientious, reality-based leader or operator in 2026.

The missing critical AI course leaders (and aspiring leaders) need in 2026.

 

Gain a more comprehensive view of the AI ecosystem.

See behind the curtain of AI.

Understand the dark patterns that make chatbots so addictive.

Separate AI marketing hype from reality.

Develop realistic expectations about the future of work.

Deconstruct AI FOMO and explore strategies to avoid it.

Business leaders, executives, decision-makers, managers, and aspiring leaders with an open mind and a desire to think critically about AI.

Professionals who want to make rational, reality-based decisions about if, why, how, and when to implement AI.

This course is not a deep dive into the technology of LLMs, or prompt engineering. But it does include some AI literacy for the layperson.

A 6-week applied learning cohort to elevate your cognitive altitude with the Eight Meta-Cognitive Skills of Leadership™ WHY THIS PROGRAM AND WHY NOW? AI is no longer just automating tasks. It is beginning to disrupt management itself. Reports, plans, analyses, and even decisions are increasingly generated by intelligent systems. Managers who rely only on traditional skills risk being outpaced by algorithms that think faster, cheaper, and more accurately. While AI can provide intelligent answers, it cannot yet replace the higher-order and bigger picture thinking that defines great leadership: the ability to reason from first principles, synthesize across disciplines, navigate ethical dilemmas, decide future direction, and innovate with customer obsession. Yes, people, emotional and influence skills will only grow in importance. But these have long been emphasized and developed before the AI age.&nbsp; What has truly shifted — and is being disrupted right now — are our cognitive capabilities. As AI advances and assumes the baseline thinking, leaders must raise their game with higher-order cognition or risk drowning below the rising AI waterline. With the rapid advancement of AI at the workplace, the need for managers to upskill cognitively and strategically has never been more serious and urgent. ﻿WHO IS THIS FOR? This program is for leaders, entrepreneurs, and managers who want to stay ahead of the accelerating disruption caused by AI. If you’re concerned that automation may replace, reduce, or reshape your role, then this is for you. You’ll gain the meta-skills and strategic frameworks to transcend the threat posed by AI and transform this challenge into your next advantage. WHAT IS THIS PROGRAM ABOUT? The AI-Generation Manager Program is a deep-impact, cohort-based journey for managers who want to raise their game and future-proof their careers in the age of AI. This Program aims to elevate leaders to the 30k feet level, rising above automation, disruption, and complexity. Through this unique program, you will be equipped with The Eight Meta-Cognitive Skills of Leadership for the AI Age: ★ First Principles AnalysisStrip a problem down to its basic truths, questioning every assumption, and then building solutions upward from those core foundations. ★ Moral-Ethical ReasoningNavigate complex dilemmas with clarity of values, balance what is right with what is effective, and ensure decisions advance corporate interests while honoring societal and long-term responsibility. ★ Jobs-to-be-Done MindsetComprehend the true progress customers seek and innovate products and processes that help them make progress. ★ Systems ThinkingDevelop a higher-level, systems view of a problem, business model, company, or ecosystem in order to solve, optimize, or orchestrate change. ★ Future-Back OrientationStart from a vision of the future and reason backward to identify the steps, innovations, and transformations required to reach it from today. ★ Trans-Disciplinary SynthesisGenerate fresh perspectives, non-obvious insights and unique ideas at the intersection of and crossover between fields, disciplines and industries. ★ Multi-Civilizational PerspectiveIntegrate wisdom, values, and methods from multiple civilizations and cultures to transcend narrow worldviews and craft more holistic strategies. ★ Geo-Techno-Economic FluencyAppreciate the interwoven dynamics of geopolitics, technology, and economics, and apply that integrated lens to anticipate disruptions, shape strategy, and seize opportunities. The AI-Generation Manager Program arms you with these future-ready capabilities, so you do not just keep up with AI, you stay on top of it. It is tailored for practical, everyday leaders who shoulder the responsibility of turning strategy into reality, guiding teams through change, and driving results under uncertainty. The program blends futurist insights, guided instruction, interactive learning, case-based exercises, and a capstone project, ensuring that you not only learn new frameworks but also apply them immediately and effectively. Join an international community of like-minded leaders future-proofing their careers and learning to thrive in the AI Age.

Equip Yourself with New Cognitive Skills for the AI-Generation Workforce now

Preview the future of business, work and talent and recognize the strategy and leadership gaps in coping with this brave new world.

Week 1: The Great Disruption of Business and Work in Next 5 Years

Immense into The Infinite Company blueprint as the new First Principles of successful businesses and learn to apply it.

Week 2: The Infinite Company Model: Complete Playbook for Hyper-Disruptive Era

Develop your organization's ability to grow stronger under stress, volatility, and chaos.

Week 3: Antifragility – Strength Beyond Resilience

Build your company's capacity for exploration and execution, balancing reinvention with results.

Week 4: Ambidexterity – Reinvention Beyond Innovation

Rethink value creation and become a net-positive cum regenerative company.

Week 5: Regeneration – Net-Positive Beyond Sustainability

Synthesize the Infinite Code into a transformation blueprint tailored to a company of your choice.

Week 6: Capstone Integration Lab & Cohort Sharing

Executives &amp; DirectorsDepartment &amp; Functional HeadsProgram, Product &amp; Project ManagersDigital, Technology &amp; Engineering Leaders

Strategy &amp; Planning ManagersInnovation &amp; Transformation PractitionersHuman Resources &amp; OD ManagersTeam, Unit &amp; Squad Leads

Operations, Finance &amp; Marketing ProfessionalsFounders &amp; EntrepreneursLeadership Coaches &amp; MentorsConsultants &amp; Advisors

Step up as a future-ready manager with next-gen leadership skills to thrive in the AI-first economy
 

Become a Super-Strategist, Hyper-Innovator, Future-Navigator, and Wise-Leader

amidst increasing automation and AI-driven change.

Stay relevant and valuable 
 

to solve ever more complex challenges.

Upgrade your cognitive and creative toolkit 

through disruption and uncertainty.

Strengthen your confidence to lead teams

with frameworks that cut through ambiguity.

Make sharper and smarter decisions

to your role, workplace, and career/ business.

Gain practical tools you can immediately apply

by co-learning with a diverse global peer group.

Broaden your perspective and raise your vantage point

Elevating leaders above automation, complexity & disruption in the 
AI-Generation Workforce 