AI Development
No prerequisite jargon. Follow the lesson numbers and add one new idea at a time.
What is an API? Think of a restaurant order window between your app and an AI model
An API lets software request a capability from another service through a defined interface. Lesson 018 uses an order-window analogy to explain requests, responses and API keys.
How does AI API pricing work? Read input, output and cached tokens before estimating cost
AI API prices are usually usage-based. Lesson 019 explains per-million-token units, input versus output pricing, cached input, worked examples and scaling.
What is an AI agent? A model that can decide steps and use tools toward a goal
An AI agent is more than one model response. Lesson 020 explains goals, loops, tool use, state and why agents need limits, checks and budgets.
What is an embedding? Turn meaning into coordinates so similar things can be found nearby
Embeddings convert text, images or other data into vectors that capture useful similarity. Lesson 021 explains vector dimensions, distance and semantic search intuitively.
What is a vector database? A search system built for finding nearby embeddings
A vector database stores embeddings and retrieves similar vectors efficiently. Lesson 022 explains nearest-neighbor search, indexes, metadata filters and why this matters for AI apps.
What is RAG? Let the model look up relevant material before it answers
Retrieval-Augmented Generation gives an LLM relevant external context at answer time. Lesson 023 explains chunking, retrieval, grounding, citations and common failure modes.
What is a local LLM? Run the model on your own machine instead of calling a hosted API
A local LLM runs on hardware you control. Lesson 025 explains weights, VRAM, quantization, privacy, performance and the trade-offs versus hosted APIs.
Why is Python used so much in AI? It is the glue between models, data and experiments
Python is popular in AI because its syntax is approachable and its ecosystem connects data, models, notebooks, APIs and automation. Lesson 026 explains what beginners actually need.
What are the CLI, Git and GitHub? Three different tools you will keep seeing in AI projects
CLI, Git and GitHub are often mentioned together but solve different problems. Lesson 027 explains terminal commands, version control, repositories, commits, branches and remote hosting.
What is CUDA? The software platform that lets AI libraries use NVIDIA GPUs for parallel computation
CUDA is NVIDIA’s parallel-computing platform and programming model. Lesson 028 explains GPUs, drivers, CUDA Toolkit, libraries and why version compatibility causes confusion.
What is Hugging Face? A hub and ecosystem for models, datasets, demos and AI libraries
Hugging Face is more than a model download site. Lesson 029 explains the Hub, model cards, datasets, Spaces, Transformers, licenses and why repository files matter.
What is Ollama? A simple way to download, run and serve local language models
Ollama packages common local-model tasks behind a simple CLI and local API. Lesson 030 explains model pulls, serving, Modelfiles, ports and what Ollama does not solve.
What is LangChain? A framework for wiring models, tools, retrieval and application state together
LangChain is an application framework around language models, not a model itself. Lesson 032 explains prompts, model wrappers, tools, retrieval, agents and when a framework helps.
What are Cursor and Codex? AI coding tools that work with code, files, terminals and repositories
AI coding assistants can do more than autocomplete. Lesson 033 explains editor agents, repository context, terminal tools, diffs, approvals and why code review still matters.
What is an AI browser? A browser agent can click, type and finish web tasks instead of only answering questions
Browser agents can navigate websites, click controls and fill forms. Learn how AI browsers differ from web search and connected apps, plus the permission and prompt-injection risks.
What is computer use? AI can inspect a screen, move the mouse and operate software that has no useful API
Computer-use agents operate graphical interfaces through screenshots, mouse and keyboard actions. Learn the perception-action loop, how it differs from APIs and why isolation matters.
What is MCP? Think of it as a common port for connecting AI applications to tools and external context
Model Context Protocol standardizes how AI applications connect to tools, resources and prompts. Learn the roles of host, client and server—and why a standard protocol is not automatic security.
What is a coding agent? It can take an issue, inspect a repository, run tests and open a pull request
Coding agents differ from autocomplete because they can work across a repository, run commands, modify multiple files, execute tests and deliver a reviewable diff or pull request.
What is vibe coding? Natural-language app building is fast until the prototype becomes a real system
Vibe coding makes prototypes dramatically faster, but production systems still need testing, authentication, data safety, secrets, migrations and maintainable architecture.