Guillermo Rauch (via Gergely Orosz) draws a historical parallel: most people building software with AI are not building AI-native software, just as early internet merchants replicated physical store experiences online rather than creating native e-commerce. The distinction matters because AI-native design requires rethinking interfaces, workflows, and user interactions from first principles rather than automating existing patterns. This suggests we are in the "merchant website" phase of AI software design — functional but not yet exploiting the medium's unique capabilities. The competitive advantage will go to those who design natively for AI's strengths rather than using AI to replicate pre-AI workflows. ## Source - [[A controversial take I have -]] ## Related - [[AI as Software Entropy Reversal]] - [[AI Product Design]] #atomic-note #ai-product-design