Peter Deng

AGI alone is insufficient; product builders must 'harness' and channel AI energy into specific human-centric solutions.

"A lot of the value is still going to require a bunch of hustle from a lot of builders to really turn that new source of energy and channel it into something that we humans want to use that solves some..."

Defensibility in AI comes from proprietary data flywheels and deeply integrated workflows.

"The data flywheel thing is really interesting because the models will get really good at whatever data you show it... being very mindful of the data that you have access to to start your flywheel goin..."

The highest leverage for AI PMs is working directly with research and post-training teams to fine-tune model behavior.

"I think that close, tight-knit relationship at any of these large model companies between post training and product is going to produce some really incredible stuff."

Precise language is a tool for clear thinking; the words used in docs and decks have significant downstream effects on team alignment.

"Language actually affects the way you think... when I make slide decks... I spent hours obsessing over them because I really wanted to make sure I captured the right essence of what I was trying to sa..."

A growth team acts as a catalyst for organizational rigor by forcing instrumentation and data-driven experimentation.

"One of the first things I did was always to build a growth team... when you hire the right person, they start asking all the right questions because... they are so into this experimentation side, it a..."

Use job descriptions to codify new, high-impact roles that emerge from a unique combination of individual strengths.

"I was like, 'Hey, can you just write up a job description of what is this thing? Because there's something magical here, but I don't fully understand it.'... The role was model designer... it was just..."

Hire for extreme autonomy where the report eventually directs the manager through calibration rather than task-taking.

"In 6 months, if I'm telling you what to do, I've hired the wrong person. It helps me and the person operate on a different level where the goal is not, did you hit this OKR? The Meta goal becomes, are..."

Identify which of the five PM archetypes a candidate spikes in to ensure the right fit for the specific business need.

"I think there are five different types of product managers... Number one is the consumer PM... half designer, half product person... Another type... is the growth PM... half data scientist, half produ..."

Assess growth mindset by evaluating a candidate's ability to be vulnerable, self-reflective, and learn from significant failures.

"The question I asked has been the same one I've asked for years... think about one of the biggest mistakes you've made, truly, the more painful the better. And tell me what the mistake was. Describe t..."

Build teams with diverse 'superpowers' to create a healthy tension between different priorities like growth and design craft.

"The teams that I've helped build are... a team of Avengers that are just very different, have very different superpowers, but together you as the leader are the one who's helping adjudicate any differ..."

Treat the team itself as a product that requires intentional design and significant time investment from leadership.

"I spent probably as much time, if not more time on recruiting and building the team as I did thinking about the product... you got to bring the right people together to have a huge impact. It's the be..."

Effective delegation is achieved when the report becomes the driver of the work through continuous calibration with the manager.

"In 6 months, if I'm telling you what to do, I've hired the wrong person... it helps me and the person operate on a different level where the goal is not, did you hit this OKR? The Meta goal becomes, a..."

Use repetitive communication to ensure alignment with leadership and provide opportunities for course correction.

"Say you're going to do the thing, say that you're doing the thing, and then say that you did it... it's a great time to reaffirm you're doing or invite the conversation that this is no longer the thin..."

Scaling from 1 to 100 requires long-term systems thinking and planning several 'chess moves' ahead.

"You have to plan your chess moves out in advance. You have to really think before you act and build systems that were going to let you go sustainably faster."

The 'product' is often the core utility (like price or speed) rather than the digital interface.

"Sometimes your product actually doesn't matter... at Uber, I learned this because, really, the price and the ETA at Uber was the product. Looking at it from a holistic perspective, we humans consume t..."

Rigorous problem definition requires deep empathy and the ability to articulate the customer's pain clearly.

"The first thing is empathizing. You've got to really feel the pain of your customers... the define is also a really powerful word because it forces you to articulate what the problem is."

True empathy cannot be outsourced to AI summaries; leaders must be physically or mentally present in the room to hear the nuances of user feedback.

"I still remember distinctly flying down to LA with Kevin Systrom to go do a user research study... there's no substitute for that... you can't empathize with the summary. You have to be in the room fu..."