AI amplifies agency, taste, grit, and curiosity — and will widen the gap between the 1% and everyone else to levels the world has never seen.
When Freshworks deprecated Freshteam, Adedeji Olowe's company Lendsqr didn't scramble for a replacement — they built something better. Their custom HRMS, powered by OpenAI Codex Pro, launched on April 1, 2026. Not a prototype. Not "good enough for now." Better than what they'd been paying for.
This raised the uncomfortable question: if a small fintech team could replicate an established SaaS product, what stops anyone from building a Lendsqr competitor? The barrier is thinner than it's ever been — but equal access doesn't produce equal outcomes. Here's why.
The capacity to decide to act and follow through — without external compulsion. AI responds to direction; without that initial push, there is nothing for it to build on.
The part no one can automate for youAn internal standard that drives you past "acceptable" toward genuinely good. You don't need to be wildly creative — you just need to carry a clear sense of what better looks like.
Knowing when something is actually goodStaying engaged with the iterative loop past the boring, slow middle stretch where most attempts quietly die. AI doesn't continue refining unprompted — the continuity has to come from you.
Staying long enough for it to get goodProbing responses, testing variations, and understanding why something works — rather than just accepting the first useful output and moving on. The engine behind compounding improvement.
The engine behind improvementAfter Freshworks deprecated Freshteam, Lendsqr used OpenAI Codex Pro to build a custom HRMS that Olowe describes as "genuinely better than what we were paying for." Launched April 1, 2026. Not being commercialised.
🔗 Explore entityOlowe's child, a security expert, vibe-coded a Drata/Vanta compliance automation replacement. Got on a call with a CISO — and sold it for $20,000. One product. One weekend.
🔗 Explore entityCarbon co-founder Ngozi Dozie spent $20 on a Claude Code subscription and "tasted the forbidden fruit." He described himself as addicted in a positive way — he found freedom. A $20 subscription delivering enterprise-level output.
🔗 Explore entityDecide to act and follow through — before you open any AI tool. AI responds to direction; without that initial push, there is nothing for it to build on. The system cannot originate effort on your behalf.
Develop taste in your domain. When AI gives you something acceptable, ask whether it could be better — and keep pushing until it aligns with a clear vision of quality. Taste is not perfectionism; it is refusing to settle.
Most attempts die in the large, slow middle stretch. Grit is staying engaged with the iterative loop even when initial excitement has faded. The compounding value of small improvements only appears to those who stay.
Probe AI responses, test variations, and understand why something works — rather than just accepting the first useful output. Curiosity turns a tool into a partner.
If access is open and tools are powerful, and your output still isn't world-class, trace the gap back to one of the four traits — and address the root. Choose to believe the answer is yes, hold onto it stubbornly, and act on it consistently.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Agency | Initiating and following through on action without external compulsion — the one thing AI cannot automate for you. |
| Taste | An internal standard that drives you to improve output beyond "acceptable" toward "genuinely good." |
| Grit | Sustained engagement with an iterative process through the boring, slow middle stretch where most attempts die. |
| Curiosity | An exploratory relationship with AI — probing responses, testing variations, refusing to settle for the obvious path. |
| Vibe Coding | Building functional software by prompting AI coding assistants in natural language, requiring little or no traditional programming. |
| AI Amplification | The multiplier effect AI applies to people with strong foundational traits, widening performance gaps across the board. |
| Barrier to Entry | The cost, skill, and time threshold required to build a competitive product — now thinner than ever due to AI tools. |
| Internal Tooling | Custom software built for a company's own operations rather than for sale — increasingly cost-effective for small teams. |