Epium Blog

Clear-eyed takes on AI and tech. Occasionally harsh, always grounded. Always honest.

News aggregation model

Real AI Automation Isn’t a Prompt. It’s a Pipeline

1 May 2025

AI isn’t about calling the biggest model. It’s about building smart, layered systems that use the right model for the right job. This real-world automation pulls, scrapes, filters, deduplicates, scores, summarizes, and publishes using GPT-4.1, GPT-4o, 4o-mini, and DALL·E 3 where they shine, not just where they’re trendy.
AI Middle layer is where the rubber meets the road

The Rise of the AI Middle Layer: Automation’s Final Boss

28 Apr 2025

The real power in AI isn’t the model: It’s the middle layer that wraps logic, automation, and infrastructure around it. If you’re not building that, you’re not building anything that lasts.

AI Is Killing the Junior Role. You’re Either Useful or You’re Next

2 Apr 2025

AI isn't just disrupting junior roles: It's replacing them right now. If you're not bringing value beyond what a model can do in 12 seconds, you're already obsolete. Get useful, or get out of the way.
Using AI to prepare for a meeting.

How I Use AI to Prep for Client Meetings (Without Sounding Like a Bot)

19 Mar 2025

I use AI to cut through the noise and prep smarter for client meetings: Fast, contextual research that helps me show up informed, not automated.
AI Grifters

How to Tell If an AI Tool Is Worth Paying For

18 Feb 2025

Don’t fall for the $999 AI tools being pushed by Instagram bros and TikTok grifters: If it’s just a glorified ChatGPT call in a shiny box, you’re being upsold on laziness. Real value comes from integration, automation at scale, and actual technical depth. Not viral bullshit.
LLMs are smart parrots

Why LLMs Are Just Compression Algorithms with Delusions of Grandeur

11 Jan 2025

LLMs aren't intelligent: They're just advanced compression systems predicting the next word based on patterns, not understanding. Useful? Absolutely. Smart? Not even close.