Dangerously Transparent: Operating an AI-First Company in Public
We're doing something that might be brilliant or completely insane.
Starting today, The Answer is launching "Dangerously Transparent"—a campaign where we operate our AI-first company completely in public. No polished marketing. No carefully curated content. Just raw, unfiltered reality.
Why? Because if AI agents are the future, someone needs to show how they actually work in the real world—mistakes, pivots, breakthroughs, and all.
Why "Operating in Public" Not Just "Building in Public"
Most "build in public" content focuses on product development—features, code, design decisions. That's valuable, but incomplete.
We're showing the whole picture:
- How we build AI systems (the engineering side)
- How we run an AI-first company (the business side)
- How AI agents transform operations (the automation reality)
- What breaks, what scales, what works (the unvarnished truth)
This isn't content marketing disguised as transparency. This is us literally recording our internal meetings, strategy sessions, and daily operations—then publishing them for the world to learn from.
The Content Machine: Record → Transcribe → Publish
Here's the core workflow we're building (and documenting):
1. Record Everything
- Weekly AI assessment calls with prospects
- Internal strategy and planning sessions
- Customer implementation reviews
- Team problem-solving conversations
2. Process with AI Agents
- Transcribe with Whisper
- Generate summaries and insights
- Extract reusable content and patterns
- Create multiple content formats from single recordings
3. Publish Across Channels
- YouTube (full recordings and clips)
- Blog posts (detailed how-tos)
- Newsletter (weekly insights)
- Social media (bite-sized takeaways)
The goal: Transform internal operations into educational content at scale—showing both the "what" and the "how" of running an AI-first business.
What You'll Learn by Following Along
For Builders and Engineers
- Real-world AI agent implementations (not just demos)
- Automation workflows that actually work (with failures documented)
- Integration patterns for tools like Flowise, Langfuse, and custom MCP servers
- Prompt engineering techniques refined through real use cases
- Performance optimization based on production systems
For Business Leaders and Marketers
- How to scale content without scaling headcount
- ROI of AI agent implementations (with real numbers)
- Change management when introducing AI to teams
- When to automate vs. when to stay human
- Business model evolution for AI-first companies
For Everyone
- Transparent decision-making (including the decisions that backfire)
- Resource allocation in a bootstrap AI startup
- What it takes to compete against well-funded AI companies
- The reality of AI limitations (not just the hype)
Why This Matters
The AI industry has a trust problem.
Everyone talks about agents. Everyone demos chatbots. But who's showing the messy middle? Who's documenting the pivots when something doesn't work? Who's transparent about costs, limitations, and trade-offs?
We are.
Because we believe:
- Transparency builds trust faster than any marketing campaign
- Education at scale is possible when you leverage AI agents properly
- Operating in public creates accountability that makes us better
- The community wins when knowledge is shared openly
This is high-risk. Competitors will see our strategies. Prospects will see our mistakes. Everyone will witness us figure this out in real-time.
But if AI agents are truly transformative, the rising tide should lift all boats. And the best way to prove that is to show—not tell.
Follow the Journey
This campaign runs across multiple channels, and we're publishing content weekly:
📺 YouTube: Full recordings and highlight clips 📝 Blog: In-depth how-tos and strategy breakdowns 📧 Newsletter: Weekly insights and lessons learned 🐦 Social Media: Real-time updates and bite-sized takeaways
Ready to Build Your Own AI Agents?
Watching is great. Building is better.
If you're ready to implement AI agents in your own business, we offer two paths:
1. Self-Serve with AnswerAgent Our open-source platform for building custom AI agents. Start free, deploy anywhere.
2. Guided Implementation Schedule a 30-minute AI Assessment (the same calls we're publishing) and get a custom roadmap for your business.
What Happens Next
This week: First AI Assessment recording published Next week: Behind-the-scenes of our content automation system Ongoing: Weekly releases across all channels
This is an experiment. We don't know exactly where it leads. But we're committed to radical transparency throughout the journey.
Are we dangerously transparent? Maybe.
Will we learn faster because of it? Definitely.
Will you learn with us? That's up to you.
Let's find out what happens when an AI-first company operates completely in public.
FAQs
What is "Dangerously Transparent" and why did you launch it?
Dangerously Transparent is The Answer's campaign to operate our AI-first company completely in public. Unlike traditional "build in public" efforts that focus only on product development, we're sharing everything—business strategy, automation workflows, customer conversations, internal meetings, and even our failures. We launched this because the AI industry has a trust problem: everyone demos chatbots and talks about agents, but no one shows the messy reality of implementation. By operating transparently, we're creating accountability for ourselves while building trust with the community. The name reflects the risk: competitors see our strategies, prospects see our mistakes, and everyone watches us figure things out in real-time.
How is this different from typical "build in public" content?
Most "build in public" content focuses narrowly on product development—features, code commits, design decisions. Dangerously Transparent goes far beyond that by showing the complete picture of running an AI-first company. You'll see not just how we build AI systems (the engineering side), but also how we run the business (strategy, sales, operations), how AI agents transform our day-to-day work (automation reality), and what breaks versus what scales (unvarnished truth). We're literally recording internal meetings, strategy sessions, and customer calls—then publishing them for educational purposes. This isn't content marketing disguised as transparency; it's actual operational transparency.
What will I learn by following this campaign?
The content is designed for two primary audiences with overlapping value. For builders and engineers, you'll see real-world AI agent implementations (not demos), automation workflows that actually work (with documented failures), integration patterns for tools like Flowise and Langfuse, prompt engineering techniques refined through production use, and performance optimization strategies. For business leaders and marketers, you'll learn how to scale content without scaling headcount, understand ROI of AI implementations with real numbers, navigate change management when introducing AI, decide when to automate versus stay human, and evolve business models for AI-first operations. Everyone gets transparent decision-making (including bad decisions), resource allocation insights from a bootstrap AI startup, and the reality of AI limitations beyond the hype.
What is the "Record → Transcribe → Publish" content machine?
The content machine is our AI-powered workflow for transforming internal operations into educational content at scale. Here's how it works: First, we record everything—weekly AI assessment calls, internal strategy sessions, customer implementation reviews, and team problem-solving conversations. Second, we process with AI agents using Whisper for transcription, generate summaries and insights, extract reusable patterns, and create multiple content formats from single recordings. Third, we publish across channels—YouTube for full recordings and clips, blog posts for detailed how-tos, newsletters for weekly insights, and social media for bite-sized takeaways. The goal is to show both the "what" and the "how" of this workflow so others can implement similar systems.
What are AI Assessments and why are you publishing them?
AI Assessments are 30-minute consultation calls where we evaluate whether companies are ready for AI agents and create custom implementation roadmaps. These aren't sales calls—they're genuine diagnostic sessions that examine automation opportunities, business readiness, and realistic timelines. We're publishing these recordings (with sensitive client info removed) to show the real process of AI consulting: how we diagnose opportunities, common patterns across industries, questions that reveal readiness, how we tailor recommendations based on company size and maturity, and authentic conversations about budget, timeline, and expectations. No scripts, minimal edits—just real consulting work. This transparency helps prospects understand what they're getting while giving the community insight into how AI implementations actually start.
How often will you publish new content?
We're committed to weekly releases across multiple channels. Every week, you can expect new content on YouTube (full recordings and highlight clips), the blog (in-depth how-tos and strategy breakdowns), our newsletter (weekly insights and lessons learned), and social media (real-time updates and bite-sized takeaways). The "AI Assessments Unplugged" series kicks off this week with our first published assessment call. Following weeks will include behind-the-scenes content on our automation systems, strategy sessions, implementation reviews, and more. The cadence is designed to be sustainable while providing consistent value to followers.
What happens to client confidentiality when you publish assessment calls?
Client confidentiality is non-negotiable. Before publishing any recording that includes a client or prospect, we obtain explicit consent and remove any sensitive information. This includes company names (unless they approve), financial details, proprietary processes, competitive intelligence, and any personally identifiable information. What remains is the strategic conversation—the questions we ask, the frameworks we use, the patterns we identify, and the recommendations we make. The educational value comes from seeing the methodology and thinking process, not from exposing client specifics. In cases where clients prefer complete privacy, we don't publish at all.
Is this just a marketing stunt or are you really being transparent?
It's a legitimate experiment in radical transparency, with all the risks that entails. Marketing stunts are carefully controlled with predetermined outcomes. This campaign is genuinely unscripted—we're publishing real internal operations, including mistakes, pivots, and failures. Competitors will see our strategies. Prospects will see our limitations. Everyone will witness us learning in real-time. The accountability is real: if we say we're building something, the community watches us do it. If we fail, they see that too. The value exchange is straightforward: we get faster feedback loops and community engagement, while followers get unfiltered education on running an AI-first company. The risk is high, but the learning potential—for both us and the community—is worth it.
Can I use this content to build my own AI systems?
Absolutely—that's the point. All content published through Dangerously Transparent is educational and designed to be actionable. You'll see the exact tools we use (Flowise, Langfuse, Whisper, custom MCP servers), the automation workflows we implement, the prompt engineering techniques we develop, the integration patterns we establish, and even the mistakes we make along the way. We're intentionally showing the "how" not just the "what" so that builders and business leaders can implement similar systems in their own contexts. If you want hands-on guidance, we also offer AI Assessments (https://calendly.com/brad-theanswer/answeragent-intro) where we can create custom roadmaps specific to your business needs.
What tools and technologies will you be demonstrating?
Throughout the campaign, you'll see us working with a variety of AI and automation tools. Core technologies include: Flowise (our open-source platform for building AI agents and workflows), Langfuse (for observability, tracing, and evaluation of LLM applications), Whisper (for high-quality transcription), custom MCP servers (Model Context Protocol for tool integrations), various LLM providers (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.), vector databases for knowledge retrieval, Supabase for database and authentication, and integration platforms for connecting business systems. We'll document not just what we use, but why we choose specific tools, how we integrate them, what we pay for them, and when we switch or abandon technologies that don't work.
How do you balance transparency with competitive advantage?
This is the core tension of the campaign, and we're intentionally leaning into transparency even at the cost of competitive advantage. Our belief is that execution matters more than ideas—sharing our strategies doesn't mean competitors can execute them as effectively. Additionally, we're betting that the benefits of transparency (community trust, faster feedback, accountability, educational authority) outweigh the risks of competitors copying our playbook. The rising tide lifts all boats: if AI agents truly transform businesses, there's room for many companies to succeed. By operating transparently, we're also attracting customers and community members who value openness, which becomes its own competitive advantage. Time will tell if this strategy works, but that's part of the experiment.
What happens if you fail or this campaign doesn't work out?
If the campaign doesn't generate the engagement or business outcomes we hope for, you'll see that too—and we'll publish a transparent retrospective explaining what went wrong and what we learned. That's the nature of operating in public: failures are visible, but they're also valuable learning experiences for the community. If specific automation workflows don't scale, if customer acquisition through transparency doesn't work, if competitors successfully copy our strategies—all of that becomes documented case study material. The campaign itself is an experiment in whether radical transparency is a viable business strategy for AI companies. Whether it succeeds or fails, the learning is valuable for everyone watching.
How can I follow along and stay updated?
The campaign runs across multiple channels, each optimized for different content types and audience preferences. YouTube (@whatistheanswerai) hosts full recordings and highlight clips—subscribe to get notifications when new AI Assessment recordings or behind-the-scenes content drops. The Blog (https://theanswer.ai/blog) publishes in-depth how-to guides, strategy breakdowns, and technical tutorials—great for deep learning. Newsletter (sign up via the website) delivers weekly insights, lessons learned, and curated content directly to your inbox. Social media (Twitter/X: @digitalatscale_, LinkedIn: bradtaylorsf) provides real-time updates and bite-sized takeaways. Follow on the channels that match your learning style—or all of them for the complete picture.
Can I participate or contribute to this campaign?
We welcome community participation! If you're implementing similar AI systems, share your experiences and tag us—we'd love to feature community implementations and learnings. If you attend an AI Assessment call and consent to recording, you become part of the content library (and help others learn from your questions and challenges). If you have specific topics you want us to explore or questions about our approaches, comment on YouTube videos or blog posts—we prioritize community requests for future content. And if you're building AI agents with AnswerAgent or Flowise, share your work in our Discord or GitHub—the best community projects get highlighted in campaign content. This is a collaborative experiment in transparent operations.
What's your long-term vision for Dangerously Transparent?
The long-term vision is to create the most comprehensive, unfiltered documentation of how an AI-first company operates—from founding through scaling. We want to build a library of content that shows not just the highlight reel, but the complete journey: pivots, failures, breakthroughs, and lessons learned. If successful, Dangerously Transparent becomes a definitive resource for anyone building AI agents, automating business operations, or running AI-first companies. We envision this evolving beyond just The Answer's story to include guest content from other AI builders, community case studies, and collaborative experiments. Ultimately, we're trying to accelerate the entire AI industry by making operational knowledge accessible to everyone—not locked behind consultant fees or gated content.
How do I schedule an AI Assessment for my own business?
Scheduling an AI Assessment is straightforward: visit https://calendly.com/brad-theanswer/answeragent-intro to book a 30-minute call. During the assessment, we'll explore your current operations, identify automation opportunities, evaluate AI readiness, and create a custom implementation roadmap tailored to your business size, industry, and maturity level. These aren't sales calls—they're genuine diagnostic sessions designed to provide value whether or not you become a customer. If you consent to recording, your session may be published (with sensitive info removed) as part of the Dangerously Transparent campaign, helping others learn from your questions and challenges. If you prefer complete privacy, just let us know and we won't record or publish anything from your call.