In this Substack Week episode, we explore how artificial intelligence is transforming product management with Toni Dos Santos, co-author of The Product Courier newsletter. From automating routine tasks to enhancing strategic decision-making, Toni shares practical insights on leveraging AI to build better products faster and more efficiently.
From Music to Banking to AI Product Management
“I wanted to work in that area to find ways to put innovation to service to the consumers, and making it as invisible as possible.”
Toni’s journey into AI and product management began in an unexpected place – the music industry. After working as a music producer, his interest in innovation led him to banking, where he discovered the untapped potential of data analytics. His experience working with machine learning and deep learning in banking laid the foundation for his current work with generative AI in product management. The launch of ChatGPT in 2022 sparked his deep dive into applying AI to product management challenges.
Revolutionizing User Story Creation with AI
“User stories are a big pain for many product managers, particularly junior ones… The idea is that you provide the AI with a PRD or description of the product, and it’s going to write user stories based on best practices.”
Toni explains how AI can transform the process of writing user stories by automating the initial drafting while preserving the essential collaborative aspects. He emphasizes that while AI can handle the mechanics of writing, the real value comes from using it as a springboard for deeper discussions with the team. The technology can suggest edge cases, highlight potential gaps, and provide a structured foundation for further refinement.
AI as a Tool for Understanding User Needs
“Use all the transcripts, the feedback from user interviews that I have, feed it to AI and retrieve from it the key pain points, the major patterns that it identifies.”
