How Do I Get Ready for a Live AI Agent Build Session?
So if you haven't had a moment, please do use the link in the chat to create your free trial account.
Have the free trial account ready, one routine you repeat in mind, a choice made about your email, and Zoom on mute. In the dictation step you speak to your AI agent for one to two minutes, then put a thumbs up in the chat.
Before the build starts, go ahead and create your free trial account. At the top of the Women Applying AI session on October 7, 2026 I asked everyone to use the link in the chat to do exactly that, and I asked them to ask any question about the build without apologizing for it (3:27 and 3:31).
What do you set up before the session starts?
First, the account. My words at the top of the hour:
From the recording, 2:38. So if you haven't had a moment, please do use the link in the chat to create your free trial account.
The session page lists what else to bring: your laptop, the Google account you use every day (or a short list of open items you can paste in), and one real thing you have been meaning to follow up on. The page is here. The phone reminder for day 12 of the trial is covered in How Do I Try Gumloop Free Without a Surprise Charge?.
The build in the session ran in Gumloop. My disclosure about it:
From the recording, 33:22. I don't work for Gumloop. I found this tool over the summer through Lenny's podcast, and I started using it and have since made myself an ambassador for them. I've created a relationship with Gumloop. I am not an employee.
The trial is 14 days and Gumloop asks for a card. Checked on 2026-11-05 against Gumloop's help page on cancelling a plan or trial.
Second, the routine. The session built a chief of staff AI agent, and I said that if you came in knowing exactly what you'd use an AI agent for, feel free to deviate slightly (4:53).
From the recording, 4:34. So if you have a routine that you repeat frequently, you can customize this agent to take on that repetitive task.
What about privacy, security and email?
I addressed two common questions before building anything.
From the recording, 6:29. And the first one is, what about privacy? And the second one is, what about security?
I posted Gumloop's policy on privacy and security in the chat for the group (6:35). The session page also asks you to pick how the AI agent reads your day before you open the platform: connect your inbox, paste a short list, or both. The decision itself is laid out in How Do I Connect Email to an AI Agent Without Giving It Too Much Access?.
What happens when you dictate?
The dictation step is where the group spoke their goals to the AI agent. The steps, as shown October 7, 2026:
- 01
Mute Zoom.
I asked everyone to double check before starting (11:34).
- 02
Click the microphone feature.
Once Zoom was on mute (11:39).
- 03
Speak into the dictate feature.
I gave the group about two minutes (13:37).
- 04
Put a thumbs up in the chat when you finish.
I used the thumbs to see where the group was (13:39).
From the recording, 11:21. I tend to find that speaking into the microphone for one to two minutes gives my system enough information to start working.
From the recording, 11:37. Make sure your Zoom is on mute.
From the recording, 13:39. When you finish, please put a thumbs up in the chat just so I can monitor where we are and we'll move forward from the next step after that.
What goes wrong
Three things came up in the session.
Pressing the up arrow too early. My instruction while the group was still speaking:
From the recording, 13:46. Do not press the up arrow yet. Only speak into your agent.
A screen that changes after the up arrow. I said so before it happened:
From the recording, 16:56. Do not be alarmed. This is a regular part of the build process.
My own screen looking different from yours:
From the recording, 8:12. My screen may look a little different from yours.
And falling behind. A participant said they did not feel comfortable moving fast for this build. I answered:
From the recording, 41:50. Totally understand, continue to follow along. We only have an hour. So unfortunately I can't move too slow on this, but I want you to feel comfortable.
If you are watching the replay, I said on October 7, 2026 that the recording and a deck would be shared afterward:
From the recording, 39:31. Yes, the recording will be shared afterwards as well as a presentation deck that you can use as a companion to the recording.
What the recording does not show: the Zoom chat, where I said the links and the questions were.
Where this comes from
This article grows from the session I taught live with Women Applying AI on October 7, 2026. The quoted passages are my own words, taken verbatim from the recording. The steps, tables and checklists around them were drafted by my team's AI agents from those words and my published pages, and checked against the recording before publishing. Screen steps are dated as shown October 7, 2026, and screens change. Platform facts that have a public source carry the dated line above.
Build Your First AI Agent in One Hour: the full session with the clips, the prompts and the transcript.
Related reading: How Do We Close the AI Fluency Gap?, The session page, with every step.
Frequently asked questions
What do I bring to a live build?
The session page lists your laptop, the Google account you use every day or a short list of open items to paste, and one real thing you have been meaning to follow up on.
How long do I speak to the AI agent?
I tend to find that one to two minutes into the microphone gives my system enough information to start working, and in the session I gave the group about two minutes (13:37).
What if I cannot keep up?
My reply to a participant who was not comfortable moving fast was to continue to follow along (41:50). On October 7, 2026 I said the recording and a presentation deck would be shared afterward.
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