AI Meetup: Todd Michaud / HuLoop Automation CEO (Copy)
Building Faster with AI Agents: Lessons from Our Recent Startup Grind Session
At our recent Startup Folsom Startup Grind session, the discussion centered around something every founder and developer is asking right now: How can AI streamline the process of building products? The spotlight was on practical applications of OpenAI’s new Agents API, Cursor IDE, and AI-powered workflows to accelerate software development.
What followed was an insightful, hands-on conversation about leveraging AI—not just as a coding assistant, but as a product development partner.
From Idea to PRD with ChatGPT
The session began with a simple but powerful tip: start with a PRD (Product Requirements Document)—and let AI draft it. Using ChatGPT to create a detailed PRD saves hours of manual typing and helps establish clarity before writing a single line of code.
One participant shared:
“I create an
instructions.mmdfile with my goals and context. Then I feed it into ChatGPT or Cursor. This saves me 10 to 15 errors later because the AI understands what I’m trying to build before I even ask it to write code.”
By giving the model the context and constraints upfront, founders can move faster and avoid frustrating rework.
Agentic Mode and Scoped Development
A recurring theme was breaking projects into small, manageable pieces:
Start with the UI only: lock down the design, test the first paint, and commit.
Add functionality feature by feature.
Use hard-coded test data early—AI can then infer schema structure and generate database models faster.
“The smaller the context, the higher the quality of AI output.”
For those working in Cursor IDE, this approach proved effective. While models occasionally hallucinate or delete elements, asking the AI to “stop and think” before generating code often prevents cascading errors.
The Rise of Multi-Agent Systems
OpenAI’s Agents SDK sparked excitement. These aren’t just chatbots—they can be specialized workers that route tasks to the right domain expert.
Example: A triage agent that directs customer queries to a billing agent or a support agent with their own context and tools.
Use Cases: Customer support, financial services, loan processing, marketing automation, and even government contracting workflows.
One real-world example shared during the session:
“I’m building an AI-powered boardroom for solopreneurs—a finance agent, a marketing agent, all in one dashboard. Each agent has its own knowledge base and tools.”
This model is powerful because it reduces complexity and keeps interactions context-rich without requiring founders to manually manage multiple APIs.
Beyond Hobby Coding: Commercial-Grade AI
A big takeaway: AI development isn’t just a novelty—it’s driving real businesses. Startups are already leveraging agents for:
Revenue Operations: Automating pricing and quoting.
Marketing: Dynamic SEO optimization and lead generation.
Compliance-Heavy Workflows: Filing VA claims, tax automation, and regulatory submissions.
However, accuracy and safety remain top concerns. Attendees agreed that human-in-the-loop validation is essential, especially in sensitive industries like healthcare or government.
What About Security and Compliance?
Questions around HIPAA, SOC2, and data partitioning came up repeatedly. The consensus:
For consumer-facing apps, hosting on secure clouds like AWS with Bedrock or GovCloud is key.
For enterprise and government, expect strict requirements—zero trust environments, custom hosting, and AI models deployed within secured networks.
As one founder put it:
“You’re not building the perfect system—you’re building a system where human review and consent are part of the workflow.”
What’s Next for AI Builders?
The session closed with a look at emerging standards like MCP (Model Context Protocol) and why companies like OpenAI and AWS are betting big on it. The promise? Easier integration between AI agents and external tools, paving the way for an app-store-like ecosystem of AI functions.
Key Takeaways for Founders
Start with clarity: Use AI to generate your PRD and break down steps.
Think small: Scope tasks to improve reliability.
Adopt a multi-agent mindset: Specialized AI agents can streamline complex workflows.
Plan for compliance: Build human-in-the-loop review into your system.
Stay ahead: Standards like MCP and tools like Cursor will shape the next wave of AI-driven development.
About Justin Mendez
Justin Mendez is a founder, technologist, and AI enthusiast with extensive experience in building AI-powered applications. He has worked on multiple AI and automation projects, including Lyra.Ai, VacaX, and Win The Day AI. With a background in advertising, finance, and operations, Justin specializes in integrating AI agents into practical business solutions. He is passionate about helping developers and entrepreneurs leverage AI tools to build real-world applications.
Whether launching successful startups, scaling growth phase companies, or turning-around mature software businesses, Michaud succeeds by building and leading high-performing, multi-cultural, and global teams. Before HuLoop, Michaud has held executive roles at DemandTec, Hypersonix, Symphony Retail, Amdocs, NCR Corporation, Retalix, Revionics, IDS LLC, and IBM Corporation.Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
