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Why 87% of AI Projects Fail—and How Alejandro’s SVCH Is Changing That | Ep 266 with Alejandro Cuauhtemoc-Mejia – Co-Founder SVCH
00:24:30
Alejandro Cuauhtemoc-Mejia, founder of Silicon Valley Certification Hub reveals why 87% of corporate AI projects fail and how SVCH—known as the “ISO of AI”—is setting global standards to fix it. From exposing common executive missteps to explaining why trust and certification will define the next era of AI, Alejandro shares how businesses can move beyond hype, scale responsibly, and prove they’re ready for an AI-powered future.
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- [00:00]
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- [01:59]
Dan (Podcast Host)
Alejandro, I love to talk about AI with you. It's your AI. Corporations, the future. We're going to talk all things. We might even get into robots. I don't know why.
- [02:09]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Yeah, the people ruin everything. Like there's a lot of options out there in the market, but when they are trying to implement in the companies, they fail. For 100 projects that they propose that they would about AI just can see the light.
- [02:30]
Dan (Podcast Host)
What are you seeing in terms of the AI adoption when it comes to.
- [02:34]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Corporations divided on three levels. The strategy, the operations, the ethical and safety. So what happened is that one of those three, three things failed.
- [02:47]
Dan (Podcast Host)
So do you see a world like 10 years from now where you know, humans and AI talking with each other and everything is a smooth process?
- [02:55]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
So in 10 years AI will be everywhere.
- [03:05]
Dan (Podcast Host)
So, Alejandro, I love to talk about AI and I with you, it's your AI, corporations, the future. We're going to talk all things. We might even get into robots. I don't know why you said, you said you're open to answering any question, but I really want to understand this because I think this is a hugely hot topic right now. But most people are thinking that AI fails because of the technology, but you say it's because of the people. And why.
- [03:38]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Yeah, the people ruin everything. But why? What happened behind? Well, actually there's like the tools there, like, there's a lot of options out there in the market, but when they are trying to implement in the companies, they fail. Because like, imagine like McKinsey actually have like a really nice study about it for 100 projects that they propose that they were about AI, just 10 release, just 10, see the light. And why that happened because most of them fail at the beginning. They die because the executives do not understand, because they do not embrace, because they cannot explain what's a pipeline or what's the reason or how does that work. So at the end, they prefer just to keep working as they are working right now. And with that, everything fails. Even if the CEO or the investors or everybody see the potential, if the executives do not understand, they will not embrace and everything will fail. So the answer is not actually, that is the tools are not working, is that the executives do not understand how they can apply to their operations, to their work, to the strategy, and how they can see the benefit from all that. And that's a hard truth.
- [05:23]
Dan (Podcast Host)
I read some articles recently that many corporations that they thought they were going into AI tools and usage. These are large corporations. They found that production didn't go up from their employees that many times it actually was stagnant or went down. What are you seeing in terms of the AI adoption when it comes to corporations? And I wonder, is it because of the training, is it because of the certifications or a lack thereof that their, their teams are not fully embracing it on top of the executive?
- [06:00]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
So we can divide it on three levels, like first the strategy, then the operations, and finally the ethical and safety use of all the tools. So what happened is that one of those three, three things fail or in the executive, like do not understand what will be the benefits, or still they do not know where AI makes sense for their purpose. The second, on the processes, like, where they will have more roi, where they will have more impact, where they have the talent to use AI on their operations. And finally there's A lot of questions about risk, about possible failures, about safety, PR things that if they do not trust or if they do not understand, well, everything or one of those things will fail. And actually that's what we realize at Silicon Valley Certification Hub, that we need to understand every company to see where they can improve better, where they can use AI. And actually we use AI to support them to adopt AI. So that's overall how we support them, to give them a batch, a seal that say like, you know, this company is ready for to use AI. They use it in their process as part of the strategy, they have the talent and so on. But yeah, usually we need to go deeper and understand what's the company point of view and work from there.
- [08:00]
Dan (Podcast Host)
If we look into the future. I know everyone's talking now about AI agents or agentic AI and AI talking to AI, talking to AI, which I always find like a fun conversation, right? It's like AI talking to how many AIs talking to how many AIs. But do you see a world where it is so when it comes to the corporate environment where it is so integrated because that trust you mentioned, the trust isn't always there, that is going to succeed or be 100% as successful as they want it to be. So do you see a world like 10 years from now where this is, you know, humans and AI talking with each other and many AI talking to many AI and everything is a smooth process.
- [08:53]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
So in 10 years AI will be everywhere in our serial, in our TV, in our, if we still have TV or other devices. So everything will change a lot. Why? Actually because it's generating so many efficiencies in the process. Imagine like, at least like on average Companies are selling 20% more with AI and they need 10% less resources, human or other tools to reach like those targets. So everybody is see the benefits of a good LLM of AI and they are growing more and more solutions across all industries. They call it like Andrew New call it the new electricity. And, and let's think like that. Like the AI will be the electricity, but the companies are building how to focus on like electricity. Use it for maybe your fridge, for a TV, for a computer. And the same will happen with AI. The companies will use all the LLMs and all the technology to build solutions across, across all industries, across all needs that supports humanity. So what will happen in 10 years? We will need standards. What will happen is that the companies that will have more trust, they will grow faster in a world where AI is everywhere, trust is everything. And that's why at sbch, we help them to build that trust. We analyze their process, their operations, the talent, the strategy, and at the end, they have a good signal to say, like, hey investors, hey partners, hey clients. I'm a good company that is using AI, and I will grow fast, I will create an impact, and I will have all the trust for everybody that use is part of our network.
- [11:19]
Dan (Podcast Host)
So, yeah, well, I don't eat a lot of cereal, but if I had AI in my cereal, I probably would eat more cereal. So I can't, I can't wait to see how that, that'll play out there. But everyone is rushing now. At least what I'm seeing to put AI powered in their pitch deck. I run across a few pitch decks or anyone pitching anything. It's like, like you said about, you know, the joke about serial, in a sense, like if they're making an app about something and it's serial involved or whatever, they'll put AI. Seems to be like they have to do that. But what is the cost though, of doing it wrong? And how are, how can you spot the real innovators when everyone is saying AI literally is everywhere?
- [12:07]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
So there are some studies super interesting about the use of AI. So let's think about like those that use AI a lot, even in their serial, usually they have more average answers. Imagine, for example, for students, if they use AI in their essays on their homework, everybody will have an overall good essay, good, good grammar and structure, but nothing interesting. But those that actually combine AI with their work that they use just for minimal things, they have much more interesting essays, better results, like better way to. Or more interesting way to present all the content and explain everything. So actually the innovation for those that work combining AI with their way of, with their worldview or their capabilities, they have much better results. Now let's translate that to companies. Those companies that will maybe adopt some AI without any strategy that they say, like, okay, I will use ChatGPT to write my emails. I will use this tool to help me to give, to have some other ideas will stay there, will not be bad, they will just survive. But those that will combine the right strategy, the right talent, the right way to use AI for their operations will go beyond and will grow faster. And that's a way that they will differentiate. And that's actually how we work with them, to help them, hey, your talent understand AI. They can.
- [14:12]
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- [14:42]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Build solutions with that, they can have impact on this and more more technical or tactical parts of the company. So focus on that, have our seal and grow fast and differentiate for all the others that they are just taking some other solution of AI that is not integrated at all.
- [15:10]
Dan (Podcast Host)
Yeah, I mean you have like with Vibe coding now and all these apps that can create whether it's another app or a website in five minutes. Differentiation I would imagine is going to be such a big part. It's like it's great that everyone has access to doing something, but when everyone has access, the amount of your competition goes like to the roof. You have been called the ISO of AI. But what is the actual hardest truth around AI adoption? That no one, especially in Silicon Valley, because I think you're in Palo Alto, what does no one there want to actually admit?
- [15:56]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Nobody wants to admit that they are not using AI. Everybody say that they are using AI, but they do it. When you ask, the double click is like how do they use it? The answers are really impressive. They use it to answer their emails, to book some meetings, maybe to create some deck or some presentation period. So at the end they are just, just substituting like they are changing. A couple of analysts or interns work with AI, but they can not substitute, but create more power to all the talent that they have. So Instead of having 10 or 20 people in their team, they will have 20 super PhD level workers with AI. But they need to guide them, they need to tell them like hey, let's use this tool of AI for A, B and C on their processes. This is the ETA that we'll have. You will be trained to understand all the capabilities of this tool and these will be the expected results that you have. So that's where makes sense AI where the companies that can't see all the power of that, they will grow fast, they will gain trust with clients, with investors, with partners. But they need the right strategy. So as vch, we help them to see if they are ready, how they can integrate in their work, if they are safe the way that they are trying to do it and have a clear path of how to move from this random, really vague way to use AI to a super company AI integrated.
- [18:14]
Dan (Podcast Host)
I Like how people are like I use AI chatgpt as if AI is only chatgpt. So I know you have a very impressive roster of coaches and there are a lot of people out in this world that are saying that are teaching or certifying AI and I think many of them never even had experience before in AI, which I find also very interesting. So for you though, if people are like, yeah, but why would I trust Alejandro or Daniel to be doing this business? Or why would I trust the coaches that you have? What would you say to them?
- [18:55]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
So trust. What we give them is trust of their brand with our sale. And that doesn't work if we do not have trust. So overall how we build all that, that's really interesting. We have like Daniel, he's a software engineer with huge experience working with big companies as PM and specifically working and understanding AI. And I work from technology, working also with a huge algorithms to a DD and other parts that help them grow. And most of our work actually is to analyze recent papers, academic papers that help us see where's the future, what is the research, where is going. Actually we invite you to enter our LinkedIn and follow our blogs because we post a lot of papers from top universities, we have webinars and conferences with great PhD doctors that have really interesting research and we obtain all that information curated with great experts from top universities, from founders, from experts that at the end help us build a solution that is really good, really curated and specifically for non technical executives. So you will not code in our platform with our certification, you will not go deeper, but you need to understand what's an LLM, what's a ra, what's a vector like to be able to, you know, to live with right understanding of all that. So we have the trust, we have the network and actually we have a really nice course with Merv Hickok who is a professor from Michigan University and she helped us build like all the part of ethical and responsibility. So overall we have the trust, we have all the capabilities and yeah, we invite you to set send us an email and enter our website SBCH IO.
- [21:30]
Dan (Podcast Host)
By the way, Alejandro, I love that my last question is this because you're seeing all of this fascinating data and studies and all these things. Is there anything interesting? It doesn't even have to be related to corporations and AI, but is there anything interesting that stands out that or sticks to you that that you've been seeing recently around all of these data and papers and all this information that you've been gathering? Is there something in it that you're like, oh, wow, this is fascinating. Like, I'm, I'm really interested to see how this goes, or I'm really interested to see how this impacts corporations or business. Is there something there that maybe you haven't said or maybe something you've been talking about recently?
- [22:17]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
There's a paper that I loved like a couple of weeks ago from a professor from Florida International University, and what he analyzed is the chatbots that help people to buy more. So imagine like, okay, if you are buying like this thing or trying to see, to use it, the chatbot said like, oh, that looks really well combined with your background is the right size and whatever. But the issue is that when people realize that these are robot or a bot, they trust more because they say like, okay, there's no bias. It's not that the seller wants to complement me or my taste, so I'll buy it versus if the chatbot is super realistic, they think that it's a human. And then they start to say, like, wait, he just want to sell more. Like, what's the reason behind all those nice comments about me and all that. So at the end they realize, and it's statistically significant, that the robots that look like a robot have better sales, that those are, that are super humanized, at least for sales, and give like those compliments. So that's really interesting how people start to trust more on robots that in human behavior, even if all the robots.
- [24:07]
Dan (Podcast Host)
By the way, wow, that. That is fascinating. I was just hanging out with a robot yesterday. Like, true story. This woman was telling me she's a researcher at MIT and she's living with this robot because they're studying how it is to live with robots. And so she was like showing us this robot and all the things that it could do. But that is fascinating around. And I wonder how this is going to change as we get more integrated with humanoids and robots and if, if eventually we won't be able to tell, you know, an actual human from a robot. But it sounds though, like, which it makes sense. If I think it's a robot right now, I trust it because I don't think it has a reason to oversell something that I may not need. It is recommending things to me because it thinks I need it, even though it actually might be trying to sell us. But like, our human mind can't wrap our head around the fact that it's a programmed robot. And it's almost like the robot works for me versus trying to sell me something. Thank you for showing that I'm very interested to see and to read more about this. But Alejandro, this has been great. Share one more time where people can find you and get more information.
- [25:22]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Yeah, for sure. Please follow us Our website is SVCH IO or also you can find our website or all our content and blog in our LinkedIn which you can find us at Silicon Valley certification hub or LinkedIn/svch. Also there's my social media which is mine. Alejandro Mejia on LinkedIn I post a lot about AI, specifically on marketing and sales.
- [26:08]
Dan (Podcast Host)
Wow Alejandro, I'm really, really fascinated with corporations, sales, marketing all around how AI is transforming this. But Silicon Valley Certification Hub, thank you for sharing everything today and I can't wait to continue reading about all the the papers and data. You got to come back. I mean six months from now, can you imagine what's going to change? So you got to come back in six months and we have to talk about how AI has transformed in six months and I'm sure we're going to look back laughing like AI chatbots are more human than humans are. But this has been great conversation. Thanks for joining us on Founder Story.
- [26:49]
Alejandro Mejia (AI Expert)
Thank you so much Dan. Yeah, for sure. And hopefully it's not in our serial in six months the AI.
- [27:01]
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