Last Wednesday, 10pm — Aming and I were stressing over bubble tea
He's been freelancing for three years. A client wanted him to add an auto-reminder feature to a mini-program. He can't code. I can't code either. We asked ChatGPT for half an hour — the code either threw errors or "worked" but did the wrong thing. Client got impatient. Aming ended up paying a programmer friend 800 RMB to fix it.
I got this step wrong too — back then I figured "AI is this powerful, I can handle it myself." Wasted an entire evening.
What is Slack Code? AI coding, moved into your group chat
Last month Slack shipped a new feature called Slack Code. Simple version: in the group chat you already use every day, there's now an AI teammate that codes. You discuss needs in the group, the AI writes, edits, and shows you the result right there. ChatGPT, Claude — these AIs can all be pulled into the group.
The part that eased my mind: before code ships to production, a real human has to approve it. So you don't have to worry about AI accidentally nuking client data. Someone like Aming, who can't code, can just type in the group "make that button bigger" — the AI changes it on the spot, and he says "good" or "no" based on what he sees.
This week I had dinner with Lin Jie, an old friend who builds small tools. She said her 3-person team is already trying it. A request that used to mean two days waiting for an outsource now gets a rough version in 20 minutes of group chat. The money saved covers a week of team takeout.
Want to try today? Here's the cost
Money: Slack Code works on every plan, including free. If your team is already on Slack, near-zero extra cost.
Time: First setup is about 30 minutes — mostly connecting your usual AI (ChatGPT or Claude) to the channel.
Technical barrier: If you can use Slack chat, you're good. No "environment variables" or "API endpoints" jargon required.
First step: Open Slack, go into any channel, look for a "+" or "Add apps" at the top, find Code or something similar (English UI for now, Chinese version is months away).
My advice for three types of people
Just starting, no clients yet: Don't bother yet. Wait until you actually have a tool idea or a client asks for a feature. Slack Code is still English-only — the barrier is too high for you right now.
Small team with 1-2 clients already: I'd suggest you try it. You already discuss client needs in Slack anyway, so let AI spit out prototypes right there — saves the back-and-forth with an outsource. A 3-person team like Lin Jie's is exactly the sweet spot.
Scaling up, want to build internal tools: This feature is worth taking seriously. Let product, sales, and support all watch how AI builds tools in the group — way more efficient than one person coding in isolation. But warn the team: don't let AI push straight to production. Play in a test channel first, then open it to clients.