Intelligence Snacks 74 - Normie Mode

Intelligence Snacks 74 Normie Mode AI model rankings are easy to find. Knowing which model to use for a spreadsheet, a design task or a language lesson is harder. Andy introduces Normie Mode, a new site that turns benchmark data into task-based recommendations that weigh capability against cost. It is an early release, and Andy wants feedback on whether the comparisons are useful to people choosing a model for everyday work. Pete and Andy then ask where agents actually help. A story about an agent negotiating a marketplace sale and sharing its owner’s home address shows what can happen when an assistant has too much freedom. They make the case for letting people choose the outcome they want, then handing agents the tedious steps: completing a booking, finding a meeting time or checking an unwanted subscription. The conversation moves from chat and spreadsheets to documents, custom software and changing business models. It closes with a debate about buying traditional businesses to automate them. Pete and Andy see an opportunity, but argue that industry knowledge, staff relationships and the slow work of change cannot be skipped. Key Moments: [00:06] Welcome to Episode 74 and the unusually early choice of a title. [00:27] Andy introduces Normie Mode: model comparisons built around jobs people actually do. [02:24] Why a useful recommendation has to account for cost as well as capability. [04:58] How the site combines public comparison data with its own task-based tests—and where the early data has gaps. [07:50] Could agents use Normie Mode to choose models for their own work? [09:40] The growing gap between rapid AI progress and what everyday users can reasonably keep up with. [11:27] Why a harness tailored to your work can matter as much as the model inside it. [13:43] A marketplace agent accepts a low offer and shares its owner’s address. [15:17] The case for keeping human contact and judgment in negotiations and plans. [19:29] Let an agent handle the administrative steps after you have made the important choice. [25:33] Documents and slides become first-class AI workspaces; Pete argues for editing and commenting directly on the work. [29:35] Spreadsheets as an accessible programming tool—and whether custom software will replace some of their uses. [37:15] Personal agents could expose subscription businesses that rely on customers forgetting to cancel. [42:58] When AI makes polished promotional video cheap, does its value rise or fall? [47:31] Andy considers the advantage of creators who have spent years building audience trust. [50:50] The pitch: buy an established business, automate its workflows and capture the margin. [53:36] The missing detail: industry knowledge, key people and the difficulty of changing a business already in motion. [59:43] Buy or build? The opportunity is real, but patience and listening to operators matter. [01:04:30] Pete’s preference for owners and staff using AI to solve the problems they know firsthand. Projects and ideas mentioned: Normie Mode, Wingman, Flight Deck, personal agents, AI documents, spreadsheets and AI-assisted business acquisitions. Closing thought: “As always I think AI just rewards agency.” — Andy