Handpicked Live: Real AI Starts at the Terminal
Important notes:
This in-person workshop runs over two weeks: April 16th and 23rd from 18.00 to 21.00 (2 hours of learning and 1 hour to mingle and share the experience).
If you have any questions regarding the scope or how the workshop will be run, email Phil: [email protected]
We will provide snacks (🍕) so you won't be hungry
This is a great opportunity to ask your manager to use your learning and development budget - here is a template e-mail
If you'd love to come, but have a scheduling conflict, let us know by choosing the free ticket type.
What is this?
Forget the chat interface. The real power of AI tools like Claude Code and Codex lives in the terminal. And if a blinking cursor makes you want to close the window and walk away, you're leaving most of that power on the table.
Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella says agents will replace all software. The terminal is where those agents live. This workshop gets you there and prepares you for the agentic future.
Who is this for?
This workshop is for founders, employees, freelancers, and creatives who've wanted to build something — a browser extension, a task manager, a productivity tool, or anything you want — but never had the technical background or time to figure it out.
No technical experience needed. Beginners are especially welcome.
How will it work?
Over two hands-on sessions, Phil and Igor will take you from "what even is a terminal?" to building your own working piece of software.
The week between sessions is intentional. It gives you time to experiment on your own, get stuck, figure things out and then come back to session 2 with real questions and share the experience with others.
You'll learn command-line basics, get set up with AI coding agents like Claude Code and Codex, and learn how to guide them so they actually build what you want.
Session 1 — Build your first piece of software: a browser extension, a Pomodoro timer, a task manager, or a plugin of your choice.
Session 2 — A recap of the latest AI developments, co-working time if you got stuck, a show-and-tell, and practical next steps: hosting, distribution, and data storage.
What do I need to bring?
A modern laptop
A Claude Pro or ChatGPT Plus subscription
A willingness to try something new
You'll leave with a real piece of software, more confidence in the terminal, and a clear sense of how to keep building.
Who is Phil?
Phil is an engineering leadership consultant who fixes unfixable engineering teams and problems. He has over 25 years of experience as a software engineer and senior engineering leader.
In the past couple of months, Phil has started to focus on AI uplift and helping as many people as possible become "AI-enabled" so they can take advantage of the seismic shift that is happening in technology right now.
You can find out a little more about him at Punk Leadership.
Who is Igor?
Igor is a curator who runs Handpicked Berlin. Previously, he worked as a product manager, project manager and a friendly auditor in a scale-up and a big German automotive company. He is a typical example of an “idea man”, someone who has loads of ideas, but was always constrained by not being able to build stuff himself. This is now changing. His next project will be to build a personal executive assistant to help him run the business.