In this episode of the DevReady Podcast, host Anthony Sapountzis speaks with Gareth Rydon, Co-Founder of Friyay.ai, about why most organisations should stop building AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... agents and start briefing them properly for safer, more reliable results. They cover human in the loop controls, secure login checkpoints, prompt injection risks, how to monitor agent behaviour, when simple workflow automation beats a free roaming agent, and practical tool choices across Claude, Copilot, Gemini and ChatGPT.
The discussion begins with the rapid rise of pre-built agents in tools like ChatGPT and the parallel increase in risks. Rather than handing over passwords and hoping for the best, Gareth recommends explicit checkpoints, for example pausing at log-ins so a human enters credentials, and monitoring early runs to see which sites an agent visits and why. Anthony adds a security lens, noting spoofed pages, homograph domains, and other phishing traps that emerge when browser agents roam the web. Both advocate a human-in-the-loop approach that balances capability with oversight, especially for sensitive tasks.
Inside AIWise, the playbook starts with clarifying strategy and a roadmap, then moves to implementation (or hand-off to internal dev teams) and leadership training. For automation, Luke mixes code and no-code: Python for control, reliability and richer state handling; Make.com (and, for developers, n8n) for fast proofs-of-concept that clients can self-manage. The north star is embedding AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... directly inside core systems and workflows, shipping quick wins via no-code where sensible, then migrating in-house for scale, orchestration (containers, agents) and long-term maintainability.
They then explore when not to use agents. For repeatable processes such as content pipelines, a simple workflow often beats a free-roaming agent on cost, speed, and reliability. Anthony cites scraping projects where agent costs ballooned, while Gareth shares a LinkedIn workflow that runs on lightweight steps in a shared sheet, with research, condensing, tone-of-voice prompts, and human review. This approach is easier to debugDebugging is the process of a developer working through code in order to try and find any error or bug...., avoids the variability of large models, and delivers predictable ROI for marketing and operations teams.
On talent and skills, Gareth acknowledges that roles will change and some jobs will go, yet the best response is to upskill and let AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... amplify existing strengths. Drawing on examples from law and creative work, they note that experts using AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... are busier than ever because they combine judgement with acceleration. Anthony cautions that DIY builds can hide structural issues such as empty databases or non-functional features, which is why domain knowledge and clear instructions still matter. The takeaway is simple: AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... raises the floor and the ceiling; invest in skills, keep humans in the loop, and choose pragmatic workflows over hype.
Finally, they assess today’s tool choices. The uplift from recent model shifts feels modest compared with the collaboration gap, where shareable projects and team workflows remain the blocker. Gareth sees strong enterprise adoption of Claude and advises buyers not to default to Microsoft Copilot or ChatGPT by habit. Instead, run a one-week bake-off with Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini, compare security posture, collaboration features, and day-to-day usability, then standardise on the platform that fits your organisation. The goal is faster, safer collaboration rather than chasing headlines.
Key Topics
- Rise of pre-built AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... agents and how to brief them effectively
- Prompt injection and agent security risks in web-facing workflows
- Human-in-the-loop control
- Monitoring agent behaviour
- Agents versus workflow automation
- LinkedIn content pipeline
- AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... job fears and upskilling
- Experts plus AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through...: raising the floor and the ceiling while avoiding vibe-coding pitfalls
- Model updates and enterprise tool choice
Important Time Stamps
- The 90/10 Rule of AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... Agents: Use > Build (0:07 – 5:05)
- Don’t Hand Over the Keys: Human-in-the-Loop AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... Agents (5:06 – 10:20)
- Agents vs Workflows: Stop Using an Agent Hammer for Every Nail (10:21 – 14:45)
- Stop Cherry-Picking AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... Fails: Upskill and Stay Relevant (14:46 – 20:48)
- AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... Won’t Steal Your Job But Someone Using It Might (20:49 – 27:07)
- Ignore the Hot Takes and Test Your AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... Stack Properly (27:08 – 36:04)
- Software, Not Souls: Stop Calling AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a very large and broad spectrum of technologies which most people would be familiar with through... “Conscious” (36:05 – 38:40)
