No Brainer - An AI Podcast for Business

In this conversation, Geoff Livingston interviews Lisa Adams, a CMO known for her expertise in AI. They discuss the importance of trust and authenticity in AI, the challenges of implementing AI responsibly, and the potential for AI to enhance human connection. Liza Adams and Geoff Livingston touch on the rise of PR, the importance of creating personalized and engaging experiences on websites, as well as the need to diversify marketing strategies beyond relying solely on search engines. Finally, they explore the role of brands in elevating the customer experience and building trust in AI, and how Apple may lead the way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's No Brainer, Greg and Geoff serve up a power-packed two-topic episode. In the first half, they dig into the AI Maturity Model they just released at their AI consultancy CognitivePath. Incorporating inputs from 100+ enterprise AI decision-makers, the maturity model lays out five stages and seven paths to take any organization from AI zero to AI hero. Greg and Geoff discuss why they feel the market needs a comprehensive maturity model and how business leaders can benefit from knowing where they stand.In the second part of the show, they guys switch gears and talk about Apple Intelligence. Smart move or too little too late? How might Apple's emphasis on the consumer experience and their keen understanding of the customer give them an advantage over other Big AI players? And wait, did Tim Cook just outsmart Sam Altman? (bwahahahaha).Chapters:00:00 Introduction02:26 Getting into the CognitivePath AI Maturity Model07:18 Five Stages of AI Maturity14:18 The Seven Paths to AI Maturity20:07 Getting Into Apple Intelligence26:01 Apple's Focus on Consumer Experience36:15 Privacy and Simplicity in Apple Intelligence40:32 Apple's Understanding of Consumer Wants and Needs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode, Greg is joined by Jennifer Ives -- a seasoned leader working at the intersection of business and technology, an in-demand AI advisor to C-suite executives, and all-around big thinker.  Together, Jennifer and Greg set out to bust some AI myths. Is your organization really falling behind? Is everyone else already using AI? And isn't "everything" AI these days, anyway? Does AI literacy matter for line-of-business leaders? Are ethics important? And a whole lot more.Tune in as they discuss the current state of AI adoption in organizations. They highlight that only a small percentage of organizations are leveraging true artificial intelligence. They emphasize the importance of AI literacy at the executive level and the need for organizations to start small, test and learn, and build out their AI strategies. They also discuss the challenges organizations face, such as data cleanliness and the development of ethical AI frameworks. They conclude that, no, you're (probably) not behind -- but warn that the early movers now are developing a big advantage. So, if you haven't started yet, the time is now.Chapters00:00 The True State of AI Adoption in Organizations10:53 Challenges and Opportunities in AI Adoption 36:08 Igniting Ideas and Driving AI Adoption 41:28 Challenging Assumptions and Breaking Through Barriers 42:28 The Urgency of Embracing AI 43:59 Critical Areas of Focus for AI Adoption Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode, AI Marketers Guild (AIMG) founder and fractional CMO David Berkowitz joins Greg Verdino and Geoff Livingston for a wide-ranging discussion about the state of AI in marketing.The show kicks off with David’s summary of key findings from AIMG’s recent Q1 2024 marketing AI trends report. From there, they dive into the use cases for AI in various marketing functions and touch on the challenges and opportunities of implementing AI in marketing. The conversation ranges from personalization and creative optimization to the ways AI can level the playing field for small businesses and why agencies need new business models.The trio ponders the future of the CMO role, the coming AI-native workforce, and why senior marketers need to explore and experiment with AI to remain relevant in the face of fast-moving change.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Small Talk03:27 AIMG Study on AI in Marketing07:16 The Impact of AI on Agencies and Pricing12:05 AI's Role in Finding Patterns and Insights21:21 The Future of the CMO Role and the AI-Native Workforce24:06 Advertising with AI28:21 AI Tools for Small Businesses32:30 Adapting to the Changing Marketing Landscape36:24 The Power of Personalization with AI39:09 Advice for Senior Marketers: Embrace AI and Experiment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Knownwell CMO Courtney Baker joins Greg and Geoff to discuss the role of AI in marketing and professional services. The three discuss the importance of leveraging AI to enhance professional services companies' capabilities and relationships. Courtney emphasizes the value of relationship data in professional services and how AI can help organizations gain actionable intelligence to proactively engage with clients and prevent churn. The discussion also touches on the evolving business models of agencies in the age of AI, with Courtney, Geoff, and Greg agreeing that the traditional hourly billing model is outdated and that agencies must focus on delivering (and getting paid for) value to remain competitive. Courtney, Greg, and Geoff explore the potential impact of AI on creativity, emphasizing the importance of human judgment and strategic decision-making in determining when and how to effectively use AI tools. Ultimately, the episode highlights the significance of embracing AI as a thought partner and collaborative tool to enhance work and spark ideas, while still recognizing the unique value of human creativity and relationships in marketing and professional services. Segments Include:00:00 Start03:50 The importance of humanity: What makes the human marketer valuable in the age of AI?15:03 Data is gold, yet it is scarce. Why data is so important to all types of professional services firms, even their communications with clients.18:55 How to change relational data into meaningful insights to reduce churn and strengthen operations.22:33 Deciphering deep data to democratize analytics for all businesses.26:02 Creative Agencies have to change to meet AI, but how does their business model and client relationships evolve?36:31 Why Sam Altman is wrong about AI replacing agencies.43:09 How AI helps us to level up creativity and our humanity.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Special guest Eyelevel.ai CEO Neil Katz joins Geoff and Greg to discuss generative AI's hallucination problem. Large language models' (LLMs') propensity to hallucinate in their answers represents one of the biggest barriers to enterprise adoption. Eyelevel boasts a 95% accuracy on private instance responses by using its APIs and tools to prepare proprietary data for LLM consumption.The trio dives into the LLM marketplace, including discussions about why brands choose to implement a private instance, how the LLM market has evolved, and what causes the hallucination problem. Then, they discuss the enterprise data problem and how retrieval augmented generation (RAG) techniques still need additional help to strengthen LLM responses.Chapters include:0:00 Start4:40 Private instance versus licensing enterprise editions of LLMs7:32 Eyelevel’s Air France implementation achieving 95% success rates12:29: The need for enterprise data preparation18:14 The hallucination problem with LLMs and RAG approaches28:23 How governance can or cannot help enterprises32:32 Why some use open source versus proprietary LLMs39:12 The future of AI and an incredible visionLearn more about Eyelevel at https://www.eyelevel.ai/ or contact Neil Katz via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/neilkatz/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s episode of No Brainer, Geoff Livingston and Greg Verdino chat with Steven Freidkin, Founder and CEO of Ntiva. Ntiva offers a full range of IT managed services to growing businesses. It’s no surprise that they’re implementing AI internally and fielding plenty of calls from clients about everything from Microsoft Copilot to more sophisticated AI business use cases driven by proprietary data.In today’s conversation, we cover everything from why even 15 minutes of AI per day will put individual performers ahead of the pack to whether it’s worth paying attention to the hype around artificial general intelligence (AGI.) And we discuss it all through the lens of a tech pro who has rolled up his sleeves and done the work.Chapters00:00 Start02:50 Introducing Steven Freidkin, CEO, Ntiva04:10 How Ntiva uses AI internally and with clients10:10 AI hype vs real world action13:20 Is AI-driven productivity a double-edged sword?15:45 Why Steven challenges everyone on his team to use ChatGPT 15 minutes every day17:00 What about businesses that aren’t adopting AI yet?19:25 Dispelling the myth that AI is “easy” and “cheap”23:00 Is Microsoft Copilot an AI gateway drug?27:00 Is AI the product or just a feature?33:00 The importance of AI guardrails37:00 What does the AI sector need to do better to drive real business adoption?43:45 Is AGI real, hype, or somewhere in between? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Greg and Geoff answer listener questions from Lisa Nirell, Phil Gerbyshak, last week's guest Paul Chaney, and TikTok commenters in an open-mic mailbag format. They discuss the challenges of educating organizations on AI integration, emphasizing the importance of alignment, change management, and training. They explore why people prefer fake AI-generated images of themselves and the potential impact on corporate recruiting. And they delve into the topic of AI marketing ethics and the need for marketers to prioritize ethical considerations in their work.The conversation covers the importance of making small improvements, the need for responsible AI, the bare minimum approach in marketing, connecting ethics with day-to-day work, the divide between marketers who get it and those who don't, the power of authenticity, the divide between brands who get social and those who don't, and the importance of providing value to customers.00:00 Start00:31 Introduction and Open Mic Mailbag03:40 Educating Organizations on AI Integration17:48 Fake Imagery with AI and Social Media28:34 AI Marketing Ethics (Again!)36:06 – Divide Between Marketers Who Get It and Those Who Don’t53:58 -.Appreciation for the Audience and Final Word Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of No Brainer, we're joined by Paul Chaney. Paul is the editor of the AI Marketing Ethics digest -- a newsletter that explores the intersection between marketing and (you guessed it) ethical AI. Paul is a digital marketing veteran who was drawn to the subject of responsible and ethical AI when he saw how how few of the marketers who are racing to adopt generative AI tools are having serious conversations about key ethical issues like bias, fairness, human rights, and even environmental impact. He launched his newsletter to close this gap, and has been engaged the conversation ever since.Paul, Geoff, and Greg discuss the definition of AI ethics, why they matter for marketing, what it will take to get more marketers to take ethics seriously, and how brands can determine what's "right." Along the way, they explore how the choices we make today aren't so different from the choices marketers made (or didn't make) in the early days of the internet, email, and (especially) social media. And they land on a fundamental truth: AI ethics aren't about technology but humanity.Here's what to listen for in today's episode:00:00 Introduction01:30 What is AI ethics and why does it matter for marketing?10:33 Are marketers thinking and doing enough about AI ethics?14:36 What needs to happen to put responsible AI on the front burner?25:49 Are generative AI companies inherently unethical?31:00 Marketing history repeats: the internet, email, social media, and AI38:05 How can marketers figure out what’s “right?”46:00 The Ethical Implications of AI and Job Loss52:15 The Future of AI Ethics in Marketing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yahoo! Finance found that executives are only half as likely to mention AI on their earnings calls. Research from BCG found that enterprises aren't as enthusiastic as they used to be about generative AI. Even Sequoia Capital -- a major investor in AI startups --- has argued that the majority of AI tech companies are struggling to nail their value proposition. And all of this is happening as researchers find that OpenAI's ChatGPT plagiarizes its training data 70% of the time and Google's latest releases amount to a series of self-inflicted wounds.AI -- and generative AI in particular -- sure seems like it has teetered from the peak of hype and fallen into the trough of disillusionment. Greg and Geoff discuss why this might be the case. And why this is a good thing for any company serious about AI.What to Watch/Listen For:00:00 Introduction02:44 AI Hype is Dead10:32 Challenges of Implementing AI15:41 Generative AI and its Limitations31:58 The Hype Around OpenAI33:27 OpenAI's Success and Merit34:54 The Importance of Basic Marketing36:18 Salesforce's Focus on Trust37:45 The Success of Companies like Nvidia and Amazon40:00 AI as a Baked-in Technology42:06 Diminished Hype and the Importance of Trust43:03 The Potential Consolidation and Failures in the AI Space48:16 Differentiation and the Need for Viable Products53:54 The End of Hype and the Importance of Getting SeriousAs always, you can visit NoBrainerPodcast.com for complete show notes, including links to the articles referenced during this show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices