Cat Wu is Head of Product for Claude Code and Cowork at Anthropic, building one of the most important AI products of this generation. Before joining Anthropic, Cat spent years as an engineer and briefly worked in VC. Today, she’s interviewing hundreds of product managers who are trying to break into AI—and seeing firsthand what separates those who thrive from those who fall behind.
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We discuss:
How Anthropic’s shipping cadence went from months to weeks to days
The emerging skills PMs need to develop right now
Why you need to build products that don’t yet fully work, so you’re ready when the next model closes the gap
Cat’s most underrated AI skill: asking the model to introspect on its own mistakes
Why Claude’s personality is core to its success
Why Anthropic’s mission alignment eliminates the friction that slows most large organizations
Why “just do things” is the most important principle for working at AI-native companies
Brought to you by:
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Where to find Cat Wu:
• X: https://x.com/_catwu
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/cat-wu
• Newsletter: https://catwu.substack.com
Referenced:
• Head of Claude Code: What happens after coding is solved | Boris Cherny: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/head-of-claude-code-what-happens
• Anthropic: https://www.anthropic.com
• Assessing Claude Mythos Preview’s cybersecurity capabilities: https://red.anthropic.com/2026/mythos-preview
• OpenClaw: https://openclaw.ai
• OpenClaw: The complete guide to building, training, and living with your personal AI agent: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/openclaw-the-complete-guide-to-building
• Listen: OpenClaw: A power user’s guide to the most powerful personal AI tool since ChatGPT: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/listen-openclaw-a-power-users-guide
• Dianne Na Penn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianne-na-penn
• Head of Growth (Anthropic): “Claude is growing itself at this point” | Amol Avasare: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/anthropics-1b-to-19b-growth-run
• Anthropic co-founder on quitting OpenAI, AGI predictions, $100M talent wars, 20% unemployment, and the nightmare scenarios keeping him up at night | Ben Mann: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/anthropic-co-founder-benjamin-mann
• GIF from Pirates of the Caribbean: https://tenor.com/view/pirate-of-pirate-of-the-carribean-jack-sparrow-pirati-dei-caraibi-sad-gif-14519798
• What’s New post with Claude powerup feature: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/whats-new/2026-w14
• Claude Code: https://claude.com/product/claude-code
• Terminal guide for new users: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/terminal-guide
• Claude Cowork: https://www.anthropic.com/product/claude-cowork
• Anthropic’s developer conference: https://claude.com/code-with-claude/san-francisco
• Figma MCP: https://www.figma.com/mcp-catalog
• Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com
• Gong: https://www.gong.io
• Slack founder: Mental models for building products people love ft. Stewart Butterfield: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/slack-founder-stewart-butterfield
• Why AI evals are the hottest new skill for product builders | Hamel Husain & Shreya Shankar (creators of the #1 eval course): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/why-ai-evals-are-the-hottest-new-skill
• Beyond vibe checks: A PM’s complete guide to evals: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/beyond-vibe-checks-a-pms-complete
• Building eval systems that improve your AI product: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-eval-systems-that-improve
• Why experts writing AI evals is creating the fastest-growing companies in history | Brendan Foody (CEO of Mercor): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/experts-writing-ai-evals-brendan-foody
• Judging by my tl there is a growing gap in understanding of AI capability: https://x.com/karpathy/status/2042334451611693415
• Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/80204890
• Free Solo on National Geographic: https://films.nationalgeographic.com/free-solo
• Alex Honnold: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Honnold
• Waymo: https://waymo.com
Recommended books:
• How Asia Works: https://www.amazon.com/How-Asia-Works-Joe-Studwell/dp/0802121322
• The Technology Trap: Capital, Labor, and Power in the Age of Automation: https://www.amazon.com/Technology-Trap-Capital-Labor-Automation/dp/0691210799
• The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories: https://www.amazon.com/Paper-Menagerie-Other-Stories/dp/148142436X
Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [email protected].
Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
