A Founder’s Guide to AI Prototyping (In Under 48 Hours)

Why 48 Hours Matters

Founders waste weeks “researching” instead of validating.

But AI products follow a different rule:

**You can find proof-of-value in 48 hours if you prototype the right thing.**

The goal isn’t polish.

The goal is signal.

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Step 1 — The 6-Line User Script

Before touching code, write a mini-script:

• Who is the user?

• What do they try to do?

• What’s the trigger moment?

• What output do they expect?

• What counts as success?

• What counts as failure?

If you can’t answer these, you don’t have an idea — you have a fantasy.

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Step 2 — Build Only the Core Loop

AI products have one “core loop”:

Everything else is decoration.

For the first 48 hours:

• No auth

• No dashboards

• No onboarding

• No database

• No UI polish

Only **core loop**.

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Step 3 — Hardcode What You Can

You don’t need a vector DB to validate the idea.

Use a plain array.

Embed offline.

Mock APIs.

Your weekend project isn't supposed to scale —

it’s supposed to **prove value**.

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Step 4 — Show It to 5 Users

Not friends.

Not coworkers.

Real users.

Ask:

• What did you expect to happen?

• What surprised you?

• Would you pay to use this weekly?

• What would make it 10× more useful?

You now have real signal.

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Step 5 — Make the Next Bet

If users say:

“This is cool but not useful”

Kill it.

“This helps, but it’s missing X”

Prioritize X.

“Where can I buy this?”

Go all in.

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Key Takeaway

AI prototyping is not an art project.

It’s a **structured search for truth**.

Move fast, validate fast, kill fast.