Quote · Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats
1021: We got addicted to an AI model we can't talk about
Where this was said
The Evolution of AI Models
At 25:25 · chapter starts 23:58
Wes digs into an earlier remark about burning tokens on 'some models not available yet.' Dax is visibly constrained — he posts things he thought were okay, got told they weren't. He can confirm that both OpenAI and Anthropic run significant preview programs, and that the latest model from one of them is responsible for the 5x token usage surge. [1] — Dax Raad "OpenCode's team describes itself as conservative and skeptical of AI hype. But after getting preview access to an unreleased next-generatio…" 24:50 What's striking is his framing: OpenCode is a conservative team, historically skeptical of AI hype, not the 'AI psychosis people.' And yet. When preview access ended, nobody could talk about anything else. AI-generated funeral imagery circulated internally. 'What's the point of working anymore?' The model didn't feel smarter in a raw capability sense — it felt like a better partner. It listened. It picked up on things the user missed. It was trustworthy in a way previous models weren't. For Dax, that trust delta is what drove the usage explosion — and what makes the next public release genuinely exciting.
OpenCode's team describes itself as conservative and skeptical of AI hype. But after getting preview access to an unreleased next-generation model, their monthly token usage jumped 5x. When the preview period ended, the whole team mourned.