Wake Up to Wealth Podcast — Episode Summary

Episode: The Future of AI and Work with Cooper Simson
Host: Brandon Brittingham
Guest: Cooper Simson, Portfolio Manager, Martel Ventures
Date: November 21, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the present and future impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on work, business efficiency, and wealth-building. Host Brandon Brittingham speaks with Cooper Simson of Martel Ventures, an AI-focused venture studio, exploring how AI is reshaping roles, opportunities, and the entrepreneurial landscape. They provide actionable insights for business owners and individuals navigating the fast-moving world of AI, uncovering what’s hype and what holds transformative potential.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Cooper Simson’s Background and Martel Ventures

(02:20–03:20)

• Cooper is the portfolio manager at Martel Ventures, an AI venture studio led by Dan Martel.
• Day-to-day, he evaluates AI startups, especially those focused on practical business applications.
• Has reviewed 3,500 companies and personally spoken to nearly 700 AI founders this year.

2. AI's Current State & Its Imminent Evolution

(05:50–10:13)

• AI Today:

  • “Right now the best way to think of AI is ... it’s fully a tool.” (Cooper, 05:50)
  • AI excels at eliminating manual, repetitive tasks.
  • Roles aren’t disappearing but evolving: AI changes what workers focus on, shifting towards higher-value tasks.
  • Example: Receptionists and sales teams can now offload routine queries and prospecting to AI, focusing more on client interaction and closing deals.
  • “AI isn't going to take your job, somebody using AI will take your job.” (Cooper, 06:10)

• Where AI Is Headed:

  • AI will move from being a tool to acting as a team member, proactively taking action within organizations (e.g., in Slack, Gmail).
  • Voice-activated AI and context-aware assistants will become integrated into daily workflows.

3. Overcoming AI Overwhelm: Where to Start

(10:13–16:18)

• Many entrepreneurs feel overwhelmed by the hype and technical jargon.
• Cooper's advice: “Start with the lowest hanging fruit.” (Cooper, 12:03)
  • Actionable Step: Look at your daily/weekly task list and ask how AI might automate or streamline tasks.
  • Utilize conversational AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) to get step-by-step automation advice.
  • Implement tools like meeting transcribers (Otter, Fathom, Fireflies) for immediate value.
• “If you're not capturing every conversation you’re talking about, you’re missing out on a treasure trove of information.” (Cooper, 15:30)
• Take small steps and stack incremental automation for significant impact over time.

4. What’s Exciting in AI Right Now? Voice as the Future Interface

(16:49–20:45)

• Most exciting trend: Shift towards voice interfaces replacing typing and clicking.
• “I think typing is going to go the way of handwriting in the next two to three years.” (Cooper, 16:52)
• Voice-driven tools offer richer context and faster information exchange than typing.
• Tools like Whisper, Super Whisper are facilitating this paradigm shift.
• Brandon's agreement: The reduction in friction and increase in context mirrors how real human communication works.

5. Which Jobs & Tasks AI Will Transform Most

(21:12–22:30)

• “If your job right now is predominantly entering data … that activity is probably going to be a hundred percent – well, it will be 100% automated in the next little while.” (Cooper, 21:15)
• Data entry and the movement of data between systems will be fully automated.
• Workers/employers must identify and hone the value they provide once the rote data work vanishes.

6. What Makes an AI Venture Worth Backing?

(22:30–25:18)

• It's not just about product; the founder's domain expertise and deep understanding of industry problems ("founder-market fit") are crucial.
• Example: Founders mastering niche pain points (like shipping invoices for manufacturers) and using AI to save hours of manual work.
• Advice: “If you’re an entrepreneur listening, you need to get very, very good at problem identification and understanding the root cause of it.” (Cooper, 24:46)

7. Traits of Successful Founders

(25:39–27:21)

• Across thousands of founders, the key consistent trait is “reckless default action.” (Cooper, 26:34)
• Successful founders don’t wait for permission or accept “the way things have always been.”

8. Case Study: AI’s Long-Term Memory and Customer Experience

(27:48–29:16)

• Cooper shares a project where AI voice agents, equipped with persistent memory, can remember customer preferences across different businesses.
• This continuity delivers a seamless, future-forward consumer experience.

9. AI and “Waking Up to Wealth”

(29:40–31:19)

• “AI is going to help people focus on doing the things they actually want to do.” (Cooper, 29:49)
• By automating disliked or draining tasks, people can wake up energized, focusing on what fulfills them.
• The “future you want” becomes attainable now, as AI clears the path to greater satisfaction and productivity.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “AI isn’t going to take your job, somebody using AI will take your job.”
  — Cooper (06:10)

• “Start with the lowest hanging fruit. … You can’t check something off your list unless you’ve looked at how AI can help solve this.”
  — Cooper (12:06)

• “If your job right now is predominantly entering data ... that activity is probably going to be a hundred percent – well, it will be 100% automated in the next little while.”
  — Cooper (21:15)

• “The winners in this next AI age are going to be the people who know the problems… and can communicate that effectively to an AI system.”
  — Cooper (24:14)

• “Probably the biggest one I would say is just a reckless default action.… They don’t accept that the world is the way it is right now, and that’s the way it’s always going to be.”
  — Cooper (26:36)

• “AI is going to help you wake up one day and … you’re going to be able to put all your focus on the things you actually enjoy doing.”
  — Cooper (29:57)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment Topic | Timestamp | |-----------------------------------------------------------|--------------| | Introduction & Guest Background | 02:20–03:20 | | State & Evolution of AI | 05:50–10:13 | | Overwhelm & Practical Steps to Start with AI | 10:13–16:18 | | The Future is Voice: The End of Typing | 16:49–20:45 | | Tasks & Roles Most Vulnerable to Automation | 21:12–22:30 | | Evaluating AI Start-ups: The Power of Founder-Market Fit | 22:30–25:18 | | The One Trait All Successful Founders Share | 25:39–27:21 | | Case Study: AI’s Long-Term Consumer Memory | 27:48–29:16 | | AI and Waking Up to Wealth | 29:40–31:19 |

Resources & Contact

• Cooper’s Instagram: @coop_doggy_dog
  DM “prompts” for sample master prompts to enhance AI automation in your work.

Final Thoughts

Brandon underscores that Cooper’s insights stem from firsthand, high-volume engagement in the AI ecosystem:
“This is somebody that's really doing it and has receipts. … This isn’t someone trying to sell you something as a guru just to get your money on AI. This is somebody that's really doing it and knows it and understands it.” (Brandon, 32:17)

The episode leaves listeners with practical steps to incorporate AI, a sense of optimism about the future of work, and the importance of action and adaptability as automation accelerates.