Warren Smith
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warrensmithd.bsky.social
Warren Smith
@warrensmithd.bsky.social
Product Executive | Built 2 Unicorns | AI/ML SaaS Strategist | 3 Patents | MIT Sloan
AI agents are reshaping platforms—driving autonomy, risk, and sustainability. From self-writing code to $4B in lost circular value, the next wave demands agility and control. Great insights from MIT.
🔗 mitsloan.mit.edu/ideas-made-t...
AI agents, tech circularity: What’s ahead for platforms in 2026 | MIT Sloan
Digital platforms have already changed how value is created and exchanged. Their next wave — spanning physical assets, AI, and automation — promises new efficiencies but also new risks.
mitsloan.mit.edu
November 10, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Data cleanup isn’t a data-science chore. It’s a product strategy. My latest piece explains how teams can fix messy ESG, EPR, and supplier data using clear roles, tools, and trust-driven design. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/cleaning-u...

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/cleaning-u...
Cleaning Up the Mess
How Product Teams Should Approach Data Quality at Scale
warrensmithd.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Have at least a year of savings—2026 may be worse. Tech layoffs hit 33K in Oct, totaling 141K+ this year. AI automation, weak spending & rising costs drive cuts. Hiring remains slow, ghost jobs rise. Brace for a tough year ahead. #TechLayoffs #AIEconomy

www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
Hundreds of thousands of tech workers are in trouble, new report shows
The tech industry announced 33,281 layoffs in October, after only 5,639 in September.
www.sfgate.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:47 PM
ESG needs fewer metrics and more proof. My latest piece explores how AI, graph models, and tools like FAISS and EcoVadis can bridge the gap between disclosure and verification — turning transparency into trust. #ESG #AI #Scope3

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/from-green...
From Greenwashing to Ground Truth
The Future of ESG Data Verification
warrensmithd.substack.com
November 1, 2025 at 12:46 PM
Jamie Dimon says JPMorgan’s $2B AI investment has already paid for itself, employees use in-house AI weekly and there’ll be fewer jobs in certain functions. The message for product leaders: ROI is now the standard, not the story.

finance.yahoo.com/news/jamie-d...
Jamie Dimon Declares JPMorgan Chase's $2B AI Investment 'Paid For Itself,' Warns 'There'll Be Fewer Jobs In Certain Functions'
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)’s $2 billion annual investment in artificial intelligence has already "paid for itself," according to CEO Jamie Dimon. AI now drives major savings and operates across n...
finance.yahoo.com
October 28, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Circularity fails when we can’t prove it. My latest article explores how AI can map material lineages, verify recycled content, and make sustainability measurable. #CircularEconomy #AI #Sustainability

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/the-missin...
The Missing Link in the Circular Economy
Why Material Traceability Still Fails (and How AI Can Help)
warrensmithd.substack.com
October 23, 2025 at 2:14 PM
LLMs don’t invent bias… they amplify the patterns already in our text, images, and code. The question isn’t “How do we fix biased AI?” It’s “How do we train AI on a civilization’s archives without absorbing its inequities?”

news.stanford.edu/stories/2025...
Researchers uncover AI bias against older working women
New studies reveal how AI and online images perpetuate flawed gender views, affecting everything from hiring practices to perceptions in the workplace.
news.stanford.edu
October 22, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Great read on building AI stacks with Docker. Start with JupyterLab, the all-in-one control center for experimentation, automation, and deployment.

www.kdnuggets.com/5-docker-con...
5 Docker Containers for Your AI Infrastructure - KDnuggets
Below are five of the most useful Docker containers that can help you build a powerful AI infrastructure in 2026, without the need to wrestle with environment mismatches or missing dependencies.
www.kdnuggets.com
October 21, 2025 at 5:24 PM
EPR is more than compliance—it’s a data problem AI can solve. My latest article shows how connected packaging data turns regulation into strategy. #EPR #AI #Sustainability

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/beyond-com...
Beyond Compliance
Turning EPR into a Strategic Advantage
warrensmithd.substack.com
October 20, 2025 at 7:27 PM
In 2025, it’s not about bigger models, it’s about measurable impact. After helping teams move beyond stalled pilots, I’ve found 5 keys to real ROI: focus, fit, trust, learning & proof. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/the-roi-wa...

#AIROI #GenerativeAI #FromPilotsToProfit
The ROI Wake-Up Call
How to transform GenAI from a science project into a profit engine
warrensmithd.substack.com
October 13, 2025 at 1:12 PM
From the SPC Conference to the startup whiteboard, my latest Substack explores 4 wedges shaping sustainable innovation and 5 lessons for product leaders. #ESG #EPR #CircularEconomy

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/from-polic...
From Policy to Product
Finding Wedge Opportunities in the New Era of Sustainable Innovation
warrensmithd.substack.com
October 6, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Part 2 showing the technical plan to build role-based AI agents to support a marketing team: from data ingestion to vector DBs and orchestration. It’s how one leader can call on digital colleagues to plan, write, and optimize campaigns. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/building-r...
Building Role-Based Marketing Agents
From Vision to Blueprint: Building AI Marketing Agents
warrensmithd.substack.com
September 25, 2025 at 1:48 PM
Great read on how robots/large language models can use confidence scoring to decide when to ask for help. Could definitely inform how I train new models. Worth a read for anyone building AI systems.

www.technologyreview.com/2023/12/08/1...
These robots know when to ask for help
Large language models combined with confidence scores help them recognize uncertainty. That could be key to making robots safe and trustworthy.
www.technologyreview.com
September 22, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Marketing teams once needed many specialists. Now, GenAI agents can mimic roles like SEO lead, copywriter, and analyst — letting one leader orchestrate an entire digital team. Read how I built this vision into reality. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/how-agents...
How Agents Can Recreate the Marketing Team
From team to toolkit: marketing roles reimagined with GenAI
warrensmithd.substack.com
September 21, 2025 at 1:41 PM
AI agents aren’t just assistants. They are becoming the fastest insider threats in your enterprise. From hallucinations to now scheming, they act like employees without judgment. I break down risks and opportunities for leaders in my latest article. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/your-ai-em...
Your AI Employee Just Became Your Biggest Insider Threat
The risks of treating AI like a harmless assistant.
warrensmithd.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 11:18 AM
AI hype is peaking, but scaling, adoption, and investment risks are real. I break down 5 themes shaping product, startup innovation, and VC strategy — and how disciplined execution will matter more than bigger models. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/ai-at-the-...
AI at the Crossroads
Scaling Lessons for Products, Startups, and Venture Capital
warrensmithd.substack.com
September 7, 2025 at 1:16 PM
The hardest part of strategy isn’t setting long-term goals. It’s making sure the short-term moves we celebrate actually get us there. Here’s how that alignment makes or breaks success.

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/short-term...
Short-Term Wins, Long-Term Losses
Why Alignment Matters in Strategy and Life
warrensmithd.substack.com
September 2, 2025 at 2:39 PM
The real AI moat isn’t algorithms, it’s hardware economics. GPUs, storage, and bandwidth decide who scales vs who burns cash.

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/the-hidden...
The Hidden Hardware Bill of LLMs
From crawl to conversation, where the dollars go in scaling AI.
warrensmithd.substack.com
August 28, 2025 at 12:27 PM
RAG isn’t plug-and-play. Recently, I’ve seen firsthand how chunking, embeddings, governance & cost control make or break GenAI. In my latest article, I break down 5 challenges product leaders must solve to stay competitive. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/rag-isnt-p...
RAG Isn’t Plug-and-Play
Treat RAG as engineered infrastructure, not hype
warrensmithd.substack.com
August 23, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Most LLMs are judged by their chatbox fluency—not by how they perform in production. In my latest post, I explain why LangChain + LLaMA is the smarter business stack for AI apps. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/beyond-the...
Beyond the Chatbox
Why LangChain + LLaMA Beats GPT-4 for Business AI
warrensmithd.substack.com
August 8, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Just because your startup uses GenAI doesn’t make it special. (Sorry) Real advantage comes from what only you can do. In my latest article, I write about why AI is an amplifier, not a differentiator—and what founders should focus on instead. warrensmithd.substack.com/p/why-genai-...
Why GenAI Alone Won’t Make You Special
But It Can Help If You Are
warrensmithd.substack.com
August 4, 2025 at 2:04 PM
If you know me, you know I love a good math problem, so you won't be surprised about my latest piece on how LLMs are falling short on advanced math, what agents get wrong, and why the brain remains the benchmark. #AI #LLM #Product #Math #Startups

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/llms-math-...
LLMs, Math, and the Mirage of Machine Intuition
What AI Still Gets Wrong
warrensmithd.substack.com
July 27, 2025 at 12:36 PM
Winning isn’t about flashy models but embedding AI into real workflows that deliver results. My latest article focuses on how product, engineering & leadership teams can thrive in the next era. #AI #ProductLeadership #Execution

warrensmithd.substack.com/p/from-magic...
From Magic to Mechanics: AI Grows Up
How Product, Engineering, and Leadership Must Adapt for Lasting Impact
warrensmithd.substack.com
July 22, 2025 at 2:41 PM
Real AI advantage isn’t just UI — it’s in the hidden stack. I break down where the real moat lives, from RAG to embeddings. Read my latest on building defensible, scalable AI products! warrensmithd.substack.com/p/the-tech-s...
The Tech Stack Every AI Investment Depends On
Why real AI innovation comes from mastering the unseen layers of architecture, not just flashy applications.
warrensmithd.substack.com
July 10, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Just wrapped an unforgettable week at MIT studying Product Leadership & GAI. Explored AI agents, digital transformation, and the disruptive power of GenAI with brilliant minds. Inspired, challenged, and ready to lead. #MIT #AIleadership #GenerativeAI #FutureOfWork
June 27, 2025 at 1:18 PM