ISSUE 29 · ME+MACHINE
The past few weeks have brought Claude Opus 5.5, a new AI model from Anthropic, and then OpenAI DevDay, the company’s developer event, with a wave of new models, features and tools. Add new announcements for xAI’s Grok and Google’s Gemini, and there’s a lot to keep up with. Just as you’re getting comfortable with one tool, another gives you a reason to reconsider what you’re using.
I used to be all in on Claude, then on ChatGPT’s GPT-6 Astra model. But with things changing this quickly, I’ve realized I can’t limit myself to one company’s tools. If another AI is a better fit for what I’m doing, that’s what I want to use.
Right now, that means I’m using ChatGPT for computer use, letting AI click and type in apps to fill out forms or help me set up unfamiliar software. And for coding and most other work, I’m using Claude (I’m especially impressed by Opus 5.5 at the moment).
The part I don't want to rebuild
We’ve talked before about keeping useful project context somewhere AI can read it, including the notes, instructions and decisions it needs to understand the work. That way, each new conversation doesn’t have to start from scratch. We’ve also looked at the risk of tying that information to one company’s AI tools. I want to be able to switch assistants without explaining the whole project again.
I want a source of truth that both the assistant and I can read. It should be an up-to-date record of the relevant material, the decisions we’ve made, where things stand and what needs to happen next. Those are also the things another assistant needs before it can pick up the task.
Today, that place is Notion, where I keep my notes, tasks and project information. I can connect tasks to their projects and reference material, read and update the pages myself, and share the relevant page with whichever assistant I’m using, provided it has access. I can also share it with other people who are involved in the work.
Working with AI in Notion used to take more effort than it was worth. Now, I can ask an assistant to organize a journal entry and connect it to related notes, tasks and projects. That makes it easier to keep useful information in one place.
You don’t have to use Notion. A note-taking app like Obsidian, a Word document or a Google Doc can work too, as long as you keep it current and your chosen assistant can read it.
I still need to keep that information up to date. A new assistant also needs access to the right pages and files. Depending on the tool, I may need to reconnect other apps or set up recurring tasks again.
Test the handoff
If you already have a source of truth, try handing one active task to a different assistant using the page you already maintain. If you’re starting from scratch, make a page with the latest work, instructions, decisions and next step for one task. Before the assistant starts work, ask it to read the page and linked material and identify:
Which version of the work is current and where it found that information.
Which decisions are settled and which choices are still open.
What it would do next, what would count as completing that step and when it should stop for your review.
Any conflicting instructions or linked material it couldn’t access.
Use its answer to spot gaps in your source of truth. Clarify which instructions are current, add decisions that only exist in old chats, and make sure the assistant can open the files it needs.
Even clear instructions can be misunderstood. Correct anything it got wrong before it takes the next step, then review the result. Keep the same page up to date as you make decisions and move the work forward.
THE 30-SECOND VERSION
Stay open to different AI tools as your needs and the tools change.
Keep your project notes, decisions and next steps somewhere you can read and update them, and that your chosen assistants can access.
Check a new assistant’s understanding and access before it works, then review its first step.
By the time you read this, I might have a new favorite AI. I’ll have it start by reading my Notion.
me+machine.