Real AI Use Cases Business Owners Roundtable

Real AI Use Cases Business Owners Roundtable is a practical podcast for business owners, executives, and professionals who want to understand how artificial intelligence is actually being used in businesses today.Each episode features real conversations with entrepreneurs, leaders, and subject-matter experts who share one concrete AI use case they are using right now in their work—no hype, no theory, no futuristic speculation. Just real examples, real tools, and real outcomes.Hosted by Elizabeth Gearhart, Ph.D. and Richard Gearhart, the show focuses on how AI is applied across industries including marketing, operations, professional services, finance, law, healthcare, and technology. Episodes explore how businesses are using AI to save time, improve decision-making, increase efficiency, enhance customer experience, and gain a competitive edge.This podcast is designed for listeners who want to:* Understand practical, real-world applications of AI* Learn how businesses are implem

Real AI Use Cases Business Owners Roundtable is a business podcast hosted by Elizabeth Gearhart, with 33 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Elizabeth Gearhart hosts Real AI Use Cases Business Owners Roundtable, a business show with 33 episodes published.

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  Episode #33

  How AI Gets Reliable Financial Data: Inside the AI Supply Chain

  Oct 1, 202619 minS1

  How does AI get reliable information—and how can businesses use AI to automate work, build products faster, and even create new revenue from their data? On this episode of Real AI Use Cases Business Owners Roundtable hosted by Elizabeth and Richard Gearhart , Andrew Lebbos, SVP of Licensing at Benzinga explains how a financial data company is using AI throughout its business while also supplying trusted financial data to AI platforms. Benzinga provides data to platforms including Perplexity, helping AI systems answer financial questions with structured, verified information. Andrew explains why data accuracy and quality assurance are critical for AI , especially in financial services where incorrect information can have serious consequences. Benzinga combines automated quality checks with human review to identify errors, outliers and AI hallucinations before information is published or delivered to clients. The conversation also explores how businesses are building around AI instead of simply adding AI to legacy systems , how AI is helping engineers dramatically reduce time to MVP, how employees across different departments are using AI differently, and why businesses should use enterprise AI tools rather than uploading company information into consumer accounts. Andrew also shares his experience using Claude, Perplexity, Perplexity Computer and Genspark , including an impressive example of using AI to create a presentation that would have taken approximately 40 hours to produce manually. Perhaps most importantly, Andrew explains how businesses with valuable data can potentially license that data to AI companies and LLMs —and why consistency, structured delivery, accuracy and credibility are essential to becoming a valuable data provider. TL;DL — Too Long; Didn't Listen AI isn't just a tool businesses use—it is becoming an ecosystem businesses can power. Benzinga uses AI internally, helps clients build AI systems, and licenses financial data to AI platforms. This episode explores AI automation, reliable data for LLMs, AI hallucinations, enterprise AI, AI productivity, data licensing and how businesses can prepare their data for the AI economy. What You'll Learn How Benzinga uses AI across its business and development processes How financial data can be used to power AI platforms and answer engines Why accurate, structured data is critical for LLMs How businesses can reduce AI hallucinations through data quality and human review How AI can automate tedious business processes Why some companies are building new systems around AI instead of adding AI to legacy technology How AI is helping engineering teams build products and reach MVP faster How employees in different departments can use AI in different ways Why businesses should use enterprise AI agreements for sensitive company information How businesses can potentially license valuable data to AI companies and LLMs What makes a data set valuable enough for an AI company to purchase How Claude, Perplexity and Genspark can be used for business productivity FAQs How is AI being used in financial services? AI is being used to automate processes, accelerate product development, analyze information and help deliver financial data through AI-powered platforms. Benzinga also supplies financial data to AI platforms. Why is accurate data important for AI and LLMs? AI models can make mistakes or produce hallucinations. For financial information, where there is often a specific correct answer, high-quality and verified data i... Chapters (00:00:00) - Introduction: Benzinga and AI Data Contribution (00:01:38) - Andrew's Role at Benzinga (00:02:28) - Building Systems Around AI (00:03:14) - Automating Podcast Workflow with AI Tools (00:03:57) - Ensuring Data Accuracy and QA Processes (00:05:10) - Government Trade Filings and OCR QA (00:06:30) - Favorite LLMs and Tools Used (00:07:42) - Company AI Usage Policies and Guardrails (00:09:02) - Team-Wide AI Usage Across Departments (00:10:07) - Perplexity Partnership and Data Licensing (00:12:06) - Business Model for Licensing Data to LLMs (00:13:58) - Reddit Data, Accuracy, and Financial Reliability (00:16:22) - Comparing Fable 5, Perplexity, and Other Tools (00:17:50) - Closing Thoughts and Benzinga's Mission

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  Episode #32

  The AI Coworker Is Here: Here’s What It Can Do

  Sep 29, 202615 minS1

  Stop Just Chatting With AI—Put It to Work TL;DL AI can do much more than answer questions. In this episode of Real AI Use Cases: Business Owners’ Roundtable , business owners share how they are putting AI to work to make phone calls, research software, personalize customer experiences, check the work of other AI models, draft emails, analyze business decisions, and even act like a specialized member of the team. Dima Negodiuk shares one of the most striking examples: instead of personally calling dentists to find one that accepted his insurance and had an available appointment, he sent an AI calling system to contact roughly 150 offices. The result? He woke up with three options that fit his requirements and spent only minutes making the final choice. Delphine Le Grand explains how AI has helped a very small team operate with capabilities that once would have required specialists in areas like marketing, finance, legal, engineering, and operations. She also discusses how she changes the way ChatGPT interacts with her depending on the task—from straightforward business analysis to deeper brainstorming and different perspectives. Drea Lynn uses multiple AI models to check one another's work. She may take an answer from Claude, give it to ChatGPT for critique, and then continue refining the result. She also explains how she has trained Claude to be direct with her instead of automatically agreeing or sugarcoating its feedback. Richard Gearhart shares how he uses ChatGPT to compare complicated business software systems. Instead of spending hours reviewing manuals, videos, features, and documentation, he uses AI to quickly identify the pros and cons of competing platforms and help frame the decision. Elizabeth Gearhart discusses another challenge: Can you trust what AI tells you about your own business? When testing AI visibility for Gearhart Law, she found that ChatGPT repeatedly recommended the firm—raising an important question about personalization, flattery, bias, and whether companies should use independent or neutral searches when evaluating how they appear in AI-generated recommendations. The group also gets into a bigger issue: your AI may start to reflect the way you interact with it. Some users want a friendly brainstorming partner. Others want a blunt critic. And with the right instructions, the same AI can behave like a business strategist, marketing director, researcher, coach, or specialist. In This Episode You’ll hear real-world examples of: Using AI agents to make large numbers of phone calls Automating appointment and service-provider research Using AI to compare complex business software Having Claude and ChatGPT critique each other’s work Training AI to give more direct, less flattering feedback Using AI as a virtual business specialist or advisor Personalizing ChatGPT for different tasks and situations Using AI with small teams to increase operational capacity Evaluating your company's visibility in ChatGPT and other AI engines Recognizing personalization and bias in AI-generated recommendations Using AI for email drafting and workflow automation Getting more useful results by telling AI what role you want it to play The takeaway is simple: stop thinking of AI only as something you chat with. Start thinking about what work you can actually give it. FAQs How are businesses using AI beyond ChatGPT conversations? Businesses are increasingly using AI to carry out tasks such as making phone calls, researching vendors, comparing software, drafting emails, analyzing information, building internal tools, personalizing services, and revie... Chapters (00:00:00) - Introduction to the Roundtable (00:01:14) - AI Call Center for Appointments (00:02:17) - AI as a Business Superpower for Lean Teams (00:03:29) - 10xing Business with Multiple AI Checks (00:04:20) - Choosing CRM/ERP Software with ChatGPT (00:05:31) - AI Visibility and Querying LLMs About Yourself (00:06:47) - Flattery vs Honesty in AI Responses (00:07:39) - Training AI to Be Blunt and Truthful (00:09:04) - Cautionary Tale: AI Deleting Data (00:09:53) - Personalizing AI Interaction Styles (00:12:13) - Role-Playing Prompts for Expert Advice (00:12:49) - AI Training on Reddit and Declining Quality (00:14:44) - Closing Remarks and Sign-off

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  Episode #31

  AI - What's actually working right now?

  Sep 24, 202616 minS1

  AI: What’s Actually Working Right Now? What are business owners actually using AI for right now—and which tools are delivering real results? In this episode of Real AI Use Cases: Business Owners’ Roundtable , Elizabeth Gearhart and Richard Gearhart are joined by Sonia Satra, Lisa Lane, and Lauren Lane for a candid conversation about how they’re using AI in their businesses today. The discussion goes well beyond theory. The group shares practical AI use cases involving content creation, e-commerce, business research, marketing, AI visibility, regulatory monitoring, brainstorming, analytics, and automation . Lauren explains how she uses AI as a tutor to quickly understand a new business and analyze what is happening across major e-commerce platforms. Lisa shares how tools such as TikTok can transform a single image into video content, helping brands create marketing assets faster. Richard discusses using AI to monitor changes at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and across the regulatory landscape—work that would otherwise require significant staff time. Elizabeth shares how she is experimenting with AI to repurpose existing podcast content into structured, searchable blog content and discusses why businesses need to think about AI visibility and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) in addition to traditional SEO. The conversation also gets into some of the frustrations and risks of working with AI. How much should you trust the answer? Does an AI become biased toward what it thinks you want to hear? Should you use ChatGPT or Claude? And how careful should businesses be about putting confidential information into an AI platform? Sonia shares her experience with Claude repeatedly telling her that instead of asking more questions, she needed to take action—leading to a discussion about how increasingly human AI interactions can feel. TL;DR AI is becoming a practical business tool , not just an experiment, with uses ranging from marketing and content creation to analytics and regulatory research. ChatGPT and Claude behave differently , and the group discusses why some users prefer one over the other depending on the task. AI visibility is becoming increasingly important as customers use ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and other answer engines to discover businesses. AI still requires human oversight. Facts should be verified, important processes need clear instructions, and confidential information needs to be handled carefully. The most effective approach may be to let AI assist with ideas, research, analysis, and repetitive work while keeping human judgment, expertise, and voice at the center. In This Episode The group discusses: How businesses are using AI to create marketing content AI-powered TikTok and e-commerce tools Using AI to learn a business faster Monitoring regulations and industry developments with AI Turning podcasts and other long-form content into searchable articles SEO versus Answer Engine Optimization How businesses can become more visible in ChatGPT and other AI engines ChatGPT versus Claude AI hallucinations, bias, and limitations AI privacy and data security Building AI agents and assistants Why human judgment and authenticity still matter Frequently Asked Questions How are business owners using AI right now? Business owners are using AI for content creation, research, brainstorming, e-commerce analytics, marketing, regulatory monitoring, business education,... Chapters (00:00:00) - Intro: AI in daily brand work (00:00:43) - Round table intros and first AI use cases (00:02:23) - Video content generation with TikTok AI (00:02:50) - Tracking IP regulatory landscape with AI (00:03:37) - Answer engine optimization and blog discoverability (00:05:40) - Presenting AI marketing tips to CPAs (00:06:35) - Schema code and AI visibility basics (00:07:42) - The Claude 'take action' story (00:08:57) - AI's emotional tactics and user engagement (00:09:28) - Claude vs ChatGPT preferences (00:09:50) - Limitations: transcripts, linear thinking, agents (00:11:23) - AI learning your brand and bias questions (00:12:42) - Testing Gearhart Law visibility across LLMs (00:14:16) - Adding personal voice and disagreeing with AI (00:14:48) - Privacy concerns and multiple AI assistants (00:15:44) - Closing remarks

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  Episode #30

  How Businesses Are Using AI Agents to Save Time, Cut Costs and Create New Opportunities

  Sep 22, 202643 min

  How are real businesses using AI right now? In this episode of Real AI Use Cases Business Owners Roundtable , Elizabeth Gearhart and Richard Gearhart are joined by Michael Housman of AI Performance Lab and Chris Fabregas of Chris Fabregas Fine Art Prints for a candid discussion about practical AI applications, AI agents, automation, creativity, marketing, copyright, AI tools, jobs, and the rapidly changing business landscape. Michael Housman explains how AI agents automate his speaking engagement process, saving him two to three hours every day by tracking inquiries, contracts, travel, follow-ups and preparation. He also shares how businesses are using AI to automate repetitive work, increase marketing output, reduce costs and give employees opportunities to focus on higher-value work. Chris Fabregas explains how he is using AI to enhance photography, create massive fine-art prints, animate photographs, streamline Shopify product descriptions and transform his creative business. He also shares how he used Suno AI to help produce his song “Fireflies on I65” after writing the lyrics himself. The conversation tackles a major question for creative professionals: Can AI be both a threat to creative work and a powerful new tool for creators? The guests discuss AI-generated art, photography being copied or used to create derivative artwork, copyright concerns, and how creative professionals may need to adapt their businesses as AI becomes more capable. The roundtable also explores AI agents that can access computers and perform tasks , including drafting emails, creating presentations, browsing the web, managing calendars and interacting with files. The group discusses the importance of safeguards when AI has access to sensitive business information. Elizabeth Gearhart shares how she uses AI for content creation, deep research and answer engine optimization (AEO) , including researching how businesses can become more visible in ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and other AI answer engines. The discussion also compares different AI models and tools, including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, Grok and Microsoft Copilot , and explores their different strengths for research, writing, multimedia, automation and business tasks. The episode goes beyond the hype to examine what AI actually looks like inside businesses today—and how entrepreneurs, small business owners, creatives and professionals can use AI to save time, increase productivity, develop new capabilities and adapt to rapid technological change. TL;DR Real businesses are already using AI to automate repetitive work, improve marketing, enhance creative projects, create content, analyze business data and operate AI agents. Michael Housman discusses AI agents that save hours of administrative work, while Chris Fabregas explains how AI is helping him expand photography and music projects. The roundtable also examines AI copyright concerns, job disruption, AI literacy, model comparisons, computer-using AI agents, data privacy and the challenge of keeping up with rapidly evolving AI technology. Frequently Asked Questions What are some real-world AI use cases for small businesses? Small businesses are using AI for marketing, content creation, repetitive task automation, business analysis, customer communications, product descriptions, creative work, research and administrative workflows. How can AI agents automate business tasks? AI agents can move work through multi-step processes, identify when follow-up is needed, provide reminders, draft communications, work with calendars and files, browse the web and perform other computer-based tasks. Michael Housman describes using AI agents to automate his speaking... Chapters (00:00:00) - Intro and Guest Introductions (00:00:57) - Michael's AI-Powered Speaking Business Automation (00:02:24) - Chris's Photography and AI Print Enhancement (00:03:52) - Richard's Legal Practice AI Strategy Use (00:04:50) - Elizabeth's Use of AI for Content and SEO (00:06:30) - Michael's Background and Democratization of AI (00:07:14) - Chris Writes a Song Using AI (Suno) (00:10:16) - Business Innovation Examples and Job Impact (00:12:02) - Pace of AI Change and Adaptation Challenges (00:13:36) - AI and Creative Ownership Debate (00:15:48) - Photographer's Perspective on AI Disruption (00:17:55) - Email Overload and Agent-to-Agent Communication (00:19:31) - Claude's Snarkiness and Model Comparisons (00:21:11) - Chasing the ChatGPT Answer Engine (00:23:13) - Claude's Agentic Computer Control (00:24:22) - Data Privacy and Trust in AI Agents (00:26:25) - Chris's Favorite Tools and AI in Business Apps (00:28:31) - AI Sparking New Creative Ideas (00:30:58) - Favorite LLMs and Copilot Complaints (00:32:50) - MCPs, Token Waste, and AI Business Models (00:35:14) - Energy Use and Data Centers Debate (00:38:48) - Data Center Location and Latency Discussion (00:40:02) - AI Image Generation Tools Comparison (00:41:37) - Book, Song Plugs, and Closing Remarks

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  Episode #29

  Real AI Use Cases That Are Working - What Can AI Really Do for Your Business?

  Sep 17, 202617 minS1

  Real AI Use Cases That Are Working - What Can AI Really Do for Your Business? What can AI actually do for a business today? In this episode of Real AI Use Cases: Business Owners Roundtable , Elizabeth Gearhart and Richard Gearhart are joined by Leah Solivan, Nate Amidon, and Lauren Hidalgo for a practical conversation about how they are using AI in real businesses right now. The discussion moves well beyond simple prompting. Leah shares how an AI assistant has automated work equivalent to roughly two and a half full-time employees , helping with research, spreadsheets, emails, podcast preparation, and other everyday workflows. Nate explains how he uses AI as a thought partner for brainstorming and marketing while maintaining his own voice. He also discusses how tools such as Claude are making it possible for people without traditional software engineering backgrounds to build applications and solve business problems themselves. Lauren shares how she uses AI for research, writing, industry analysis, and shopping-related discovery, including generating real leads through ChatGPT. Richard explains how ChatGPT helped develop a new branding strategy for Gearhart Law—work that traditionally could have required an outside marketing agency. Elizabeth shares how she is using AI for research, content development, AI visibility, and Answer Engine Optimization—and how Gearhart Law recently gained a new client who found the firm through ChatGPT. The group also looks ahead at AI agents, customer service automation, entrepreneurship, authenticity, and an important question: As AI becomes more capable, will human interaction actually become more valuable? TL;DR AI is already automating significant amounts of everyday business work. Business owners are using AI for research, writing, branding, workflows, marketing, and content development. AI tools are making software development accessible to people without traditional technical backgrounds. ChatGPT and other AI platforms are beginning to generate real business leads and influence product and service discovery. AI visibility and Answer Engine Optimization are becoming increasingly important for businesses that want to be recommended by AI. As automation grows, authenticity and human interaction may become even more valuable. The best way to become better at AI may simply be to use it regularly and learn through practice. Frequently Asked Questions How are businesses using AI right now? Businesses are using AI for workflow automation, research, spreadsheets, email preparation, marketing, brainstorming, content development, branding, software creation, customer discovery, and website optimization. Can AI really replace a meaningful amount of business work? In the episode, Leah Solivan describes an AI assistant that has automated work equivalent to approximately two and a half full-time employees across tasks such as research, spreadsheets, email automation, and podcast preparation. Can non-programmers use AI to build software? Yes. The discussion highlights how AI tools are allowing people without traditional software engineering backgrounds to create applications, databases, prototypes, and other business tools. Can ChatGPT generate actual business leads? Yes. Elizabeth discusses a recent client who found Gearhart Law through ChatGPT, while Lauren Hidalgo describes receiving shopping leads through ChatGPT after working on her business's AI visibility. What is Answer Engine Optimization? Answer Engine Optimization, or AEO, is the process of making a business and its content easier for AI-powered answer engines to discover, understand, and potentially recommend when users ask relevant questions. ... Chapters (00:00:00) - What AI Is Already Doing for Businesses (00:00:39) - Real AI Use Cases: Business Owners Roundtable (00:01:24) - Automating the Work of 2.5 Full-Time Employees (00:01:53) - AI, Confidential Information, and Business Security (00:02:24) - Using AI as a Business Thought Partner (00:03:28) - AI for Research, Writing, and Industry Analysis (00:04:24) - Using ChatGPT to Develop a Branding Strategy (00:05:17) - A New Client Found Gearhart Law Through ChatGPT (00:06:26) - Deep Research, Claude, and the Next Generation of AI Tools (00:06:56) - AI Is Democratizing Software Development (00:07:51) - AI Is Democratizing Entrepreneurship (00:08:46) - Startups Are Building Faster Than Ever (00:09:34) - Perplexity, AI Visibility, and Content Creation (00:10:50) - ChatGPT Is Generating Shopping Leads (00:11:26) - What Is Answer Engine Optimization? (00:11:47) - AI Is Changing Online Shopping (00:12:26) - What Happens When AI Agents Move Faster Than Humans? (00:13:05) - Why Human Customer Service May Become More Valuable (00:14:19) - Authenticity and the Human-First AI Strategy (00:15:01) - The New Skills Humans Will Need in an AI World (00:15:32) - The Best Way to Learn AI: Use It (00:16:02) - Where to Hear More Real AI Use Cases

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