Kevin Vargas

Building | Self-hosting freedom

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

I automated customer support with AI via SMS.

It saved hours of repetitive work for this business.

I'll show you exactly how I did it, and the best part: not using @Zapier. I don’t like those tools with usage caps, regardless of the standard plan—just like serverless functions.

Grab a cup of coffee and get comfortable because I’m going to give you everything.

Here's the tech stack to implement this:

@gohighlevel : For automations, organization, and SMS gateway.

@OpenAI Assistant API: We'll use GPT-4o-mini. Sure, you can use open-source models too, and I’m planning to do a version with Llama 3.1 405B.

VPS/Hosting: I used @Replit , but you can use any other similar solution on the market as long as you create API endpoints accessible via the Internet.

Here's the documentation for each API and the GitHub repo. You'll need them if you want to tweak the code and customize it for your context.

Assistants API: https://t.co/Ee0StbvRHh

GHL API: https://t.co/tbaolcyeCU

Github repo: https://t.co/xmGYteht7C

Mozart playlist to feel like a renaissance scientist: https://t.co/kZeSmCcMvA

Let me give you a brief explanation of why I chose High Level instead of Twilio.

GHL is a great CRM with a very powerful automation feature. We are going to use this feature to send webhooks to our endpoints, where we'll retrieve the assistant's response.

I'm not sure if you can implement the same setup with other CRMs, but as long as you can send, receive, and store the data transferred via webhooks, you shouldn't have any problems.

Let's talk about the GHL setup before diving into the code. And if you're familiar with GHL, no, we are not going to use the built-in GPT feature because it is not powerful enough for our purpose.

1. You will create three custom fields. A custom field is a value associated with each contact where you can store any information you want.

We need to store the AI's response, the thread ID (I'll explain why this is important later), and the number of messages sent by the bot.

Ignore the 'Type Of Transaction' field because I don't remember why I created it, and I'm afraid to delete it and break my whole CRM, lol.

It should look like this:

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

I have friends who live happily and make good money just connecting APIs and two-way communication systems.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

It matters more than I realized in hindsight. It was always hard to see dad’s emotions. I didn’t even know whether I had his approval, but the few times he broke the physical barrier with a hug or something similar, it really felt like someone had my back. I won’t repeat the same mistake with my kids one day.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@lemon_logger3 @BenjaminDEKR Valid point

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@EXM7777 Most of those problems can be solved with ordinary code. Agents will be executing that logic rather than deciding on the go anyway.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

I get writing code by hand isn’t really needed now. But still, it’s not an excuse to distance yourself from understanding the codebase. If writing code isn’t important now, reading and knowing what it does is twice as important.

At least I don’t see a way where I can’t point to where a specific function is and/or which file it’s in. I still need to know where stuff happens to guide the model.

Otherwise I’m creating a black box I don’t understand. How am I supposed to make decisions on it?

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

Why Cursor keeps changing the model I'm using to Auto??? Annoying

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@GrammarHippy Pick up the damn phone Lawyer we all know you’re reading this

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@justinskycak If you ever make physical copies of this I'd definitely buy it. Always great to read what your write math sensei

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

The way I cope with this is by realizing markets are huge, bigger than I think they are. There’s so much demand that no single company can monopolize an entire market. I focus on how to relate my product through a compelling story, my brand, and my taste. It’s more about how you do it and present it than the outcome

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@abdullaababakre But still need to be connected to VPNs otherwise the IP can be blacklisted

[Raffi @raffichill]

Please write up a brief handoff document describing everything we've tried and what we are attempting to achieve so I can pass it along to another agent

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@coolifyio Sir, I must say that the UI is sick. I can troubleshoot my containers with style and elegance.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@pcshipp Kali Linux to see what happens if you don’t read the code

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@mattceras I guess this is the best price you can ever get per tenant account directly from them

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

Nobody will save you; you have to work on your spirit, mind, and body despite emotions. No problem is as big as you think it is when you realize you will die and a whole generation will be wiped out in 100 years. It liberates the pressure of suffering, and you keep your honor until the end. Nihilism works when you're willing to assume existential responsibility and own the outcome of your actions.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@johnennis n8n self hosted is so good. Not paying for Zapier ever

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

In other words, the advice is only valuable if it applies to your specific conditions and moment in life. It's like receiving advice from a bodybuilder when you're fat and have never worked out in your life. He's giving advice from his current phase and probably not considering your position.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

There's no learning style, just unfulfilled prerequisites to tackle complex subjects. AI is too compliant to challenge conjectures or misunderstandings from the learner. Without challenges, biases expand and fundamentals are weak. The amount of context required to provide custom learning has to either be scoped to a very specific subject with a clear knowledge tree structure (math, physics, eg) or start with a clear assessment of one’s capabilities and gaps.

Private tutoring on specific subjects or extreme self-awareness are the only solutions, and AI so far only expands your biases and knowledge gaps unless you actively and honestly assess yourself.

[Peter H. Diamandis, MD @PeterDiamandis]

If you gave every human on Earth their own AI tutor, personalized to their learning style, available 24 hours a day in their native language, completely free, it would perhaps be the single greatest equalizer in the history of civilization.

[Kevin Vargas @kevinvarc]

@BonesawMD Usually I don't give them money, I give them what they want. Like "I can't study this course because I don't have money" then I buy the course and give it to them. This filters bs most of the time