It is all about humans...
AI is part of organizations not as a tool but as a team member.
We started this newsletter because we felt AI is hyped for the wrong reasons. All the other newsletters were either solely about tools or promoting automation at work with AI. Meanwhile, everyone at work freaked out that AI would take over their job.
We never thought about AI as a tool or an automation engine.
Sure, in the last 3-5 years, we have seen many new tools branded as “AI-driven” or with some parts of AI in them. Most are frontends for generic AI models (there is nothing wrong with that!). And yes, AI is amazing for automation, but that is nothing new. We have been automating our work for a long time with non-AI tools anyway. We still have a lot of work left to be done.
We always thought about AI as an augmentation tool for humans.
Maybe it is because we are marketers. We value human stuff like creativity, emotions, intuition, and storytelling. Maybe it is because we truly understand that a fully automated world is sad to live in. Where is the human element in there?
The more we learn about AI, the more confidently we can say the same thing over and over. AI is here to arm humans with extreme potential, put steroids on their creativity, and give back their focus and time to do meaningful work. AI is augmenting us. It is part of our workflow. It is part of our team. It is a team member, like you and me.
Companies that treat AI like a team member will 100X their workforce’s productivity. Those companies using AI as a tool will see some spike, of course, but not nearly as much as others.
Spotify: GenAI ads hit the airwaves
Spotify rolled out AI-powered audio ad creation tools within its Ads Manager (SAM) for advertisers in the U.S. and Canada. Marketers can input keywords, choose a voice style, and instantly generate a complete audio ad – script, voiceover, and even background music – using generative AI. The feature (dubbed “GenAI ads”) is in beta and comes at no extra cost to advertisers. Spotify’s decades of AI in music recommendation are now being applied to advertising, aiming to make ad production as seamless as creating a playlist.
Why it matters
A polished audio commercial traditionally requires a studio, voice talent, and budget. Now, even a small marketing team can produce professional-sounding ads on the fly. This could be a game-changer for brands with limited resources – local businesses or niche e-commerce sites – to get on air with quality ads without agency help. Spotify reports that 4 in 10 advertisers making audio ads on its platform have already tried the AI tool, signaling strong interest in automating ad copy and voice work.
Marketers can also rapidly iterate audio ad concepts – for instance, test two different scripts or voices for the same promotion – and deploy the best one. Got a seasonal campaign or flash sale? In minutes, you can have an upbeat voiceover with royalty-free music ready to stream to Spotify’s 500+ million users. It’s especially handy for brands targeting Gen Z on Spotify; the company notes that audio is an “always-on” channel for this demographic.
The bottom line is that audio advertising is expected to become faster, cheaper, and more personalized. The true test will be whether AI-made ads can actually grab listeners’ attention or just add to the noise.
