What is Systems Thinking in the AI Era?

Systems Thinking in the AI Era is a 4-course series that transforms junior engineers from code writers into AI-safe system thinkers. You'll master 7 universal building blocks + 3 external entities through hands-on discovery labs, real-world case studies, and system design challenges. This develops the architectural decision-making skills that make you AI-empowered, not AI-replaceable.

How many courses are in the series?

4 courses total: I: The Seven Building Blocks (available now), II: Content Systems (coming soon), III: Real-Time Systems (coming soon), IV: Business Integration Systems (coming soon). Course I is the required foundation for all other courses.

What are the 7 universal building blocks?

The 7 universal building blocks are: Service (request/response), Worker (background processing), Key-Value Store (caching), File Store (media storage), Queue (messaging), Relational Database (structured data), and Vector Database (AI/similarity search). These interface patterns power Instagram, Netflix, Uber, Gmail, and every system you use daily.

Why are system thinkers AI-safe?

AI can write code, but it cannot make architectural decisions requiring trade-off analysis, business context, and systematic thinking. System thinkers understand when to use which building block patterns, how to compose them for specific requirements, and how to evolve systems over time. This high-level thinking makes you AI-empowered (using AI to implement your architectural vision) rather than AI-replaceable.

How much does the course series cost?

Each course is $50. Start with the free 20-minute preview to experience the transformation, then enroll in Course I: The Seven Building Blocks. Additional courses can be purchased individually as you progress through the series.

Do I need programming experience?

Yes, you should be comfortable reading and understanding code. The course focuses on system design and architectural thinking rather than teaching programming fundamentals. If you can implement features but struggle with architectural decisions like 'How would you design Instagram?', this course is perfect for you.

How much time does Course I take to complete?

Course I contains approximately 8-10 hours of content total, including 12 video lessons, 2 interactive Python labs, comprehensive assessment, and a 3-part system design challenge. Most students complete it in 2-3 weeks at a relaxed pace (2-3 hours/week). All content remains accessible forever.

Who is the instructor?

Kay Ashaolu is a Continuing Lecturer at UC Berkeley School of Information with 10+ years teaching experience, and an Engineering Manager with 15+ years industry experience at Pinterest, AncestryDNA, and Morgan Stanley. He holds degrees from Princeton University (B.S.E. Electrical Engineering) and UC Berkeley (M.I.M.S.). His research focuses on accelerating professional growth for early-career software engineers.

COMING SOON

Systems Thinking in the AI Era III

Name: Systems Thinking in the AI Era
Price: 50 USD
Availability: PreOrder

Real-Time Systems - Slack, Discord, WhatsApp Patterns

Master Real-Time Messaging, WebSocket Patterns, and Low-Latency Communication

Apply your building block foundation to real-time and communication systems. Learn through 6 progressive case studies from social feeds to AI chatbots to video conferencing, mastering the patterns behind every messaging and collaboration platform.

Prerequisites: Course I & II (required)

Course at a Glance

Case Studies

12+

Video Lessons

Interactive Labs

Comprehensive Assessment

Challenge Parts

Six Progressive Case Studies

Course III explores real-time and communication systems with progressive complexity. You'll master patterns from eventual consistency to hard real-time constraints.

1. Social Media Platform: Eventual Consistency

Building Blocks: Queue + Worker for news feed generation

Learn: Asynchronous processing patterns, feed generation strategies, notification delivery architectures

Fan-out feed generation architectural patterns
Queue-based notification design strategies
Eventual consistency trade-off analysis

Note: We focus on general feed generation patterns and notification architectures, not specific message queue implementations.

2. Collaborative Documents: Real-Time Sync

Building Blocks: Service + real-time patterns + conflict resolution

Learn: Synchronization strategies, concurrent editing architectures (Google Docs-style patterns)

Real-time connection management patterns
Operational transformation design strategies
Concurrent edit conflict resolution approaches

Note: We focus on synchronization patterns and conflict resolution strategies, not specific protocol implementations.

3. Messaging Apps: Instant Communication

Building Blocks: Service + Queue + presence patterns

Learn: Message routing architecture, delivery guarantee strategies, presence design (Slack, WhatsApp-style systems)

Message routing and delivery patterns
Presence detection architectural strategies
Read receipt and typing indicator design

Note: We focus on messaging architecture patterns and delivery strategies, not specific messaging protocols or services.

4. AI Chatbots: Conversational Interfaces

Building Blocks: Service + External Service + Vector DB

Learn: Streaming response patterns, context management strategies, AI-enhanced real-time processing

Streaming response design patterns
Conversation context architectural strategies
Semantic memory integration patterns

Note: We focus on conversational architecture and AI integration patterns, not specific LLM APIs or vector database tools.

5. Video Conferencing: Hard Real-Time Multimedia

Building Blocks: Service + real-time streaming patterns

Learn: Hard real-time constraint strategies, adaptive quality patterns (Zoom-style architectures)

Peer-to-peer connection design patterns
Adaptive bitrate streaming strategies
Latency optimization architectural approaches

Note: We focus on real-time multimedia architecture and latency strategies, not specific streaming protocol implementations.

6. Link Shortener: High-Performance Utilities

Building Blocks: Service + Key Value Store

Learn: Low-latency design patterns, high-availability strategies, global distribution architectures

Ultra-low latency architectural patterns
Geographic distribution strategies
High availability design approaches

Note: We focus on performance optimization patterns and availability strategies, not specific caching implementations or distribution services.

Why Real-Time Systems Domain Expertise Makes You AI-Empowered

Real-time systems power modern collaboration: Slack's messaging, Discord's voice chat, Google Docs' collaborative editing, Zoom's video conferencing. Understanding real-time patterns makes you AI-empowered in communication and collaboration systems.

What You'll Master

WebSocket patterns: Bi-directional real-time communication, connection management, presence systems
Message delivery: Routing algorithms, delivery guarantees, read receipts, typing indicators
Concurrent editing: Operational transformation, conflict resolution, synchronization strategies
Low-latency optimization: Sub-millisecond responses, geographic distribution, caching strategies
Hard real-time constraints: WebRTC patterns, adaptive quality, multimedia streaming

These patterns apply whether you're building a chat app, collaborative editor, video platform, or AI assistant. Master real-time systems, and you're AI-safe in communication and collaboration domains.

Course III Pricing

Available soon - Complete Courses I & II first to unlock access

Course III: Real-Time Systems

$50

Coming Soon

6 progressive case studies
18+ comprehensive video lessons
2 interactive discovery labs
Comprehensive assessment
3-part system design challenge
Lifetime course updates

Prerequisites: Must complete Courses I & II first

Your Learning Path in the Course Series

Systems Thinking in the AI Era is a 4-course comprehensive transformation program. Each course builds on the previous, developing complete pattern recognition across all system domains.

✅ Course I: Universal Building Blocks (Required Foundation)

Master the 7 building blocks + 3 external entities. Develop pattern recognition, trade-off analysis, and architectural decision-making.

✅ Course II: Content Systems (Required Before Course III)

Apply building blocks to Instagram, Netflix, YouTube patterns. Master read-heavy workloads, caching strategies, and global content delivery.

📍 Course III: Real-Time Systems (This Course - Coming Soon)

Learn Slack, Discord, WhatsApp patterns. Master real-time messaging, WebSocket patterns, presence systems, and low-latency communication.

🔜 Course IV: Business Integration Systems (After Course III)

Master Stripe, Shopify, Salesforce patterns. Learn payment processing, transaction handling, compliance automation, and enterprise integration.

Complete Courses I & II to Unlock Course III

Course III will be available soon. Build your foundation with Courses I and II first to be ready for advanced real-time system patterns.

Start with Course I

Sequential learning path ensures deep mastery of system thinking