Process Over Prompt: How to Use AI without Losing Your Spark - Lab 103
Is AI Making Us Sharper—or Sleepier? Here’s What We Learned With Lauren deVane
Hey, y’all! Every week, Titi and I dig deep into the science behind the world swirling around us, mixing friendship, curiosity, and a big dash of “wait, but how does that actually work?”—and this week, we’re back in the lab talking about AI, but with a whole new focus.
What We Knew (Or Thought We Did)
Last time, we dove into how artificial intelligence, especially those powerhouse large language models like ChatGPT, can pull on real-world resources—the kind you literally feel in environmental footprints. But out in the wild, AI isn’t just eating energy; it’s disrupting the way we think, work, and even “show up” in our digital lives. Every time I open Instagram, it feels like I’m bombarded with AI-generated this, AI-powered that. I’m out here just trying to scroll, and I’m being served ads for tools that claim to do everything from brushing my teeth to running my brand.
Raise your hand if you’re overwhelmed! (That’s me waving from the back.)
What We Wanted to Know (Because, Seriously, How Do You Keep Up?):
With everything changing at blink-and-you-miss-it speed, Titi and I both wanted answers to two big questions: How do we, as regular humans just trying to live, actually sift through all these new AI tools? And what about the folks who aren’t using AI yet—should they just tune out, or is there still ground they need to cover?
Meet Our Expert (aka, Our AI Auntie):
To help us tackle this, we brought in the incredible Lauren DeVane, your friendly neighborhood “AI Auntie” on the Internet, creative entrepreneur, and designer. Lauren spent years running social media at Ulta Beauty before jumping into educating creators on what AI can (and can’t) do for their workflows and imaginations.
Hot Take: Is AI Making Us Lazy—Or Just Different?
Not going to lie: I went in ready to grill Lauren about that MIT study making headlines where researchers claimed relying on AI could lower our own brain activity, and that so-called “cognitive debt” was stacking up every time ChatGPT did the heavy lifting. But then, Lauren dropped a perspective shift: It’s all about how you use the tool. If you treat AI like a vending machine, asking and accepting whatever drops out first, sure, your creative muscles might atrophy. But reframe it as a collaborator, have a real back-and-forth, and add your own expertise into the mix? That’s where the magic happens.
As Lauren put it: “Process over prompt, conversation over command.” If you ask better questions, you get better results—and you get to stay in the driver’s seat of your own ideas. (Titi made the perfect analogy here: even a calculator will only get you so far if you don’t understand the problem you’re solving.)
The AI Toolkit: What’s Hot, What’s New, and What Lauren Swears By
Let’s keep it real—there are SO many AI tools out there that even Lauren finds it tough to keep up. Still, she gave us the inside scoop on what to check out:
ChatGPT (on Pro, not Free): For deep research and wild creativity, Lauren swears by the top-tier plan, especially the advanced reasoning models.
Google Gemini: After a rocky start, Gemini now has killer video capabilities—but, as Lauren notes, it’s also the canary in the AI coal mine for deepfake risks.
Anthropic’s Claude: All about creative writing and, surprisingly, code.
Midjourney: For generative art and, more recently, stunning AI video.
Dia: An AI browser that works contextually on any website and even organizes your vacation Airbnb hunt into a neat comparison chart.
Google NotebookLM: Lauren and Titi both sang its praises—picture giving it a jumbled sketch and getting a full-fledged podcast script in return. WILD.
But What About Jobs?
This is real: The AI shift is changing the game, but it’s also opening up new lanes for creativity, analysis, and the kind of collaboration that puts humans (with our scrappy, opinionated brains) at the center. Lauren compared it to disruptive leaps like photography replacing portrait painting then digital cameras replacing darkrooms. Will some jobs change or disappear? Yes. But just like the internet, folks who learn the new tools will find themselves at the creative frontlines.
Staying Safe & Responsible in an AI World
If you’re not interested in using AI, that’s OK. But Lauren urges: don’t be the person writing one-star reviews without ever walking into the restaurant. Know what’s possible so you can spot scams (hello, deepfakes and voice cloning) and understand where the real and the fake meet.
We also dug into the ethical weeds: digital blackface, AI recreating cultures, and the responsibility we all share when it comes to the images, personas, and stories we generate using these powerful tools. There’s no shortcut here. If you’re building with AI, you need the domain expertise to spot what’s off and keep your own moral compass switched ON.
Key Takeaways
AI isn’t here to do your job for you—it’s here to work with you. Don’t leave your critical thinking at the door.
The tech is only as “smart” as the user and the quality of your questions.
You don’t have to become a pro overnight, but you do have to stay aware. At the bare minimum: figure out how these tools work so you can get out of the way—or jump in and ride.
The landscape is wild, fast, and filled with both amazing opportunities and serious ethical dilemmas. So, buckle up and learn what you need to navigate.
Thanks to Lauren for keeping it real and showing us that being an “AI Auntie” is more about curiosity and responsibility than any technical degree.
Curious about the tools and issues discussed? Here are some links to guide your own AI discovery journey:
Heygen (AI video avatars) - This is my referral link if you’re interested in a trial!
Let us know what you’re trying, what’s confusing you, and what you want to know next! Slide into our DMs at @DopeLabsPodcast or connect with us individually—@dr_tsho (Titi) and @zsaidso (Zakiya)—and let’s keep this conversation going.