Podcast
AI Outcomes
Hosted by Ben Drakes · EN
AI Outcomes—the podcast that brings you real-world customer stories and data points on how companies are using artificial intelligence to drive business outcomes. If you’re in B2B sales, consulting, or any role that involves talking to clients about AI—at a business rather than a technical level—then this podcast is for you.
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
KPMG's Withdrawn AI Report: What UBS, the NHS and TfL Disputed | with Ben Pickett Ep48
1w ago00:42:09Tap to summarizeKPMG withdrew its flagship agentic AI report after UBS, NHS Greater Manchester, Swiss Federal Railways and Transport for London disputed case studies about them, and researchers found only 5 of its 45 citations matched their sources. Not an AI problem. Not a people problem. A process problem.Ben Pickett is Co-Founder and COO of Swa, a former Global Director of Site Reliability Engineering at Nike, and writer of Enterprise Field Notes, the newsletter on why most companies are bad at buying and implementing AI. In this episode we get into what the KPMG story really teaches, and it is not "AI is unreliable."00:00 Welcome and Setup00:52 Ben and Newsletter Origin04:29 KPMG Report Retraction07:10 Fixing AI Workflows13:49 Cross Checking Models16:11 Personas and Hard Stops19:43 Nike to AI Strategy22:56 Jobs and AI Speed26:57 Adoption Tips and Training31:25 AI Washing and Costs35:16 Smart Spend Case Studies39:47 Where to Find Ben40:42 Final Advice and WrapBen Pickett's:Enterprise Field Notes newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/build-relation/newsletter-follow?entityUrn=7444358963539828736LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benpick/Listener hub: https://benpickett.com/aioutcomesAI scorecard + try Swa: https://swa-ai.com/aioutcomesKPMG article (with sources): https://medium.com/@goshawk_55282/kpmg-forgot-to-check-its-own-work-dcdb0ebffd31Walmart blueprint article: https://medium.com/@goshawk_55282/what-walmart-understood-that-the-other-95-didnt-16c75da2ac15Uber article: https://medium.com/@goshawk_55282/dear-andrew-coo-of-uber-3f3c968cfe08News coverage of the KPMG story:https://www.finance-monthly.com/kpmg-ai-report-hallucinations-ubs-nhs-transport-for-london/https://www.internationalaccountingbulletin.com/news/kpmg-drops-ai-report-after-false-case-studies-exposed/Connect with Ben Drakes:Website: https://bendrakes.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-drakesNewsletter: https://substack.com/@bendrakesBook a call: https://calendly.com/bendrakes/30min
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Can SaaS Survive AI? Inside SAP, Salesforce, ServiceNow & NVIDIA | Thomas Odenwald | Ep47
3w ago00:43:36Tap to summarizeThe biggest SaaS giants are scrambling to survive the AI era. Ben Drakes sits down with Thomas Odenwald, ex-SAP and ex-HPE, to ask the question every enterprise leader is quietly asking: can SaaS survive AI?They unpack how SAP, Salesforce, ServiceNow and NVIDIA are each making their move, who really owns the new "control plane" for enterprise AI, why business AI still lives or dies on determinism, and what the Mythos and Fable 5 shutdown reveals about the risk of relying on US frontier models.If you lead, sell, or buy enterprise technology, this is the map of where the value is shifting.Chapters:00:00 AI Disrupts SaaS Giants01:09 What Year of Inference Means03:18 Enterprise AI Needs Determinism04:53 Salesforce Agentforce Push07:39 SAP Joule and ServiceNow Now Assist12:21 Control Plane Battle Slack Copilot18:37 ERP Reality and Agent Workflows26:23 NVIDIA and Model Partnerships28:10 Token Costs and Enterprise ROI32:49 Mythos Fable 5 Security Shock37:34 Geopolitics and Europe Wake Up42:59 Wrap Up and Next StepsDiscover EQ You x AI, Ben's program for turning the AI tools your team already has into qualified pipeline: https://bendrakes.comSubscribe for more straight-talking conversations on enterprise AI outcomes.#AI #EnterpriseAI #SaaS #SAP #Salesforce #ServiceNow #NVIDIA #Agentforce
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Ep46 Two AI Extinction Moments Coming for Enterprise Sales | EQ You × AI
May 2600:38:43Tap to summarize92% of companies are increasing AI investment. 1% of their leaders think they're ready to deploy it.That's the AI readiness gap. And it's about to claim two casualties in enterprise sales.In this solo episode, Ben breaks down the two extinction moments coming for sales teams in 2026. The CRO who buys an AI tool but never embeds the workflow. And the seller who refuses to use the AI to bring real value to the customer. Both extinctions are avoidable. Both are already happening.He also introduces the rebrand. EQ You × AI. The program for revenue leaders and sellers who want to orchestrate AI rather than be replaced by it. First Outreach to Qualified Pipeline. The rep stays in charge. AI does the homework.CHAPTERS00:00 Two Sales Extinctions00:29 CRO Tool Trap02:10 Sellers Who Ignore AI04:55 Strategic Advisor Mindset05:44 Customers Need Workflow07:54 Human vs AI Division08:47 Limbic System Wins13:12 Prefrontal Cortex Boost19:46 Two Layer AI Stack23:12 Orchestrator Execution27:55 Stop Buying Tools31:44 AI Slop Warning33:43 EQ You Times AI37:53 Final Prediction WrapLINKS:Book a 30-minute call with Ben: https://calendly.com/bendrakes/30minSubscribe to the AI Outcomes newsletter: https://substack.com/@bendrakesWebsite: https://bendrakes.comConnect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-drakes/ABOUT BENBen Drakes is the Founder of Ben Drakes University and creator of EQ You × AI. He has closed over $2BN in new business in the business process outsourcing sector, leads Advanced Hunting for AI globally at HPE, and hosts the AI Outcomes Podcast. He trains enterprise sales teams across North America, the UK, the Middle East, and APAC.#EQYouAI #AIinSales #EnterpriseSales #SalesLeadership #SalesEnablement
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AI Compresses, Humans Decide–Why Your Brain Still Beats AI at Real Decisions | Gini Holden | Ep45
Apr 3000:50:43Tap to summarizeMost boardrooms are buying AI like they're buying a grand piano and announcing they've got a concert hall. They've skipped the hard part: humans don't decide logically–they decide cognitively.In Episode 45 of the AI Outcomes Podcast, Ben Drakes is joined by Virginia (Gini) Holden–the show's first cognitive strategist–to unpack what most AI strategy gets wrong. Our brains are not logical processing units. They're archeological artifacts: predictive engines layered with millions of years of heuristics, group-value programs and tacit knowledge that no AI is trained to handle.Gini explains why "AI compresses and routes information; humans assign meaning and consequence" is the only AI strategy that actually works in the enterprise and what happens when leaders forget it.What you'll learn:- Why your team hides best practice from each other (and how AI breaks the internal-competition trap)- The customer service call AI couldn't make — "I can't get my mom out of bed" and why tacit knowledge still wins- Cognitive heuristics like "thick is strong" and "group value" — the invisible programs running every decision in your business- Why AI is "a 4-year-old with the biggest library in the world" — and where that breaks down- How to train internal AI on tacit knowledge, cultural memory, and the way humans actually expect information to be surfaced- The four measurable wins of AI augmentation in customer services: shorter calls, more calls, faster mean time to fix, higher CSAT- Why AI written outreach gets a 0.2% response rate — and the limbic + AI combination that actually worksChapters:00:00 Cold open: "Buying AI is like buying a grand piano"00:38 What is a cognitive strategist?02:54 Why humans don't decide logically04:40 Your brain as a predictive engine05:30 Cognitive heuristics: "thick is strong"07:33 Why teams hide best practice (the group-value heuristic)15:08 Case study: the customer service call AI couldn't make20:10 The thesis: AI compresses, humans decide21:22 The four measurable wins of AI augmentation30:54 When AI lies: Ben's Claude flight-booking story39:45 Tacit knowledge, cultural memory & what AI can't learn41:05 Strategic AI vs tactical AI44:37 Limbic + AI: the winning combination49:15 Where to find Gini— Connect with Virginia (Gini) Holden —LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/virginia-holden/Email: info@virginiaholden.com— About the AI Outcomes Podcast —Hosted by Ben Drakes. Conversations with the founders, leaders and thinkers shaping how AI actually creates value in the enterprise. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.#AIOutcomes #CognitiveStrategy #AIStrategy #HumanInTheLoop #AIInBusiness #EnterpriseAI #DecisionMaking #AIAdoption #FutureOfWork #LimbicAI #Leadership #AIPodcast
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Create an AI Clone of Yourself! | Rob LoCascio URAI | AI Outcomes Podcast Ep44
Apr 1300:39:16Tap to summarizeIn this episode of the AI Outcomes Podcast, Rob LoCascio — founder and CEO of URAI and the man who invented live chat on websites in 1997 — shares his contrarian vision for the future of AI.After running LivePerson for 28 years, taking it public, scaling to 3,000 employees and over half a billion in revenue, and landing the #1 spot on Fast Company’s 2022 AI companies list (ahead of OpenAI), Rob walked away from enterprise SaaS to build something different.He’s on a mission to put humans first with personal AI avatars (Human Life Models) that clone your voice, stories, expertise, and decision-making style — giving you massive leverage while keeping your data private and under your control.Rob explains why giant LLMs trained on everyone’s data without consent aren’t the endgame. Instead, URAI creates individual AIs that augment you, not replace you — from writing sales emails and pitch decks in your exact tone to doctors reviewing X-rays or accountants analyzing P&L statements in real time.You’ll discover:✅ How to build and monetize your own AI twin✅ Why data ownership matters more than ever✅ Multimodal AI that goes far beyond the chat window (voice, video, thoughts)✅ The emotional trust factor when you literally talk to yourselfWhether you’re a founder, sales leader, doctor, accountant, or knowledge worker, this conversation shows how to turn your expertise into scalable leverage in the age of AI.Timestamps:0:00 – Intro & Rob LoCascio’s LivePerson legacy2:45 – Why he left SaaS to build URAI6:30 – Big LLMs vs. Individual Human-First AI12:15 – The Human Life Model explained17:40 – How URAI clones your voice, knowledge & stories23:00 – Real use cases: sales coaching, medicine, accounting28:50 – Data ownership & why you must control your AI33:10 – Multimodal power: voice, video, thoughts & beyond chat38:45 – Talking to your own AI (emotional trust & support)43:20 – Entrepreneur mindset: never quit + discernment47:00 – Closing & how to join the URAI waitlistBuild your AI twin today → https://www.uare.ai/Mention “AI Outcomes Podcast” when you sign up and Rob will move you to the front of the waitlist.Connect with Rob: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rlocascio/If you enjoyed this conversation, hit LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and turn on notifications — new AI strategy episodes drop every week.Available on:Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Buzzsprout | Google Podcasts#PersonalAI #AIAvatar #BuildYourAITwin #HumanFirstAI #URAI #RobLoCascio #AIDataOwnership #AIClones #FutureOfAI #SalesAI #AIForEntrepreneurs #HumanLifeModel #AIVoice #MultimodalAI #AIaugmentation #ConversationalAI
Transcribe →Jensen's GTC Keynote DECODED: Vera Rubin, OpenClaw & the End of SaaS | AI Outcomes Podcast EP43
Mar 2800:44:03Tap to summarizeJensen Huang just dropped a 2hr 20min GTC keynote and we've cut it down to what actually matters for enterprise. Ben is joined by Thomas Odenwald (Silicon Valley-based enterprise AI strategist) to react to the biggest moments: Vera Rubin as an AI factory (not just a chip), why every SaaS company is about to become an AgaaS company, OpenClaw's explosive rise as the fastest-growing open source project in history, and what NeMo Claw means for enterprise security.If you're selling into, buying, or building enterprise IT — this one's essential viewing.00:00 Introduction02:06 Vera Rubin: Jensen's Keynote Clip08:03 Breaking Down Vera Rubin17:02 CUDA, Structured Data & Enterprise Stack17:54 Open Claw: Jensen's Keynote Clip19:40 Open Claw Reaction & Analysis30:08 Enterprise IT & the AaaS Shift34:12 NeMo Claw: Enterprise Security for Agents40:09 NVIDIA Open Models43:26 Final Thoughts#NVIDIA #GTC2025 #JensenHuang #OpenClaw #EnterpriseAI #AIAgents #ArtificialIntelligence #VeraRubin #AIOutcomesPodcast #NeMoClaw #SalesTraining #AIStrategy #AaaS #Inference #LLM #AIFactory #EnterpriseTech #BenDrakes #AILeadership #FutureOfWork
Transcribe →Block Cut 40% of Staff. Meta & JPMorgan Show Why More May Be Next? Ep42
Mar 1300:28:15Tap to summarizeThe world's biggest banks and tech companies are mandating AI adoption across their workforces. JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, BNY Mellon and Meta are all reporting hard numbers. And Block just showed us what can happen next — 40% of the workforce gone, dressed up as an AI transformation.This episode covers the stories that aren't making the mainstream AI headlines. Real companies. Real outcomes. Real numbers.In this episode:00:00 AI Layoffs Wave — setting the scene01:39 Block ⚡ — Jack Dorsey cuts 40% of staff and calls it AI. But is it AI-washing?04:37 AI Washing and Worker Reality07:02 📉 US, UK & Eurozone jobs reports — growth and jobs are starting to decouple07:56 JPMorgan Chase 📊 — 6% more accounts per employee, fraud costs down 11%12:45 BNY Mellon 🏦 — $550 million in savings, every single employee now on AI18:14 Goldman Sachs 🤖 — AI software engineer deployed across 12,000 developers21:37 Meta 📋 — first major company to tie performance reviews directly to AI usage25:07 IRS 🏛️ — tax court case time cut from 10 days to 30 minutes27:20 What It Means for 2026Website:🎓 Ben Drakes University: bendrakes.com🐦 Follow Ben on X: https://x.com/ben_drakes💼 Connect with Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-drakes/SOURCES:Block / Guardian: https://www.theguardian.comJPMorgan Chase: https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2026/02/264113-jamie-dimon-says-ai-is-actively-transforming-jpmorgan-chases-workforce/BNY Mellon Earnings: https://www.fool.com/earnings/call-transcripts/2026/01/15/bny-mellon-bk-q4-2025-earnings-call-transcript/BNY Mellon CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/09/digital-employees-ai-bootcamps-americas-oldest-bank-spends-billions-on-tech.htmlGoldman Sachs / Devin: https://www.financialcontent.comMeta: https://bloomberg.comIRS: https://diginomica.comJack Dorsey Wired Interview: https://www.wired.com/story/jack-dorsey-explains-block-layoffs/US Jobs Report: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htmUK Jobs Report: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/bulletins/uklabourmarket/february2026Eurozone Jobs Report: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-euro-indicators/w/3-04032026-ap#AIOutcomes #ArtificialIntelligence #EnterpriseAI #FutureOfWork #AIJobs #BlockJackDorsey #JPMorganChase #BNYMellon #GoldmanSachs #Meta #AITransformation #AIAdoption #JobsReport #Productivity #AIStrategy #BenDrakes
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Ep41 Tesla Shareholder Uncertainty: SpaceX xAI Merger, Elon Moon Base Pivot
Mar 700:31:58Tap to summarizeJoin Ben Drakes and Thomas Odenwald (Tech Exec ex-HPE, ex-SAP, Advisor & Podcaster) for a no-BS breakdown of the biggest Musk empire story in 2026: SpaceX's acquisition of xAI (creating the $1.25T+ XAIX entity) and what it means for Tesla shareholders.As a Tesla investor, Ben shares real opportunities–Robotaxi rollout, Optimus humanoid robots, energy storage synergies–alongside serious concerns: rumoured reverse merger risks, SpaceX's defence-contractor realities (Starlink in conflicts), and Elon's hard pivot to Moon Base Alpha as priority #1 for satellite factories and orbital data centres.From Tesla's manufacturing edge over competitors to founder-operator lessons (Elon vs. Jensen Huang), this is essential listening for anyone tracking Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, or AI investment outcomes.00:00 Musk Mega Merger Tease01:24 Epstein Files and Accountability03:14 AI Debt Crisis Pitch04:20 Sponsor Break and Return05:06 SpaceX XAI Tesla Entanglement08:29 Investor Ethics and Defense Concerns12:10 Space Data Centers Reality Check14:12 Moon Base Alpha Debate17:00 Robots Robo Taxis and Timelines20:41 Innovation Versus National Debt22:54 UBI and Global AI Divide25:48 AI Market Wars and Profitability27:09 Founder Operators and Team Execution29:43 Wrap Up and Next Topics31:13 Final Sponsor Outro#Tesla #SpaceX #xaio #ElonMusk #MoonBaseAlpha #OrbitalDataCenters #TeslaMerger #AI #ThomasOdenwald #aioutcomespodcast
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AI Game Changer: OpenClaw–My Autonomous AI Assistant That Runs My Life | EP 40
Feb 1400:33:58Tap to summarizeIn this solo episode of the AI Outcomes Podcast (EP 40), I share my unfiltered journey with OpenClaw – the viral open-source autonomous AI agent that's completely changed how I work.This isn't just another chatbot. OpenClaw is proactive, has PhD-level memory, knows my business inside out, and actually takes action: monitoring emails, managing my calendar, handling to-do lists, researching ideas, and even running weekly "team meetings" with me.As a non-dev, it took me 15-20 hours of Terminal hell to set it up safely on a remote server (Hetzner, €3.80/month). I cover the security nightmares (prompt injection, anyone?), how I mitigated them, choosing Claude Sonnet as its brain, connecting via Telegram (my bot is named "Bot Botter"), and the mind-blowing results.I also discuss the bigger picture: Claude Coworker, the SaaS apocalypse, and why this is the future of agentic AI.If you're excited (and a little terrified) about truly autonomous AI assistants, this episode is for you.TIMESTAMPS:00:00 – Welcome to Episode 40: The AI Game Changer02:10 – What is OpenClaw? (Not your average AI)06:45 – Creator Peter Steinberger & the lobster origin story11:20 – Why regular LLMs feel frustrating15:30 – The security wake-up call (prompt injection explained)21:45 – My safe setup: Remote server solution28:10 – Picking the AI brain (Claude Sonnet + token costs)34:50 – Setting up communication: Telegram + naming my bot41:20 – Training the bot & first proactive wins48:10 – Email & calendar monitoring that actually works55:40 – Tactical vs. Strategic tasks + research via Brave1:03:20 – Weekly team meetings with my AI (agenda included!)1:11:50 – Recent AI agent explosion (Claude Cowork, Purify, Wealth AI)1:19:30 – Final thoughts: Scary, exciting, and worth it?RESOURCES:• OpenClaw (official): https://openclaw.ai/• GitHub: https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw• All episodes + newsletter signup: https://bendrakes.com/ai-outcomesStarting the AI Outcomes Newsletter soon – sign up at bendrakes.com to get weekly AI insights straight to your inbox (my bot will probably handle the signups!).Leave a comment: Would YOU set up OpenClaw? What's your biggest fear/excitement?Subscribe & hit the bell for more real-world AI adoption stories. Thanks for 32K+ subs and the download spike!#OpenClaw #AIAgent #AutonomousAI
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Ep39 Why AI Sales Tools Keep Failing (And What Actually Works) | Nathan Hulcoop from Helm AI
Feb 400:42:24Tap to summarizeSales tools have promised magic bullets for years, but are they actually helping sellers close deals, or just creating more noise? In this episode, I sit down with Nathan Hulcoop, CRO at NedTech and Helm AI, to discuss why most AI sales tools get it wrong and what genuinely moves the needle.We dig into why activity metrics have become vanity measures, the critical difference between automation and augmentation, and how AI should reduce cognitive overload rather than replace human judgment. Nathan shares insights from building Helm, an AI workforce platform designed specifically for SMEs who need amplification, not replacement.If you're tired of tools that make you busier without making you better, this conversation is for you.Chapters:0:00 - Introduction and catching up with Nathan1:45 - The landscape of sales tools: more noise than value?4:12 - Why activity-based tools miss the point6:30 - AI should augment outcomes, not just increase busyness8:45 - People buy from people they trust and respect10:20 - What AI gets wrong about sales: judgment and trust13:15 - How Helm AI approaches workflow automation differently16:40 - The Founding 50: building with SME founders19:30 - Email marketing and social media automation challenges24:00 - The hidden costs of multi-platform social media28:15 - Where NedTech and Helm are heading in 202631:00 - How to connect with Nathan and Helm AIConnect with Nathan Hulcoop here:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhulcoop/Helm AI: https://wearehelm.ai/Connect with me:🎓 Sales training and courses: https://bendrakes.com💼 AI Catalyst consulting: https://bendrakes.com/ai-catalyst🎧 Use code SAVE20 for 20% off any training#AIinSales #SalesTools #B2BSales #AIOutcomes #SalesTraining #SME #StartupSales
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