How Small Businesses Can Kickstart Their AI Journey
Excitement for generative AI (GenAI) is high. A 2024 McKinsey report found that 65% of organizations regularly deploy generative AI. Tools like ChatGPT, which now has over 400 million weekly users as of February, up from 200 million last August, have brought AI to the forefront of public consciousness.
And employees want to use it as well, with 70% recognizing the value GenAI can bring in their roles and to their workplace, according to PwC research.
The good news is that AI is no longer only for the big tech companies. It's now a productivity accelerator for individuals, small businesses and curious executives. To begin working with AI today, you don't need to learn anything complex. You can start using AI based on curiosity alone and then take small steps.
Getting Started With AI: No Need For A PhD
The release of several off-the-shelf GenAI tools over the last few years has lowered the technical barrier to begin working with AI, meaning that users don't need to have AI knowledge beforehand.
GenAI is very good at several things, and today's are plug-and-play, delivering value with minimal setup. These tools offer small teams big-league capabilities. For example, a non-technical person can use them to quickly automate complex workflows.
When seeking out your AI use case, it helps to start with problems. What causes frustrations? What causes lost time? Summarizing meeting notes? Writer's block on social media? Reviewing long documents? Tools like Microsoft 365 Copilot can summarize meetings, drafts reports and analyze data.
Do you need content, such as blog posts or images? ChatGPT, Jasper and Writer are capable of creating copy for marketing, blogs or email. Likewise, Midjourney, Adobe Firefly and Canva AI can generate visual content for branding or campaigns.
There are also tools for suggesting code snippets and comments, like GitHub Copilot, and automating repetitive admin tasks, such as Zapier AI.
One way to start: List your routine tasks and rank them based on time. The list could focus on "repetitive low-value tasks," "skills bottlenecks" or simply "ambiguity."
You can also start using AI for brainstorming about how to use AI. Ask a GenAI tool an open-ended question like: "I am a freelance designer, how can AI help me get clients?" or "What are five ways to use AI to enhance my onboarding for new employees?"
Taking The Next AI Steps
As AI adoption accelerates, getting up to 'AI speed' is no longer optional—it's essential. Organizations must move fast to realize real value. Once you've figured out potential use cases, here are a few topics to begin educating yourself and your team on to catch up:
• AI Ethics 101: There are several ethical considerations to make when adopting AI, and these considerations become more complex the further you are in your AI journey.
• How To Verify AI Outputs: Always check the responses from AI for potential misinformation or bias.
• How To Be Transparent About Using AI: Always disclose the use of AI to customers and end-users.
• Keeping A Human-In-The-Loop: You are still accountable for the outputs of AI-based content.
The interface might be simple, but that does not relax the assignment. Ethical use is not a hurdle to cross, but has to be a point of trust building. Having strong habits beginning early will help out as you scale usage. AI literacy should include ethical literacy-that means consent, transparency and accountability as it pertains to the deployment of AI tools in your workflow.
With AI making decisions for more businesses, the ethical imperative becomes fundamental to successful adoption. For example, experts surveyed by MIT Sloan Management Review and Boston Consulting Group say that ethical AI use and disclosures about its use are essential for building trust with customers. Responsible AI practices must not be bypassed for a sustainable adoption of AI.
Taking Your First Step
A spark starts the AI journey. Choose a tool. Pick a use case. Test it for 30 minutes. You do not need a strategy document to get started.
Accessible tools, simple wins and growing confidence become a powerful feedback loop. Free training, such as Google AI Essentials and Microsoft Learn, may further your skills.
This is not just a tech trend; it's a change in how work gets done. The more the work is made collaborative and the quicker decisions get made, the more the benefits are. And the way to begin? One small step, buoyed by purpose and curiosity. The future belongs to those who begin exploring it today.
Start small, stay curious and scale responsibly. AI is not the future—it's your present advantage.
Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
12 minutes ago
- Fox News
National security experts raise concerns after Microsoft program exposed as possible avenue for Chinese spying
A new ProPublica report accused Microsoft of allowing China-based engineers to assist with Pentagon cloud systems with inadequate guardrails in an effort to scale up its government contracting business, raising espionage concerns from national security experts. The report cited current and former employees and government contractors who worked on a cloud computing program deployed by Microsoft in 2016 that would allow the tech giant to sell its cloud services to the government, known as a "digital escort" framework. The security measure, meant to meet federal contracting regulations, was effectively a program that included a "digital escort" chaperone for global cybersecurity officials, such as those based in China, so they can work on agency computing systems. Defense Department guidelines require that people handling sensitive data be U.S. citizens or permanent residents. According to sources who spoke to ProPublica, including some who had intimate familiarity with the hiring process for the $18-per-hour "digital escort" position, the tech employees being hired to do the supervising lacked the adequate tech expertise to prevent a rogue Chinese employee from hacking the system or turning over classified information to the CCP. The sources elaborated that the escorts, often former military personnel, were hired for their security clearances more than their technical abilities and often lacked the skills to evaluate code being used by the engineers they were supervising. In China, people are governed by sweeping laws compelling government cooperation with data collection efforts. "If ProPublica's report turns out to be true, Microsoft has created a national embarrassment that endangers our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines. Heads should roll, those responsible should go to prison and Congress should hold extensive investigations to uncover the full extent of potential compromise," said Michael Lucci, the CEO and founder of State Armor Action, a conservative group with a mission to develop and enact state-level solutions to global security threats. "Microsoft or any vendor providing China with access to Pentagon secrets verges on treasonous behavior and should be treated as such." "This is like asking the fox to guard the henhouse and arming the chickens with sticks in case the fox gets mad," Michael Sobolik, a Hudson Institute foreign policy senior fellow, added. "It beggars belief." Microsoft uses its escort system to handle sensitive government information that falls below "classified," which includes "data that involves the protection of life and financial ruin," ProPublica reported. At the Defense Department, the data is categorized as "Impact Level" four and five, which ProPublica reported includes materials directly supporting military operations. A Microsoft spokesperson defended the company's "digital escort" model, saying all personnel and contractors with privileged access must pass federally approved background checks. "For some technical requests, Microsoft engages our team of global subject matter experts to provide support through authorized U.S. personnel, consistent with U.S. government requirements and processes," the spokesperson added. "In these instances, global support personnel have no direct access to customer data or customer systems." The Defense Information Systems Agency's (DISA) public information office was initially unaware of the program when ProPublica began asking questions about it, but it eventually followed up to point out that "digital escorts" are used "in select unclassified environments" at the Defense Department for "advanced problem diagnosis and resolution from industry subject matter experts." Fox News Digital reached out to the DISA and DOD but did not immediately receive a response. In 2023, Chinese hackers infiltrated Microsoft's cloud servers and stole data belonging to senior U.S. government officials, including data and emails from the commerce secretary, the U.S. ambassador to China and others involved in national security work. Hackers were able to access tens of thousands of emails from the Defense Department. A postmortem from the federal Cyber Safety Review Board, which has since been disbanded, cited Microsoft security failures that allowed hackers to infiltrate the cloud. However, the after-incident report did not include any links to the "digital escort" program, according to ProPublica. Microsoft said in response to the recent ProPublica report that it considers "anyone" with access to sensitive government systems, no matter their location or role, a potential risk. "We establish layers of mitigation at the platform level with security and monitoring controls to detect and prevent threats. This includes approval workflows for system changes and automated code reviews to quickly detect and prevent the introduction of vulnerabilities," a company spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The spokesperson added that Microsoft adheres to the federal security requirements outlined by the Defense Department and the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program, which was established in 2011 to address the risks associated with moving from entirely government-controlled servers, to cloud-based computing. "This production system support model is approved and regularly audited by the U.S. government," the spokesperson concluded. Still, if the ProPublica allegations are true, Lucci says the federal government should cease its work with Microsoft. "If these [ProPublica] allegations are credible, the federal government should never again rely on Microsoft to protect the data that keeps our men and women in uniform safe, especially given Microsoft's extensive record of being compromised by the CCP," Lucci said Monday. "Our military cannot operate in security and secrecy if a vendor repeatedly and intentionally invites the enemy into the camp."
Business Wire
18 minutes ago
- Business Wire
Soluna Holdings, Inc. Announces Pricing of $5 Million Public Offering
ALBANY, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Soluna Holdings, Inc. ('Soluna' or the 'Company') (NASDAQ: SLNH), a developer of green data centers for intensive computing applications including Bitcoin mining and Artificial Intelligence (AI), today announced the pricing of a public offering of an aggregate of 9,090,909 shares of its common stock (or pre-funded warrants in lieu thereof), Series A warrants to purchase 9,090,909 shares of its common stock and Series B warrants to purchase 9,090,909 shares of its common stock, at a combined public offering price of $0.55 per share (or pre-funded warrant in lieu thereof) and accompanying warrants. Each of the Series A warrants and the Series B warrants will have an exercise price of $0.55 per share and will be exercisable immediately upon issuance. The Series A Warrants will expire on the five-year anniversary of the initial exercise date and the Series B Warrants will expire on the twenty-four-month anniversary of the initial exercise date. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about July 17, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. H.C. Wainwright & Co. is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering. The gross proceeds from the offering, before deducting the placement agent's fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company, are expected to be approximately $5 million. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering for working capital, project-level equity, and general corporate purposes. The securities described above are being offered pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333- 287519), which was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the 'SEC') on July 15, 2025. The offering is being made only by means of a prospectus forming part of the effective registration statement relating to the offering. A preliminary prospectus relating to the offering has been filed with the SEC. Electronic copies of the final prospectus, when available, may be obtained on the SEC's website at and may also be obtained by contacting H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC at 430 Park Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10022, by phone at (212) 856-5711 or e-mail at placements@ This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction. About Soluna Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: SLNH) Soluna is on a mission to make renewable energy a global superpower, using computing as a catalyst. The Company designs, develops, and operates digital infrastructure that transforms surplus renewable energy into global computing resources. Soluna's pioneering data centers are strategically co-located with wind, solar, or hydroelectric power plants to support high-performance computing applications, including Bitcoin Mining, Generative AI, and other compute-intensive applications. Soluna's proprietary software MaestroOS(™) helps energize a greener grid while delivering cost-effective and sustainable computing solutions and superior returns. To learn more, visit and follow us on: LinkedIn: X (formerly Twitter): YouTube: Newsletter: Resource Center: Soluna regularly posts important information on its website and encourages investors and potential investors to consult the Soluna investor relations and investor resources sections of its website regularly. Safe Harbor Statement This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the 'safe harbor' provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include all statements, other than statements of historical fact, regarding our current views and assumptions with respect to future events regarding our business and our expectations with respect to the completion of the offering, the satisfaction of customary closing conditions related to the offering, the anticipated use of proceeds therefrom, and other statements that are predictive in nature. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as 'will,' 'expects,' 'anticipates,' 'future,' 'intends,' 'plans,' 'believes,' 'estimates,' 'confident' and similar statements. Readers are cautioned that any forward-looking information provided by us or on our behalf is not a guarantee of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those contained in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors disclosed in our filings with the SEC, including the 'Risk Factors' section of our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 31, 2025, as well as other risks described in the section entitled 'Risk Factors,' in the Company's registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-287519). All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no duty to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except to the extent required by law.
Digital Trends
32 minutes ago
- Digital Trends
Google's AI agent ‘Big Sleep' just stopped a cyberattack before it started
Google's AI agent, dubbed Big Sleep, has achieved a cybersecurity milestone by detecting and blocking an imminent exploit in the wild—marking the first time an AI has proactively foiled a cyber threat. Developed by Google DeepMind and Project Zero, Big Sleep identified a critical vulnerability in SQLite (CVE-2025-6965), an open-source database engine, that was on the verge of being exploited by malicious actors, allowing Google to patch it before damage occurred. 'We believe this is the first time an AI agent has been used to directly foil efforts to exploit a vulnerability in the wild,' the company said. Why it matters: As cyberattacks surge—costing businesses trillions annually—this breakthrough shifts defense from reactive patching to AI-driven prediction and prevention. It gives security teams a powerful new tool to stay ahead of hackers, potentially saving devices and data worldwide. CEO Sundar Pichai called it 'a first for an AI agent—definitely not the last' according to Live Mint. Recommended Videos Go deeper: Big Sleep isn't just a one-trick pony; since November 2024, it's uncovered multiple real-world flaws in open-source software, scaling human expertise to scan vast codebases autonomously. In this case, aided by Google Threat Intelligence, it spotted the SQLite flaw—known only to threats—and enabled a swift fix. Google emphasizes safeguards like human oversight and privacy protections in its deployment. Beyond Big Sleep, Google's ramping up AI security: Timesketch now uses Sec-Gemini for automated forensics, FACADE detects insider threats via billions of events, and partnerships like the AI Cyber Challenge with DARPA aim to crowdsource more innovations.
