Promptless, a YC W25 startup, has launched a service to automatically update customer-facing documentation. It connects to internal tools like Jira, Github, and Slack, monitoring for changes relevant to documentation. When changes are detected, Promptless uses AI to draft updates and suggests them to documentation writers for review and approval before publishing. This eliminates the manual process of tracking changes and updating docs, ensuring accuracy and reducing stale information for improved customer experience.
Promptless, a startup emerging from the Y Combinator Winter 2025 cohort, has launched a novel service aimed at automating the often tedious process of updating customer-facing documentation. Recognizing the challenge businesses face in keeping their public-facing documentation accurate and synchronized with their constantly evolving products or services, Promptless proposes a solution that eliminates the need for manual intervention. The system leverages undisclosed technology, likely involving sophisticated analysis of internal systems and codebases, to automatically identify changes requiring documentation updates. Instead of relying on engineers or technical writers to manually identify and implement these changes, Promptless automatically generates suggested updates for existing documentation, ensuring consistency and accuracy. This proactive approach aims to significantly reduce the time and effort required to maintain high-quality customer-facing documentation, ultimately leading to improved customer satisfaction and reduced support burden. The service is currently in a limited beta release, inviting interested parties to join their waitlist for early access and the opportunity to shape the future development of this automated documentation update tool. The core value proposition of Promptless lies in its promise to eliminate the "prompt" – the manual trigger usually required to initiate documentation updates – thereby streamlining a crucial yet often neglected aspect of product development and customer support.
Summary of Comments ( 55 )
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43092522
The Hacker News comments express skepticism about Promptless's value proposition. Several commenters question the need for AI-driven documentation updates, arguing that good documentation practices already involve regular reviews and updates. Some suggest that AI might introduce inaccuracies or hallucinations, making human oversight still crucial and potentially negating the time-saving benefits. Others express concern about the "black box" nature of AI-driven updates and the potential loss of control over messaging and tone. A few commenters find the idea interesting but remain unconvinced of its practical application, especially for complex or nuanced documentation. There's also discussion about the limited use cases and the potential for the tool to become just another layer of complexity in the documentation workflow.
The Hacker News post "Launch HN: Promptless (YC W25) – Automatic updates for customer-facing docs" has generated several comments discussing the product and its potential use cases and limitations.
Several commenters express interest in the product and its potential. One user highlights the challenge of keeping documentation updated and sees Promptless as a potential solution. Another user questions the practicality of fully automating documentation updates, suggesting a hybrid approach involving AI suggestions and human review might be more realistic. They also mention the importance of human oversight to ensure accuracy and clarity.
A key theme in the discussion revolves around the complexity of integrating such a tool with existing documentation workflows. One commenter asks about support for specific documentation formats like Markdown and OpenAPI/Swagger. Another raises concerns about the potential for the tool to introduce inaccuracies or inconsistencies into the documentation. The potential for hallucinations is also brought up, highlighting a common concern with AI-powered tools.
The discussion also touches upon the target audience for Promptless. One commenter wonders if the tool is primarily aimed at developers or technical writers. This leads to a discussion about the potential benefits for both groups, with some suggesting that technical writers might benefit the most from automated updates.
One user expresses skepticism about the ability of AI to fully replace human writers, arguing that certain aspects of documentation, such as understanding the user's perspective and crafting clear explanations, still require human input. This skepticism is echoed by another commenter who believes that good documentation requires human empathy and understanding of context, which AI may lack.
The founder of Promptless actively engages in the comments section, answering questions about the product's features and addressing concerns raised by users. They clarify the intended use case, explaining that Promptless is designed to augment, not replace, human writers. They also provide details about supported formats and the process of integrating the tool with existing documentation workflows. The founder emphasizes that human review is still a crucial part of the process.
Overall, the comments section reveals a mixture of excitement and cautious optimism about the potential of AI-powered documentation updates. While many commenters recognize the potential benefits, there are also concerns about the limitations of AI and the importance of maintaining human oversight in the documentation process.