You Don't Learn AI From Trend Reports — You Learn It by Poking at It

There's no dramatic moment where you suddenly believe in AI. It's usually something small and slightly embarrassing — a task you dreaded that suddenly has another gear. In this episode of Adjunct Intelligence, Dale Leszczynski and Nick McIntosh skip the trend reports and walk through the exact moments AI actually clicked for them: an image prompt that synthesised an idea, a tiny tool built during a Canvas outage, a system that started connecting their thinking, and the reasoning summary that changed how they read every answer. Every moment comes with something practical you can try this week — no roadmap, no keynote voice.[00:00] — How belief in AI begins[01:52] — Setting the episode's ground rules [04:07] — Moment one: image generation[07:21] — When the image understood intent [10:30] — Classroom uses, stock photo death [11:31] — Moment two: building tiny tools [14:28] — The Canvas hack workaround [16:43] — Start small, build narrow tools[18:50] — Moment three: chief of staff [26:05] — Moment four: the reasoning chain🎙️ Adjunct Intelligence is the weekly briefing for higher-ed professionals who want AI as a cheat code—not a headache.Every episode:• Real tests of AI tools in education and professional workflows• Fast, Monday-morning actions you can actually try• Clear signal through the noise (no hype, no jargon)👉 Subscribe on [YouTube] | [Apple Podcasts] | [Spotify]👉 Share this with a colleague who still says “I’ll figure AI out later”👉 Join the conversation on LinkedIn with #AdjunctIntelligenceStay curious. Stay intelligent. Stay the human in the loop.