80% of survey respondents want to adopt AI but only 35% feel skilled enough to d
By jeffreycohen · September 19, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
80% of survey respondents want to adopt AI but only 35% feel skilled enough to do it right. This is the story in AI transformation today. It's also the conversation I dove into on the Signal & Noise podcast with Rio Longacre and Brett House.
We talked through what closing that gap looks like, and how Skai can help. Today, Celeste, Skai's AI intelligence, answers questions daily that were not possible before, pulling data across reports and delivering new insights and recommended actions. In fact, we see that roughly 45% of our queries are answering these questions. This is beyond the efficiency provided in building daily reports, QBRs and so much more. Today AI needs to help your same team do more.
The best part, none of that means AI runs the show. Advertisers want transparency. They want a glass box: every recommendation traceable, every output explainable, a human approving anything that touches budget. AI can tell you what it would do. It shouldn't be the one that spends the money.
The harder part isn't the tool, it's your organization. Real AI transformation is operating-model transformation, not automation bolted onto old workflows. That's where the new "builder" role comes in, people who orchestrate these systems without writing a line of code, and it starts with leadership actually using the tools themselves before asking anyone else to. I was able to share the transformation that I have personally witnessed and how others can learn from our experience.
I will warn you, it's long but a worthwhile conversation, give it a listen. https://lnkd.in/gjS43nX5