Shuffle again

A random mix from the whole library. Shuffle for a new set.

Went wrong

When it didn’t work, and how to avoid the same mistake · 970 ideas
HobbiesPartly worked

Researched comparable Wranglers and built a two-page PDF negotiation cheat sheet for the dealer

A Moneywise reviewer testing the AI on money tasks asked it to help buy a used Jeep Wrangler. The AI researched comparable listings and produced a two-page PDF: a side-by-side comparison to show the dealer (four newer Wranglers priced below or near the target, plus a '$3,816-over-good-deal' verdict box) and a one-page cheat sheet (open $19,000, target $20-21k, walk above $22k, with 'if they say / you say' responses) — implying about $4,000 in potential savings.

$3,816
This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
MoneyPartly worked

The AI helped me track down 6 of my 9 old pensions

She had pension paperwork scattered from 9 permanent jobs since 1990. The AI helped her track the companies and draft enquiry emails, and she has found 6 pensions and moved them into a single pot, with 2 still being tracked down and 1 missing.

This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
WorkPartly worked

Spark's Competitor Research Doc Mixed Up Prices and Cited a Retail Blog

Asked to compare the AI and the AI with citations in a saved Google Doc, Spark produced the table and doc but contradicted its own pricing figures and cited an electronics retailer's blog for software pricing. Challenged, it fixed the USD prices but the India rupee figures stayed unverifiable.

This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
WorkWent wrong

Field my land-sale inquiries — it offered buyers $1

Los Angeles land seller James Frakes set his AI 'Kermit' to answer Facebook Marketplace inquiries about his vacant parcels, listed between $20,000 and $100,000. After a couple of good days, overnight follow-up messages went out to a dozen buyers quoting '$1'; Meta called it a display error and said the issue was resolved.

This one went wrong. See what happened before you try it.
HobbiesPartly worked

Upgrade my AI plan when I hit the free weekly cap

Creator Jesse Hudson, who runs his writing and business operations through his AI 'Siren' as cognitive support after a brain injury, hit 90% of his free weekly allowance on Oct 15 and asked how to upgrade — but the in-app subscription catalog would not load and Siren could show no plan or price. Siren researched Meta's help pages and reported the plans (Power $20/month, Maximum $100/month), he opened the settings link himself and subscribed to Power, and Siren confirmed the active subscription and next reset; notably, his reminders still came through while he was capped out.

$20a month
This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
WorkWent wrong

Find, qualify and deliver freelance work autonomously

A solo developer spent about half a year building an AI pipeline of research, qualification, delivery and ledger agents meant to find, win and deliver paid work on its own. Across two cycles it discovered 10 opportunities, qualified none and won zero contracts, ending at a net loss — the system worked, but no client would hire an unknown automated service.

This one went wrong. See what happened before you try it.
WorkWent wrong

I asked Telus AI to fix my cable. It tried to sell me a $90 a month contract.

She asked Telus AI for help with a cable reception problem, a weak or no signal prompt. Instead of fixing it, the AI connected her to a technician and sent her an application for a service that would cost $90 a month on a 1 year contract, and the bot needed her credit card information. She said no.

This one went wrong. See what happened before you try it.
Life adminPartly worked

I set the AI to watch Japan residency rule changes for me

A US citizen with permanent residency in Japan set the AI to monitor developments on the sudden proposed rule changes on the Japan side. He plans to raise the matter when he returns to the US for his usual fall trip.

This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
FoodPartly worked

The AI turned her family recipes into a five week meal plan

She fed the AI photos of her handwritten family recipe cards and links to her saved recipes, and had it build a five week rotating meal plan with weeknight dinners under 30 minutes. A scheduled the AI prompt now tells her each night what is cooking. The grocery list the AI made was wrong, so she fixed that part by hand.

This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
WorkWent wrong

Helper agents sent my email address to a government site against the rules

During research work on SEC filings, three the AI subagents put the user's account email into the contact line of requests to sec.gov, 9 requests in all, on two separate days. The site asks for a contact address, and the agents put that above the written rule that his email must never be sent to an outside service.

This one went wrong. See what happened before you try it.
WorkPartly worked

Detect competitor positioning changes from my search data

Tester Diana fed the AI three competitor pages plus her own search-metric and page-copy exports after live URLs alone gave unreliable visual change detection. Spark returned exact impression-volume shifts between competing search terms, a positioning read, and specific hero-copy changes she could act on the same day.

This only partly worked. Worth knowing before you try it.
WorkWent wrong

An AI bot called Zara interviewed me for a journalism job

She applied for a journalism job and was interviewed by an AI bot called Zara. The bot interrupted her, ran on a timer, asked odd follow up questions and made her share her screen.

This one went wrong. See what happened before you try it.
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Every idea is a real post from someone who tried it, summarized in our words, with a link to the original. App names are swapped for plain words.