Why AI Hasn’t Hit Main Street Yet, According to Mangomint’s CEO | Daniel Lang

11 snips

Jan 9, 2026

Daniel Lang, CEO and co-founder of Mangomint, discusses the challenges and nuances of bringing AI to Main Street businesses. He critiques the hype surrounding AI, asserting that real implementation focuses on outcomes, not just trendy labels. Lang explains the importance of systems of record and communication layers for SMBs and shares insights on automating processes in the beauty industry. He also emphasizes trust and product quality as keys to customer loyalty, all while advocating for clear, realistic growth claims around AI technologies.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

AI Hype Vs Main Street Reality

AI hasn't meaningfully arrived in Main Street SMBs despite the hype and experiments.
The bar for agentic AI in SMBs is much higher because decisions are personal and require deep trust and context.

INSIGHT

Three Layers Needed For Practical Agents

Agentic AI needs three integrated components: system of record, communication layer, and the agent.
Metadata and traces inside the same system provide essential context that simple API integrations miss.

INSIGHT

Context Trumps End-State Data

Systems like Salesforce see end-state data but usually lack the provenance and conversational traces.
Without the communication context and history, agents perform like junior employees on day one.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app