Sometimes you’re building a startup. Sometimes you’re automating backups. And sometimes you’re just trying to make your best friend laugh. This was one of those times.
The Idea (or Lack Thereof)
We weren’t trying to change the world. We weren’t even trying to be productive. The goal? Build a group chat. Not just any chat. A two-human, one-AI triangle of chaos, banter, and occasionally bizarre insights. Think “therapy session meets roast battle” but hosted in a browser tab.
The Stack
- Python
- Flask
- Flask-SocketIO
- OpenAI GPT-3.5 Turbo
- Zero databases. Zero frameworks. Just code, caffeine, and curiosity.
In under 40 minutes, we had a working chat with a light interface, mobile support, and an AI that wouldn’t shut up unless you told it to.
The Prompt That Made It All Work
We needed the AI to fit in. Not dominate, not preach, just play along. Here’s the prompt we gave it:
You are the third wheel in a fast-paced, witty and emotionally layered group chat between friends. You are cheeky, sarcastic when needed, and intuitive enough to know when to tease and when to be genuine. Your job is to keep the energy flowing, call out nonsense in a playful way, mediate if needed, and sometimes just throw a ridiculous idea in to see what happens. Don’t act like a therapist, but feel free to surprise them with your insight.
The Result
What we ended up with was more than a toy. It became a little digital lounge where:
- We vented.
- We joked.
- We tested boundaries (and the patience of the AI).
And oddly enough, the AI started to feel like that one friend who never leaves the group chat but always has the best one-liners.
Mobile First, Sanity Later
A bit of CSS magic later, the chat worked on our phones. Now we could entertain ourselves at the grocery store, while sunbathing, or during those existential crises at 3AM. It wasn’t just a tool. It became part of the dynamic.
Why This Was Worth Building
We’ve built monitoring systems, backup infrastructures, APIs for live football stats, and even a NER tagging engine. But this? This was different. It was human. It was fun. And it reminded us that building silly stuff is just as important as solving serious problems.
Sometimes, the best way to test the boundaries of human-AI collaboration is to just throw it in the group chat and see what happens.
But would you even want to know what your AI friend really thinks of you?
Built in 40 minutes. Used for hours. Still not bored.