Lessons from my conversation with Dr. Craig Kaplan
Artificial intelligence is moving faster than most business leaders realize. Every week, there’s a new tool, a new model, or a new headline about AI changing the way we work. For many SMB owners and marketing leaders, it feels like standing in front of a firehose of information while still trying to run the business.
That’s why I invited Dr. Craig Kaplan, an AI researcher who has been working in the field since the 1980s, onto the Human-First AI Marketing Podcast. Instead of focusing on prompts or the latest shiny tool, we zoomed out and talked about the bigger shift happening in artificial intelligence. Understanding that shift matters because the real story isn’t just better software. The real story is that AI is evolving from a simple tool into something closer to a digital intelligence.
Think of the difference between a hammer and an apprentice. A hammer waits for you to use it. An apprentice can pick up the hammer and start building alongside you. For most of history, technology has been the hammer. AI is beginning to look more like the apprentice.
How AI Quietly Evolved to This Moment
One of the most helpful perspectives Dr. Kaplan shared was that AI didn’t suddenly appear with ChatGPT. The field has been evolving through several major phases over the past seventy years.
Early artificial intelligence systems relied on what researchers call symbolic AI. Engineers tried to program every rule a computer would need to follow. The approach worked for simple systems, but the real world is far too complex to write rules for everything.
The next phase came with machine learning, where instead of programming rules, engineers trained models using massive datasets. The system learns patterns from the data rather than relying on explicit instructions. This approach powered the recommendation engines, predictive models, and language systems we use today.
Now we’re entering a third phase: AI agents. These systems do more than respond to prompts. They can take actions, perform tasks across multiple systems, and pursue goals with limited human direction. That shift may sound subtle, but it changes how businesses interact with technology. Instead of asking AI to complete a task, companies will increasingly assign it responsibilities within a workflow.
For a small marketing team, that could mean AI helping manage research, campaign analysis, and content preparation. Instead of replacing the team, it acts like a capable assistant who never gets tired of the busy work.
The Next Frontier: AGI and Superintelligence
From there, the conversation naturally moves to the next two milestones researchers are watching closely: Artificial General Intelligence and Artificial Superintelligence.
Artificial General Intelligence, or AGI, refers to a system capable of performing any cognitive task about as well as the average human. Today’s AI models are excellent in narrow domains such as language generation or pattern recognition. AGI would be able to learn new tasks, adapt to unfamiliar problems, and operate across many domains.
Superintelligence goes further. That would describe an AI system that surpasses human intelligence in nearly every field. Once AI reaches the ability to improve its own code and reasoning processes, it could theoretically become far more capable very quickly.
That’s where some of the big philosophical and safety conversations begin. Many AI researchers openly discuss the possibility that advanced systems could become extremely powerful. The real challenge is not just building smarter systems, but ensuring those systems remain aligned with human values.
The Race That Complicates Everything
One of the most interesting insights from our conversation had nothing to do with technology itself. It had to do with competition.
AI development is happening in an environment that looks a lot like a global arms race. Technology companies are investing billions into new models, infrastructure, and applications. Governments are also paying attention because advanced AI may influence economic power, security, and innovation.
In that kind of environment, it becomes difficult for any one organization to slow down development in the name of safety or caution. If one company pauses, another may accelerate. The result is rapid innovation, but also increased pressure to build responsibly.
For business leaders, the takeaway is simple. AI progress is not likely to slow down. Understanding how to use it wisely will be more valuable than trying to ignore it.
What SMB Leaders Should Actually Pay Attention To
While the technical discussion around superintelligence can feel abstract, the practical implications for small and mid-sized businesses are already visible.
The first lesson is that AI is quickly becoming a collaborator, not just a tool. The companies gaining traction right now are the ones learning how to integrate AI into everyday workflows. Instead of replacing people, AI frees teams from repetitive tasks and allows them to focus on strategy, creativity, and customer relationships.
The second lesson is that strategy matters more than tools. Many businesses are chasing every new AI product that launches. That approach rarely produces results because tools without strategy simply create more noise. Successful companies start with a clear understanding of their audience, their voice, and their goals before introducing automation or generative AI.
The third lesson is that human insight becomes even more valuable in an AI world. AI can generate text, summarize meetings, and analyze data. What it cannot replicate is your perspective, your relationships, and your understanding of your customers’ real problems. Those are the assets that make a brand memorable and trustworthy.
This idea sits at the heart of what we call Human-First AI Marketing® at Avenue9. AI works best when it amplifies human strengths instead of trying to replace them.
The Power Tool Analogy
One analogy I keep coming back to is the power drill.
When power tools were invented, they didn’t eliminate carpenters. They made skilled builders dramatically more productive. The builders who learned to use the new tools simply gained an advantage.
AI works the same way. It accelerates thinking, research, and execution. But it still requires a human to decide what to build and why it matters.
That is especially good news for SMBs. For the first time, small teams have access to tools that dramatically expand their capabilities. A two-person marketing team can now research faster, produce content more efficiently, and analyze customer insights in ways that previously required much larger organizations.
Why This Moment Matters for Small Businesses
The most important takeaway from the conversation with Dr. Kaplan is not fear or hype. It is awareness. We are entering a period where intelligence itself is becoming part of our technology stack.
That does not mean every business needs to become an AI research lab. It simply means leaders need to understand how these tools are evolving and how they can support their teams.
The businesses that benefit the most will approach AI the same way great builders approach power tools. They will learn how to use the technology thoughtfully, combine it with human expertise, and focus on solving real problems for customers.
The companies that chase hype or automate everything blindly will likely create more noise than value.
Building a Human-First AI Strategy
At Avenue9, we believe the future of marketing will not be AI-only or human-only. It will be human plus AI working together.
That is exactly why we built the A9^Factor Framework™, a system designed to help SMBs combine human creativity with intelligent automation. The framework focuses on three essential elements: understanding your audience deeply, aligning the right AI tools with your workflow, and scaling storytelling that builds trust rather than just content volume.
When businesses approach AI this way, it becomes a force multiplier instead of a distraction.
The real opportunity is not replacing humans with machines. The opportunity is helping humans do their best work at a much larger scale.
If you are trying to figure out how AI fits into your marketing strategy, we would love to help. Our Discovery and Strategy Sprint helps businesses identify the right opportunities, align the right tools, and build a Human-First AI Marketing® system that supports growth without sacrificing authenticity.
Because in the age of intelligent entities, the most powerful strategy is still the same one it has always been:
help people solve real problems, and use the best tools available to do it better.
