80% of problems can be solved with simple, well-scoped automation. Start there — it buys you the time and clarity to think about the rest.
Simple problems. Contained solutions.
AI works best when the scope is narrow and the choices are defined. Specific, bounded tasks - where hallucination has nowhere to hide and accuracy is high.
Your account. Your universe.
Every user has their own space, their own data, their own configured tools. Generic where it can be. Specific where it matters.
Built around your operation.
Solutions assembled from proven, reliable components and configured around how your business actually works.
Automation and reporting, tailored to an operation.
Bespoke solutions built around specific workflows. Where complexity exists, it is stripped back. Where consistency is needed, it is automated.
Built on
At a glance
A point of view
Getting Real Value from AI — A Practitioner's ViewA very good next-token predictor.
Large language models are statistical next-token predictors trained on enormous datasets. That's the mechanism. It's impressive, but it isn't consciousness, and it isn't AGI on the horizon. I don't buy the AGI narrative, and I expect the current Nasdaq-fuelled hype cycle to correct.
Mechanism aside, the output is genuinely useful.
Coding assistance alone has saved me significant time, and in my own experience Claude consistently delivers better results than ChatGPT for the work I do.
Reorganisation of output, not a net loss.
One strong senior with AI will do the work of five seniors without it. The smart people who adapt will simply do more, and do different things. Resistance is the real risk, not the technology.
The leverage is real but it isn't automatic.
- Give AI tight guardrails and a confined problem space
- Pair it with one capable developer or analyst rather than a committee
- Use it to build bespoke tools instead of buying off-the-shelf software
- Treat it as a force multiplier, not an autonomous worker
The build-vs-buy calculation flips.
When a single skilled person can spin up custom applications in days rather than months, you stop shopping for software and start commissioning it. A working Facebook-style app in a week is no longer hyperbole — it's a Tuesday.
Don't believe the story. Don't fear the apocalypse. Do get serious.
The people who figure out the guardrails and the workflows first will quietly out-produce everyone else.