The writer attended a course on 'AI for Product Growth' which inspired them about the possibilities at the intersection of AI and product development, particularly cloud development environments.
An article from Making Product Sense by Jacob about fast SaaS and using different CDEs motivated the writer to start building a personal portfolio.
Initially, struggling with no-code tools, the writer found success using Replit for database management and other essentials, transitioning from idea to execution within a few days.
The writer's experience with CDEs like Replit has led them to explore using such tools more regularly for personal and work projects, highlighting the ability to quickly bring ideas to life without a technical background.