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Deep dives into design thinking, creative process, and the intersection of business and aesthetics.
AI can draft. You own the consequences.
The barrier to entry for content creation has dropped to zero. With a single prompt, any intern can generate a 2,000-word white paper in thirty seconds.
This is not a victory for quality; it is a crisis for differentiation.
We are witnessing a "Sea of Sameness." LinkedIn feeds, company blogs, and sales emails are drowning in the same bland, mid-level, hallucinations. They use the same words—"delve," "tapestry," "transformative"—because they are all using the same default settings on the same models.
If you paste raw AI output onto your website, you are not innovating. You are commoditising your own voice.
AI is an accelerator, not a strategy
The risk isn't that AI will take your job. The risk is that AI will make your brand look like a commodity.
When everyone has access to the same intelligence, the only differentiator left is point of view.
The goal is not to replace the writer; it is to remove the friction of the blank page. We treat AI as a junior researcher or a sub-editor. It is there to accelerate the process, not to define the strategy. Speed is valuable, but speed without standards is just noise.
Where AI helps without harming credibility
Used correctly, AI is a force multiplier.
Research & Outlining: It is excellent at summarizing complex topics or suggesting structural flows.
Repurposing: It can turn a transcript of your CEO’s speech into a LinkedIn carousel in seconds.
Angles: It can suggest ten different headlines for one article.
It is a tool for exploration, not invention. It helps you find the right question, but it cannot provide the unique answer that only your experience can offer.
Where AI harms brands
The damage happens when you let the model hold the pen.
The "Uncanny Valley" of Tone: AI writing often feels "plausible but empty." It lacks the grit, rhythm, and specific detail of human speech. It sounds like a corporate press release from 1995.
Invented Claims: Models hallucinate. We have seen drafts that invent case studies, laws, and statistics. If you publish these, you don't just look bad; you open yourself to liability.
Compliance Risk: In regulated industries (finance, law, health), generic AI advice is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
The quality gate that makes AI safe
You need a "Human-in-the-Loop" policy.
Source Discipline: Never trust an AI statistic. If the model says "70% of users prefer X," you must find the primary source or delete it. Editorial Ownership: If a sentence sounds generic, cut it. If it uses banned words (delve, elevate, unlock), rewrite it. House Style: Your brand voice guidelines are now more important than ever. They are the filter that stops your content from sounding like a robot.
What wins in search now
Google has updated its core ranking systems to prioritise E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness).
Note the first "E": Experience. AI has no experience. It has never managed a project, run a site, or fired a client. It can only predict the next word.
Content that wins in 2026 is specific. It contains first-hand anecdotes, contrarian opinions, and "in the trenches" advice. Volume without authority is a dead end.
The winning workflow
Stop trying to automate the whole chain. Use the "Sandwich Method":
Human Strategy (The Bun): You define the angle, the audience, and the key argument.
AI Draft (The Meat): The model generates the rough structure and paragraphs.
Human Edit (The Bun): You verify, rewrite for voice, add specific examples, and sign off.
AI is the engine. You are the driver. Do not let go of the wheel.
AI can draft. You own the consequences.
The barrier to entry for content creation has dropped to zero. With a single prompt, any intern can generate a 2,000-word white paper in thirty seconds.
This is not a victory for quality; it is a crisis for differentiation.
We are witnessing a "Sea of Sameness." LinkedIn feeds, company blogs, and sales emails are drowning in the same bland, mid-level, hallucinations. They use the same words—"delve," "tapestry," "transformative"—because they are all using the same default settings on the same models.
If you paste raw AI output onto your website, you are not innovating. You are commoditising your own voice.
AI is an accelerator, not a strategy
The risk isn't that AI will take your job. The risk is that AI will make your brand look like a commodity.
When everyone has access to the same intelligence, the only differentiator left is point of view.
The goal is not to replace the writer; it is to remove the friction of the blank page. We treat AI as a junior researcher or a sub-editor. It is there to accelerate the process, not to define the strategy. Speed is valuable, but speed without standards is just noise.
Where AI helps without harming credibility
Used correctly, AI is a force multiplier.
Research & Outlining: It is excellent at summarizing complex topics or suggesting structural flows.
Repurposing: It can turn a transcript of your CEO’s speech into a LinkedIn carousel in seconds.
Angles: It can suggest ten different headlines for one article.
It is a tool for exploration, not invention. It helps you find the right question, but it cannot provide the unique answer that only your experience can offer.
Where AI harms brands
The damage happens when you let the model hold the pen.
The "Uncanny Valley" of Tone: AI writing often feels "plausible but empty." It lacks the grit, rhythm, and specific detail of human speech. It sounds like a corporate press release from 1995.
Invented Claims: Models hallucinate. We have seen drafts that invent case studies, laws, and statistics. If you publish these, you don't just look bad; you open yourself to liability.
Compliance Risk: In regulated industries (finance, law, health), generic AI advice is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
The quality gate that makes AI safe
You need a "Human-in-the-Loop" policy.
Source Discipline: Never trust an AI statistic. If the model says "70% of users prefer X," you must find the primary source or delete it. Editorial Ownership: If a sentence sounds generic, cut it. If it uses banned words (delve, elevate, unlock), rewrite it. House Style: Your brand voice guidelines are now more important than ever. They are the filter that stops your content from sounding like a robot.
What wins in search now
Google has updated its core ranking systems to prioritise E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness).
Note the first "E": Experience. AI has no experience. It has never managed a project, run a site, or fired a client. It can only predict the next word.
Content that wins in 2026 is specific. It contains first-hand anecdotes, contrarian opinions, and "in the trenches" advice. Volume without authority is a dead end.
The winning workflow
Stop trying to automate the whole chain. Use the "Sandwich Method":
Human Strategy (The Bun): You define the angle, the audience, and the key argument.
AI Draft (The Meat): The model generates the rough structure and paragraphs.
Human Edit (The Bun): You verify, rewrite for voice, add specific examples, and sign off.
AI is the engine. You are the driver. Do not let go of the wheel.
AI can draft. You own the consequences.
The barrier to entry for content creation has dropped to zero. With a single prompt, any intern can generate a 2,000-word white paper in thirty seconds.
This is not a victory for quality; it is a crisis for differentiation.
We are witnessing a "Sea of Sameness." LinkedIn feeds, company blogs, and sales emails are drowning in the same bland, mid-level, hallucinations. They use the same words—"delve," "tapestry," "transformative"—because they are all using the same default settings on the same models.
If you paste raw AI output onto your website, you are not innovating. You are commoditising your own voice.
AI is an accelerator, not a strategy
The risk isn't that AI will take your job. The risk is that AI will make your brand look like a commodity.
When everyone has access to the same intelligence, the only differentiator left is point of view.
The goal is not to replace the writer; it is to remove the friction of the blank page. We treat AI as a junior researcher or a sub-editor. It is there to accelerate the process, not to define the strategy. Speed is valuable, but speed without standards is just noise.
Where AI helps without harming credibility
Used correctly, AI is a force multiplier.
Research & Outlining: It is excellent at summarizing complex topics or suggesting structural flows.
Repurposing: It can turn a transcript of your CEO’s speech into a LinkedIn carousel in seconds.
Angles: It can suggest ten different headlines for one article.
It is a tool for exploration, not invention. It helps you find the right question, but it cannot provide the unique answer that only your experience can offer.
Where AI harms brands
The damage happens when you let the model hold the pen.
The "Uncanny Valley" of Tone: AI writing often feels "plausible but empty." It lacks the grit, rhythm, and specific detail of human speech. It sounds like a corporate press release from 1995.
Invented Claims: Models hallucinate. We have seen drafts that invent case studies, laws, and statistics. If you publish these, you don't just look bad; you open yourself to liability.
Compliance Risk: In regulated industries (finance, law, health), generic AI advice is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
The quality gate that makes AI safe
You need a "Human-in-the-Loop" policy.
Source Discipline: Never trust an AI statistic. If the model says "70% of users prefer X," you must find the primary source or delete it. Editorial Ownership: If a sentence sounds generic, cut it. If it uses banned words (delve, elevate, unlock), rewrite it. House Style: Your brand voice guidelines are now more important than ever. They are the filter that stops your content from sounding like a robot.
What wins in search now
Google has updated its core ranking systems to prioritise E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness).
Note the first "E": Experience. AI has no experience. It has never managed a project, run a site, or fired a client. It can only predict the next word.
Content that wins in 2026 is specific. It contains first-hand anecdotes, contrarian opinions, and "in the trenches" advice. Volume without authority is a dead end.
The winning workflow
Stop trying to automate the whole chain. Use the "Sandwich Method":
Human Strategy (The Bun): You define the angle, the audience, and the key argument.
AI Draft (The Meat): The model generates the rough structure and paragraphs.
Human Edit (The Bun): You verify, rewrite for voice, add specific examples, and sign off.
AI is the engine. You are the driver. Do not let go of the wheel.