Curious Business: The B2B Growth Podcast

Can business people create software now? Nigel Jay Cooper on developing with AI

Feb 11, 2026

Nigel Jay Cooper, writer and founder of Ghostart who helps professionals write authentic LinkedIn content, explains why AI often produces ‘beige’ posts. He shares how he built an AI-backed platform without being a developer. Topics include treating AI as a disciplined dev team, the Beige-ometer for rhythm and emotion, and why launching an imperfect beta accelerated progress.

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INSIGHT

The Beige Content Problem

Nigel Jay Cooper observed LinkedIn is flooded with generic, AI-generated "beige" posts that lack personality and spark.
He concluded the problem isn't AI itself but people using it to replace their own voice rather than augment it.

ADVICE

Focus On How People Use AI

Do accept that people will use AI and focus on shaping how they use it, not banning it outright.
Use AI to preserve humanity and personality in writing rather than to replace them.

ANECDOTE

Non‑Developer Built A Platform

Nigel had previously managed development teams but built Ghostart himself using AI tools instead of hiring developers.
He describes the work as intense, with many months of building and beta iterations despite the "vibe coding" label.

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What happens when a professional writer who finds AI-generated content "quite horrific" decides to build an AI writing platform to help people show up more authentically on LinkedIn? With AI as his development team?

Nigel Jay Cooper found himself in exactly that position. He'd spent a decade training professionals and teams in employee advocacy to create authentic LinkedIn content and was determined to fight the flood of ‘beige’ content generated by ChatGPT et al - thoughtless, generic posts lacking personality and spark.

His first instinct was to fight against AI. But when everyone kept using it anyway, he realised he was fighting the wrong battle. The question wasn't whether people would use AI. The question was: can they use it in a way that reflects their personality, experience and humanity? So he set out to build Ghostart, even though he's not a software developer.

Listen to this episode of Curious Business as Nigel shares how he built Ghostart over the past year, and discusses:

The beige content crisis: Why AI-generated LinkedIn posts are "soul destroying" and how people remove themselves from their own voice
Building with AI: Using different models for different purposes, learning through trial and error, and managing the "700,000 suggestions you didn't want" that the LLMs tend to spit out
The technical journey: From two aborted platform attempts to the approach that makes AI development productive and effective
The Beige-ometer: Training an AI writing coach in rhythm, emotion, and storytelling - not optimising to LinkedIn's algorithm
Why your beta test should make you feel ashamed: The essential advice that propelled the platform forward

Chapters:

0:01:06 - The Beige Content Problem

0:04:27 - Who Ghost Art Serves

0:09:10 - Building with AI - The Vibe Coding Reality

0:11:47 - Tools and Techniques

0:17:31 - Keeping AI Focused

0:21:20 - The Hardest Parts to Build

0:27:17 - The Beta Launch

0:30:53 - What Users Actually Valued

0:35:47 - Lessons and Success

Links:

More about Ghostart and try it free:
https://ghostart.io

Request a demo:
https://ghostart.io/teams/demo

Connect with Nigel on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nigeljaycooper/

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