Fast Hours

Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn
  • 5.0 (16)
  • Design
  • Updated Weekly

The AI podcast made for designers, marketers, and creative leaders who want real workflows, tips, and insights from two dudes actually using it in their professional work. Every week, Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn pull apart the newest tools, test the techniques, and show you what's actually worth your time. From Midjourney to Seedance to Claude to whatever ships tomorrow. They cover the things that worked, the things that didn't, and the parts nobody posts about.

  1. 11h ago

    How AI Is Making Human Creativity More Valuable

    AI is making creative production faster while increasing the value of human craft, imperfection, and hands-on creative control.Drew and Rory start with Netflix’s 300 AI-assisted programs and somehow end up defending Blockbuster, boxy cars, greasy roommates, and the radical act of making creative work harder on purpose. Between the usual intellectual potholes, they uncover why invisible AI succeeds, why perfect outputs are becoming exhausting, and why human-made work may become the premium signal.Covered in this episode:Netflix generative AI workflows span concept development, pre-visualization, visual effects, post-production, and release. Suno, Udio, Strudel, Foley artistry, AI music licensing, Runway visual storytelling, Claude, ChatGPT, Figma shaders, Photoshop retouching, creative consistency, nostalgic design, imperfect aesthetics, and hybrid human-AI production define the broader creative shift.---⏱️ Fast Hour00:00 Why are guests returning to Fast Hours?03:45 Why does summer trigger nostalgia?10:49 How is Netflix using generative AI?20:39 Could Blockbuster have become Netflix?24:04 What AI tools has Netflix open-sourced?28:36 What did the Suno breach reveal?32:21 Should AI be used to make music?43:31 Breaking down Runway's lamp film—hy does it work?51:43 How many movie story arcs exist?53:32 Does AI increase the value of human craft?57:53 Why are creators rejecting AI perfection?01:06:16 Why is nostalgic design returning?01:17:09 Why do simple stories feel better?01:23:09 How do AI projects maintain consistency?01:25:43 Who should Fast Hours interview next?#GenerativeAI #AIFilmmaking #AIMusic #CreativeProcess #FastHours

  2. Jul 12

    She Cracked AI Advertising Before Brands Were Ready

    In Episode 73, Salma Aboukarr joins the show. A creative director and founder, she explains how she moved from painstaking CGI workflows in Blender and 3Ds Max to AI-native campaigns for brands including Coca-Cola, Panasonic, and Google Labs. She breaks down her viral IKEA exploding-room video that helped brands see the commercial potential of generative AI video, the detailed JSON prompting method behind it, and the modern AI creative stack she uses across Claude, Midjourney, Nano Banana, Seedance, FAL.ai, Z-Image Turbo, Qwen, style LoRAs, and custom AI agents.The conversation goes deep on AI advertising, product fidelity, photorealistic skin, color correction, video upscaling, automated client workflows, and why high-end AI work still depends on original concepts, trained taste, and obsessive finishing. They debate whether AI can truly be original, why technical teams struggle to manufacture taste, how creators survive a feed flooded with AI content, and why the next creative moat may come from the experiences, references, and strange little details nobody else can copy.---⏱️ Fast Hour00:00 Meet Salma Aboukarr02:17 From CGI agency to AI-first studio04:44 Product fidelity before AI got good07:34 The duct-taped road to photorealism11:10 Art direction beyond basic prompting14:28 Salma’s current AI creative stack16:08 How she stress-tests every new model20:20 Why color correction still matters22:25 The IKEA video that changed everything27:13 Going viral and handling AI backlash30:38 Originality as the next creative moat33:05 Can AI actually be original?38:52 Inside an AI-native creative agency39:55 Z-Image Turbo and aesthetic base models43:06 From client brief to automated pipeline47:54 Style LoRAs for brand consistency49:11 Claude, MCP, FAL, and leaving ComfyUI51:07 The model that cut a day to 15 minutes55:13 Why AI content stopped feeling special01:00:57 The value trapped in AI archives01:02:06 Create for yourself or the audience?01:04:31 Can engineers manufacture taste?01:08:38 Finding inspiration outside the feed01:11:57 Jackie Chan and thumbnail fuel01:15:29 Final lessons from a creative trailblazer#AICreative #AIAdvertising #GenerativeAI #AIVideo #CreativeDirection #Midjourney #ClaudeAI #NanoBanana #SeedanceAI #AIWorkflow #AIAgency #AIContentCreation #BrandMarketing #CreativeTechnology #ProductPhotography #AIBranding #FutureOfAdvertising #FastHours

  3. Jul 4

    Taste Isn't the AI Moat You Think It Is

    The boys are back with episode 72, where Rory Flynn and Drew Brucker attempt to discuss AI like serious adults. Yeah, that didn't work. They immediately detour into Figma Config, Waymo trust issues, Invisalign lisp watch, and the quiet horror of paying for AI models that may or may not be getting nerfed behind the curtain. This one gets into the big question creative teams keep circling: is taste still a moat in the AI era? Drew and Rory break down why “taste as a moat” is getting shakier, what types of taste are actually durable, and why timing, novelty, cultural awareness, editorial judgment, brand systems, and compounding context may matter more than ever. They also dig into Claude Fable, government access to stronger AI models, the widening gap between public and private model capability, Figma’s new AI workflows, Weavy integration, Adobe Firefly Foundry, Disney’s custom AI model deal, and Midjourney’s V8.2 preview, texture upgrades, editing roadmap, and secret search tricks. ---⏱️ Fast Hour00:00 The boys are back00:11 Rory recaps Figma Config03:13 Rory tries Waymo for the first time08:52 The algorithm ding09:59 Invisalign enters the chat10:41 Claude Fable returns nerfed13:32 AI regulation gets messy18:44 AI tools and IP risk22:33 Taste as a moat gets challenged25:02 Breaking down types of taste27:40 Timing, novelty, and AI trends29:53 Trend cycles hit warp speed31:12 AI slop can damage brands34:45 Vintage aesthetics and timing38:37 Taste needs systems now40:14 Evolving visual taste43:19 South Park and imperfect taste45:55 Figma updates and custom tools52:39 Shaders, motion, and Weavy56:01 Retention beats acquisition01:00:59 Adobe Firefly Foundry01:02:25 Disney enters custom AI models01:03:34 The custom model problem01:07:09 Midjourney preview mode01:08:18 Midjourney V8.2 texture and skin detail01:16:13 Midjourney V9 training and web redesign01:16:43 Midjourney editing roadmap01:21:34 Secret search tip01:23:03 Broken toes and podcast lore01:25:14 Listener shoutouts01:27:13 Subscribe, hype, tell a mechanic#FastHours #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #AICreative #GenerativeAI #AIArt #Midjourney #ClaudeAI #AdobeFirefly #Figma #Weavy #AITools #BrandStrategy #CreativeAI #AIWorkflow

  4. Jun 23

    Midjourney's Wildest Move Yet: Full Body Medical Scans

    Midjourney spent years helping people generate impossible images. Then it used that image money to build a machine designed to look inside the human body. In Episode 71, Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn, two men with zero medical degrees and a medically concerning level of confidence, unpack Midjourney Medical and David Holz’s surprise hardware reveal. At the center is the Midjourney Scanner, a water-based, full-body Ultrasonic CT prototype designed to capture detailed 3D body maps in roughly 60 seconds. They break down how the scanner uses sound waves, water, and serious computing power; why Midjourney plans to introduce it through a San Francisco spa; and how a bootstrapped company with no investors can make a bet this strange. They also separate the scanner’s current body-composition ambitions from the much bigger MRI-level future Midjourney hopes to pursue through research, testing, and FDA approval. Then the episode gets even less normal.Claude Fable 5 appears, dramatically accelerates Rory’s coding, Blender, and MCP workflows, and disappears days later following a US government directive. Naturally, this sends the hosts directly into Conspiracy Corner with no adult supervision. Along the way, Drew and Rory explore how brand adoption of AI has changed, why some of the most advanced commercial AI work stays hidden behind NDAs, how companies can reward employees for useful AI innovation, and why first-time reaction content remains one of the internet’s strongest viral formats. Is Midjourney’s full-body scanner a medical breakthrough, an ambitious wellness experiment, or the first clue to a much larger hardware roadmap? The hosts attempt to answer that question while also discussing the World Cup, the Knicks, government intervention, possible AI futures, and several topics their wives wisely avoid asking them about. --- ⏱️ Fast Hour 00:00 Knicks, World Cup, and viral tourism 10:14 Sports, culture, and AI gatherings 13:06 Midjourney reveals secret hardware 15:49 David Holz explains the bigger mission 18:27 The 60-second full-body medical scanner 20:18 How bootstrapping made this possible 23:26 Water, spas, and medical skepticism 28:56 The scanner demo and nine-person team 40:30 Midjourney’s bigger secret roadmap 48:11 How brand AI adoption has changed 58:57 Claude Fable 5 appears, then vanishes 1:00:41 Inside the Fable 5 conspiracy corner 1:04:48 Why Fable 5 felt revolutionary 1:13:58 The AI race and 12 possible futures 1:18:22 Four years of Midjourney and the outro

  5. Jun 7

    The Weird AI Video Formula Getting Millions of Views

    In Episode 70, Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn are joined by Tyler Bernabe, better known as jboogxcreative, a full-time generative AI creator, strategist, and social menace responsible for some of the wildest AI videos your algorithm has probably shoved into your face at 1:13 a.m. They get into how Tyler has gone viral across multiple generations of AI tools, why copying trends is creative quicksand, how shock value actually works when it is paired with taste, and why the best AI creators are building formats instead of chasing them. The conversation also goes deep into the unglamorous machinery behind creative internet magic: Instagram to Patreon funnels, ManyChat, six-hour livestreams, creator burnout, client work, taste, consistency, and why “just post more” is advice usually given by people who should post less. Then things get properly nerdy. Tyler breaks down his current AI creative stack, including Midjourney 8.1, Seedance, Claude, YAML-style video prompting, Nano Banana, GPT image editing, Kling, Artcraft, Venice AI, Magnific/Freepik Spaces, Weavy, Reeve 2.0, and the never-ending wait for a proper Midjourney editor. Along the way, they cover Chinese prompt translation for Seedance, 10,000-character prompt workflows, reference image construction, anime style development, mood board blending, why AI should sometimes pull you away from your own creative bias, and why the smallest edit in AI video still feels like defusing a tiny cursed bomb. ⏱️ Fast Hour00:00 Fast Hours welcomes Tyler aka jboogxcreative01:51 Going viral through every AI era02:35 The anatomy of scroll-stopping AI03:07 The seductive food video origin story05:32 Running opposite the AI meta08:24 Is AI art? Tyler’s best answer10:35 Why clients pay for your thing12:10 Stop copying other creators17:11 Viral views vs real conversion22:03 Building a creator business solo26:28 Burnout, longevity, and going through it33:05 Tyler’s current AI tool stack38:15 Artcraft, Seedance, and Chinese prompts42:05 Claude, YAML, and 10K prompts50:44 Tyler’s reference image hack58:15 Dream sketches and creative prototyping01:04:10 Reve 2.0 and layered editing01:10:38 Waiting for Midjourney’s editor01:16:02 Closing thoughts #FastHours #jboogxcreative #AIVideo #AIArt #GenerativeAI#Midjourney #Seedance #ClaudeAI #AICreator #AIWorkflow #ContentCreation #AIPrompting #CreatorEconomy #AIAnimation#CreativeAI

  6. May 24

    Google Dropped Too Many AI Tools. Which Ones Matter?

    Drew and Rory are back for episode 69, which is legally required to begin with at least one immature joke before immediately collapsing under the weight of Google’s latest AI product avalanche.This week, they dig into Google Omni, Gemini 3.5 Flash, Google Flow, Google Pics, Nano Banana, Veo, and whatever else Google launched before anyone had time to make coffee. The big question: are these actually meaningful creative upgrades, or did Google just throw 19 AI names into a blender and call it innovation?They break down early Omni and Flow tests, why video physics still feel weird, where Seedance and Kling may still be ahead, and why Runway Aleph 2.0 feels promising but imperfect. Rory shares hands-on examples with character swaps, driving videos, golf swings, agent mode, and Flow’s new tool-building features. Drew tries to keep the conversation coherent while quietly wondering if every AI product now needs a map, glossary, and mild sedative.The episode also gets into Gemini as a search replacement, creepy context awareness, privacy tradeoffs, AI tools connecting to personal data, the fuzzy definition of “agentic,” the limits of auto-clipping tools, GPT Image 2’s SynthID watermarking, metadata headaches for client work, and the universal pain of wasting $15 trying to make an image model spell “stump.”If you’re trying to understand what Google’s AI updates actually mean for creators, marketers, AI video workflows, image generation, creative direction, and the future of agentic media tools, this episode is half useful breakdown, half group therapy for people with too many tabs open.---⏱️ Fast Hour00:00 Cold open00:32 Google’s AI naming avalanche01:39 AI hype vs actual workflow value02:34 Why AI launches feel like iPhone upgrades06:12 Google’s “throw everything” strategy07:08 Omni vs Veo 4 expectations07:43 Video physics and speed problems09:03 Google Pics, Flow, Omni, and Flash10:04 How Rory actually uses Gemini11:51 Gemini 3.5 Flash breakdown12:38 AI benchmarks feel like marketing13:42 Gemini as a better search layer15:18 Creepy Gemini context awareness17:35 Why AI data connections feel too early19:15 The privacy tradeoff gets darker21:19 Google Omni vs Runway Aleph 2.022:12 Google Omni testing starts rough23:39 Google Veo 3.1 feels forgettable25:21 Why Omni feels early26:19 Higgsfield clipper test fails27:59 Why auto-clipping still misses31:30 Rory tests Flow and Omni live32:41 Omni character swap struggles33:33 Runway Aleph panda test34:07 Flow’s new interface and tools35:02 Building custom tools inside Flow36:10 The joy of making tools from nothing37:39 Agent mode for still-image workflows39:05 Batch creative directions in Flow40:03 Omni turns six images into video40:47 Driving physics still feel off41:55 Why consistency matters for adoption43:03 Kling, Seedance, and the update race43:59 Seedance handles complex camera motion45:42 GPT Image setup for golf video46:53 Testing the same prompt in Flow49:25 Why agentic platforms can feel thin51:10 The need for visual design systems52:21 Flow’s golf swing result53:56 Everyone is racing toward agentic54:18 What “agentic” actually means56:03 Claude feels more genuinely agentic57:04 Josh Hart quote analysis detour58:44 Reverse-engineering creative patterns59:53 Pizza, calzones, and prompt structure01:00:26 SynthID and GPT Image 2 watermarking01:01:47 Metadata problems for client work01:02:51 Google Pics enters the chat01:04:03 Too many image models to track01:04:52 Midjourney color still hits different01:06:01 GPT Image 2 quality frustration01:06:59 Image models still struggle with scale01:08:26 Bad AI weeks happen too01:09:20 Midjourney 8.2 speculation01:10:01 Tell your florist

  7. May 17

    The Prompt Is Dead, Long Live the Reference + The Monet Trap

    In episode 68 of Fast Hours, Drew and Rory return from a two-week hiatus to prove that yes, the AI news cycle did continue without their permission. Rude. They dig into Freepik changing its name to Magnific, why enterprise AI image tools are starting to feel more like creative operating systems, and how brands may be better off using approved model aggregators instead of building weird internal Franken-tools that immediately become outdated. Then things get nerdier. Obviously. Rory breaks down how he’s using Codex, GPT-Image-2, Claude Code, MCPs, Higgsfield, Seedance, and visual style reference sheets to create repeatable image systems, character references, and bulk creative workflows without living inside a giant text prompt forever. Drew pushes into where Midjourney V8.1 still dominates, especially photorealistic faces, color, texture, and images that do not look like corporate stock photography that lost the will to live. They also talk about Midjourney’s upcoming 8.2, 8.3, V9 roadmap, edit model ambiguity, personalization drift, Luma Uni comparisons, Pinterest’s internal AI image model, Salesforce going headless, and why AI video audio still sounds like it was recorded inside a cursed podcast booth. And because no episode is complete without accidentally getting philosophical, they close with the viral Claude Monet AI social experiment, the weird bias people bring to AI-generated images, and why “how it was made” keeps hijacking whether people can actually see what’s in front of them. Basically, it’s an episode about the future of AI creative tools, with two guys trying to sound calm while the ground turns into soup beneath them. -- ⏱️ Fast Hour 00:00 Cold open01:12 AI news fatigue is real01:44 Claude Code runs the day now03:11 Remote work and coffee shop crimes08:21 3 Ninjas nostalgia break10:09 Freepik becomes Magnific11:47 Why Magnific works for enterprise13:00 Model aggregators vs internal tools18:01 Pinterest builds its own AI image model22:11 Salesforce goes "headless"24:08 Higgsfield, MCPs, and Meta ads29:51 Codex for GPT-Image-2 workflows32:45 Pulling style from video frames34:05 Building visual style reference sheets37:36 Codex and textured illustration systems39:34 The evolution beyond text prompts41:50 Seedance storyboards and visual prompts43:01 Reference images as reusable seeds44:51 AI video still has an audio problem46:13 Audio reference hacks in Dreamina50:52 Omni-reference for video control52:37 Midjourney V8.1 updated take53:28 The blue and pink problem returns55:37 Midjourney still owns realistic faces58:56 Reworking old prompts with Describe01:01:10 Luma Uni vs Midjourney color01:02:11 Midjourney 8.2, 8.3, and V901:03:46 Midjourney edit model questions01:07:13 Midjourney plus Seedance films01:09:03 Midjourney’s strange lane01:12:28 The Monet AI social experiment01:15:13 Why people over-detect AI01:20:09 AI backlash and disclosure debates01:22:50 AI as a career unlock01:24:30 Keep making weird stuff01:25:45 Wrap-up and seamstress CTA

  8. Apr 26

    GPT Image 2 Is Good. But Is It Nano Good?

    Fast Hours has entered the witness protection program. Same Drew. Same Rory. But fewer syllables and more chaos.In this episode, Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn officially drop “Midjourney” from the podcast name and relaunch as Fast Hours, a broader home for the creative AI ecosystem: image models, video models, LLMs, vibe coding, Claude, ChatGPT, Midjourney, and whatever tool drops five minutes after they hit publish. Naturally, the rebrand lasts about four minutes before they’re elbows-deep in GPT-Image-2, OpenAI’s new ChatGPT image model that quietly showed up and immediately started making designers question their calendar, career choices, and relationship with kerning.The big topic: GPT-Image-2 is shockingly good with text, typography, brand systems, visual decks, product mockups, and multi-image outputs. Rory walks through how he used ChatGPT and Claude to create a custom typeface from visual references, generate a premium typography presentation, extract geometry, and turn the whole thing into usable font files. Drew then shows how he turned his own handwriting into a working typeface, because apparently “personal brand” now includes making your lowercase g file a tax asset.They also dig into the uncomfortable middle ground of AI creative work: when it saves time, when it still needs human judgment, why anti-AI panic and AI hype both miss the point, and why the real advantage is context. Not prompts. Not magic buttons. Context.The episode also covers GPT-Image-2 vs Nano Banana Pro, richer color rendering, micro-text improvements, AI-generated sports graphics, brand kit concepts, Freepik settings, Claude Design, 4K video generation, Kling, Veo 3.1, Seedance, and the strange reality that a custom brand typeface can now go from “that’ll be $150K” to “Rory did it before lunch.”Basically, it’s an episode about the exact moment creative production stops feeling like a tool demo and starts feeling li ke a factory someone accidentally left unlocked.---⏱️ Fast Hour00:00 Fast Hours is (re)born03:36 Going tool-agnostic04:34 GPT-Image-2 quietly drops05:31 Text becomes the unlock07:31 The AI backlash returns10:57 Hype, fear, and the middle12:10 Typography gets weird14:50 What custom fonts cost15:43 GPT-Image-2 vs Nano Banana17:39 Rory’s font experiment18:47 Fiddleheads become a typeface19:39 Building the type deck20:36 The nine-slide image unlock21:14 Geometry, spacing, and logic22:11 Turning images into font files23:02 Micro-text gets better24:19 Claude builds the font package26:41 The revision loop changes27:50 Context is the silver bullet32:11 Drew makes a handwriting font35:35 Why designers obsess over type37:52 Reverse-engineering prompts39:51 Richer color and sports graphics41:27 Fixing artifacts and details42:37 Nano Banana vs GPT-Image-2 tests44:26 Sports realism gets scary good45:27 Why teams need this now46:43 Freepik settings and ratios48:36 Testing, tokens, and limits49:44 Brand kits and rebrand concepts53:19 Google I/O and the next model53:48 Veo 3.1 falls behind55:04 Kling adds native 4K56:40 Character sheets and macros58:07 Rebrands as visual prototypes01:00:53 Building a reference library01:01:36 Three weeks in a row01:02:58 Claude Design tease01:03:37 Tell your local [fill in the blank] spam finale

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5
out of 5
16 Ratings

About

The AI podcast made for designers, marketers, and creative leaders who want real workflows, tips, and insights from two dudes actually using it in their professional work. Every week, Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn pull apart the newest tools, test the techniques, and show you what's actually worth your time. From Midjourney to Seedance to Claude to whatever ships tomorrow. They cover the things that worked, the things that didn't, and the parts nobody posts about.

Information

  • Creator
    Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    74
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Drew Brucker and Rory Flynn
  • Show Website
    Fast Hours

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