How simplicity & flexibility give you leverage. Plus, "safe AI practices."

Creating code that's a multiplier, making you move faster, is your key to success. That's the convergence of simplicity & flexibility. Plus, Zach Daniel on the power of AI usage rules.

Screenshots courtesy of Zach Daniel’s Ash AI Launch (ElixirConf EU 2025).

AI is evolving so fast it’s hard to stay on top of all the changes. Just six months ago, so many of the tools we use now didn’t exist or where woefully flawed — nothing in AI is stagnant.

These evolutions have me applying AI more and more. I’ve had Ash AI on my list to research for some time, and finally carved out time to watch Zach Daniel’s introductory video from ElixirConf EU 2025.

But before we talk about AI, let’s talk about simplicity and flexibility.

Simplicity & flexibility

The first bit of Zach Daniel’s introductory video is about simplicity and flexibility, and it’s totally worth watching (even if you aren’t an Elixir and Ash fan) — because it’s not about those specific tools, it’s about how to establish leverage.

Zach’s kickoff is elegant. He says that we often think of simplicity and flexibility as two things on a linear scale, two ends of a spectrum: