Short answer: Sam Nadler says Cowork is a wrapper around Claude Code in Anthropic's Mac desktop app. You give it a folder of docs such as a PRD, and it proposes trade-offs in a UI, here for a Hollywood personal trainer app.
Watch this answer from Episode 29 (starts at 10:45) · Episode 29 notes and transcript
From Episode 29: We Built an AI Recruiter Coach in 6 Hours (Plus Claude Cowork in Real Time), starting at 10:45.
Sam Nadler [10:45]: It's really easy. In fact, let's transition because I've got a product that is yet to be built, I wanna demo how Cowork works if I can.
Jordan Metzner [10:54]: Yeah. Let's go.
Sam Nadler [10:56]: Okay. So I have an idea that I have kind of queued up here. So Cowork, what is Cowork? Cowork's gotten a lot of, I think, hype in the past couple days. It's basically just, like, wrapper around Claude Code. I think it's a entry point for almost anyone to begin building their own, products, but it's super simple to use. It's via, as of right now, I believe, the Anthropic Mac desktop app. You can see chat up here, Cowork, and then directly Claude Code, but it's pretty much the interface of chat that you're used to. And, basically, I did a tiny bit of work to get started. Basically, I wanna build a Hollywood fitness personal trainer, like a personal trainer who's, like, really focused on, like, aesthetic body transformation, not necessarily overall health, but to make me look as, sexy and buff as possible. And that's, like, the mentality. So, like, really progressive overload and really focused on just building muscle for, like, my premiere as a Hollywood star. So that's, like, the con to the PRD. I, gave all I gave Cowork access to the docs. So that's what's, I think a little bit different of Cowork.
Sam Nadler [12:12]: You provide access to a group, a folder so it has the context, and I just wrote build this. And it says, I'm happy to help you build. What do you want me to build? I said, PRD and doc. Check the PRD. I've reviewed it. This is a mobile web app, aggressive upper body hypertrophy. It's a mouthful. Hollywood transformation trainer. How do you wanna build it? So this is, like, what's kinda nice about Cowork. It proposes these trade offs for you in a nice UI. The terminal does the same thing, but I'm gonna say React and Supabase. Let's see what else. Should I integrate a real LLM API for the training responses or similar API with prebuilt logic? Let's go Real, and then let's go. I mean, we may edit a little bit of this out because it does take some time, but, I mean, it's pretty simple on here's it's working on the plan. And oh, progress. So setting up all these so this is what's kinda nice about the Cowork feature. You kinda get an understanding in a bit more polished design about what it's doing and where it's at in the process.
Sam Nadler [13:15]: And then, it literally but from my understanding, Cowork is literally just Claude Code. So I know you're a Claude Code terminal guy and probably haven't used, Cowork that much, but any thoughts on kind of the its approach to nontechnical users?
