A few weeks ago, I took the Crawl – Level 1 course by Nick Machol, CEO of Unburdn, and one idea he shared has stayed with me:
“AI isn’t software. It’s a culture change program.”
— Nick Machol, CEO at Unburdn
Nick also says something that perfectly complements that thought:
“AI is an amplifier, not a replacer.”
And he explains:
“Buying licenses, clearing security, and doing a few tool demos is the easy part. The hard part—the part that actually moves revenue, cost, and risk—is culture: shared intent, shared behaviors, and shared incentives.”
This resonates deeply with me. In my work, I’ve seen that adopting AI tools isn’t just about learning how to use them — it’s about changing how we think, work, and collaborate.
Today, AI has become part of my daily workflow. I rely on ChatGPT as my main assistant to write, plan, analyze, and develop ideas. I also use Gemini and DeepSeek for specific tasks, and I’ve been getting more serious about Apollo (for commercial goals) and Fieldwire (for operational projects).
Even within tools I already used, like Odoo and Outlook, AI assistants such as Odoo’s built-in agent or Copilot are becoming more useful as I learn how to get more out of them.
And that’s where Nick’s phrase comes back full circle: the real change isn’t in the tools — it’s in the people.
After taking the Unburdn course and joining a group session with business owners in Idaho, I saw firsthand the range of attitudes toward AI:
- The enthusiasts, who dive in without fear.
- The cautiously curious, who experiment but stay skeptical.
- And the fearful, who associate AI with conspiracy or loss of control.
The difference isn’t the technology — it’s the culture and mindset behind it.
Meanwhile, my feeds are full of ads promising “AI will do everything for your business.”
I even see friends promoting those courses. But the more I watch, the more convinced I am that the real driver of productive AI use isn’t the consultant, the course, or the software itself.
It’s the people — and the culture you build around change.
Final Reflection
So the real question isn’t which AI tool should you use?
It’s:
- What kind of culture do you have today in your company?
- What would you like to change about it?
- What have you seen in other organizations that you’d like to bring into yours?
Only after answering those questions does it make sense to ask:
Which AI tool can actually help you achieve that?
About the Author
Adolfo Cota helps companies design smarter workflows by integrating digital tools, manufacturing systems, and AI assistants. He writes about technology, business culture, and the future of work at dagaa.co