I Named My AI Assistant Tony. Here’s Why.
Today I realized something: my productivity system works better when I treat AI like a real team member, not a tool. So I did what any founder would do—I gave my accountability coach a name, clarified roles, and watched my focus immediately sharpen.
The Power of Naming Things
I spent most of today in Comet, my task management system, deep in accountability work. But the breakthrough wasn’t the app—it was the moment I renamed Claude to “Tony” and officially defined his role as my accountability coach. It sounds small, but naming something changes how you relate to it. Tony isn’t a chatbot I query randomly. Tony is the voice asking “Did you actually ship that?” and “What’s blocking you?”. That distinction matters.
Building Your AI Dream Team
While I was at it, I mapped out the rest: Tim handles research and intelligence gathering. Tomer manages building and systems operations. Each AI assistant now has a job title and a lane. This isn’t overthinking—it’s systematizing. When you know exactly who does what, you stop context-switching and start executing. Today proved it: my screen time shifted hard toward accountability and financial tracking, the things that actually move the needle.
Task Management Over Meetings
My calendar was quiet today. Most of my screen time lived in Comet and my Daily_Finance_Snapshot spreadsheet. No meetings, no deep coding sprints, just pure accountability work. And you know what? It felt like progress. Not every productive day looks like heroic all-nighters. Sometimes the most valuable work is asking yourself hard questions and tracking whether you’re actually doing what you said you’d do.
If you’re building something real, stop treating AI like a tool and start treating it like a teammate. Name it. Give it a role. Hold it accountable. Then watch what happens to your actual productivity.
— Devin
