The Alpha Team · Los Angeles
Build with us.
The Alpha Team is our close-knit circle of experts, shoppers, developers, and creators championing our mission alongside us.
You use the product before anyone else and tell us the hard stuff that makes it better. You put your hardest question through our verification method at no cost.
You also gain access to a vibrant community, and to paid freelance work we call missions when it’s available.
P.S. We are building the verification layer for commerce, which finds the truth about product claims. If you want to see it before you apply, come to a Golden Hour.
What you get
What makes this worthwhile
01
First eyes
You use the product while it is still being made and take your objections straight to the people building it.
02
Your hardest question
Bring us the question you are stuck on. We research it, run every finding through our patent-pending verification method, and send you the report, at no cost.
03
The events
Golden Hour, our free public event, on the first Wednesday of every month in West LA. Product.ai Labs a few times a quarter.
04
Real action on your feedback
Tell us what is broken or missing so we can change it. If we don’t ship it, we still explain why.
Who this is for
Three kinds of people get the most out of the Alpha Team.
Many members overlap across these circles.
01
You’re an expert in your field, and you can catch the AI getting something wrong.
02
You use AI every day, and you want a real say in what it becomes for shopping.
03
You’re a builder with your own project, and you use AI to get it made.
The method
Your hardest question, answered
We built the Axiom Distillation Protocol, ADP for short, to run our own company. Members can use it on the hardest question in their work or life.
You bring us a question you’re stuck on.
Several AI research tools investigate it, one part at a time.
ADP tries to prove every finding wrong. A second AI argues against it, and we check the original sources.
You get a report of the findings that held up, each marked with how confident we are. We call them axiomatic truths. Take them into your own AI tool and plan your next steps.
Our team runs it for you, at no cost, and the report is yours.
How to pick your question
Pick a question about how something works, the science or the psychology underneath, that has you stuck. If you could look the answer up, keep refining it.
- Example“What makes people trust a recommendation in my field today?”
- Example“How do people use music to change how they feel, and when does that help or make it worse?”
- Example“When two designs work equally well, what makes people prefer one?”
One question at a time, and a limited number each round, so there may be a wait.
Where we meet
Live sessions with the people building Product.ai
Golden Hour is our public event, the first Wednesday of every month in West LA. It’s free, so bring friends. Members show what they’re building, and we show what making Product.ai is like.
A few times a quarter we run Product.ai Labs. A small group sits at one table, works through one product category, like running shoes or skincare, and decides what goes into the product and what stays out.
We also invite a few members to help build new features with us, from the first version on. The more you take part, the more we find to build together.
First time I could step into an AI company and wholeheartedly say I love what these people are doing.Elias ArjanLongevity operator, has vetted at least 300 brands over eight years · LinkedIn
I am the target audience for sure. All I want is real information about what products actually work and I can trust.Yira VilaroSkincare enthusiast · LinkedIn
Help me buy better, or help me not buy at all.Teddy ThorenDecentralized systems operator · LinkedIn
I know when other models are giving me BS. I kept guiding the other models. Yours got there in one shot.Chris DeHau LeeBiology · Medicine · Storytelling
Our ethos
Everyone here is making one another smarter.
Together, we build products. Products change, and the relationships keep giving back.
We share what we learn.
How we run a company on frontier models, and what it takes to be found by an AI agent rather than a search engine. You see it live, as we build in public.
We learn from you.
What you’re building, how you use AI today, and where AI still gets your field wrong.
You learn from one another.
The people here are sharp, and they show up for each other. Meet your next co-founder or collaborator.
What we ask
What we ask, and what we don’t
We ask for
- Your presence. A few hours a quarter with us and other members.
- Your experience and your point of view, as a shopper, as a builder, and more.
- Your opinion, especially when it’s different from everyone else’s in the room.
- A thirst for knowledge and a desire to support one another.
And what we don’t
- Your contribution is never paid, and that is deliberate. Small payments turn people who want to be here into people doing a task.
- There is no membership fee and nothing to renew.
- Nothing is scheduled for you and nothing is assigned. No quota and no minimum.
- You will never be sold to here.
Paid missions
Paid missions are open only to active Alpha Team members.
Missions are paid contract assignments at your own rate. Our board lists the projects we need help with right now, and if none fits your skill set you can propose your own. Paid work is a separate agreement from membership.
How you get in
Share two short stories
We want to know what motivates you and what you’re building, and to make sure this is worth your time.
◆ Application
Thank you.
Our team reads every application. If you look like a fit, you get an invitation to a session.
Our team reads every application and answers every one, with a reason if the answer is no. If you look like a fit, you get an invitation to a session with the people behind Product.ai and the members already here, and we both decide whether to go ahead. After that your access opens. If we haven’t seen you in a while, we’ll check in and ask whether you still want the seat.
Questions
Things people ask before they apply
Do I have to be technical?
No. Some members build agents and ship products; others want to understand how the technology works and think carefully. Both are useful, and the second kind asks the questions that catch us out.
Can I come to something before I apply?
Yes, and most people do. Golden Hour is public and free, on the first Wednesday of every month. The calendar is here. Come to one, talk to whoever is standing near you, and decide afterwards.
Is there a fee, or is any of this paid?
No fee, and no equity or points. Contribution stays unpaid because small payments turn people who want to be here into people doing a task.
Paid work is a separate agreement from membership. Members can take on missions, paid contract assignments at their own rate, and anyone can apply for an open role through the Join page.
Do I have to be in Los Angeles?
Golden Hour is in West LA, so most members are local today. Some working sessions run remote, and in person is better.
Does this help me get a job at Product.ai?
No. Membership is not a hiring channel. If a job is what you want, apply for a role through the Join page.
Share two short stories
Not ready to apply? Come to a Golden Hour first. Most members did.