Episodes

Think AI is just a bright, shiny object? Think again. In this episode of AI Today, host Lou Bortone sits down with Brett Wallace, founder of Agent Discovery, to unpack how small and mid-sized businesses can use AI voice agents and automation to eliminate everyday operational bottlenecks. Brett shares his journey from creating a personal phone agent to field recruiter calls, to building sophisticated, multi-tool integrations with Claude Code. Learn the difference between standard automation and a...

Lou Bortone sits down with Ian Cook, SVP of AI at Clue, to discuss how to stay grounded in an era of dizzying AI breakthroughs. Ian explains why AI should be viewed as an "amplifier" for your business rather than a replacement for your staff. In this episode, you'll learn about the latest "Low-Code" and "No-Code" tools like Lovable and Claude Code that allow anyone to build custom software in minutes. Whether you're a solopreneur or a tech leader, Ian’s insights on focusing on "The Why" will he...

Can AI save the music industry? Host Lou Bortone talks with Brad Stewart, founder of Music Mogul AI, about how technology is finally fixing the "broken" traditional agency model. Brad explains why modern A&R starts with data—specifically ticket sales—and how he is using agentic AI to automate the "grind" of booking and tour management. If you are an artist, manager, or industry pro, this episode is a blueprint for how to survive the new landscape where data is king. Topics discussed: Why talen...

In this episode of AI Today, Lou connects with long-time friend and sales expert Jon Schumacher to discuss the evolution of the "AI Space Race" and how to move from basic prompting to building sophisticated AI-powered business systems. Jon shares his philosophy on solving business bottlenecks rather than just chasing the latest tool releases. He also gives us a deep dive into his personal "No-Code" tech stack, explaining why he’s leaning into Gemini 1.5 Pro and how he uses MindPal to create cus...

Is NotebookLM the "smarter, dumber assistant" we’ve all been waiting for? In this episode, Lou Bortone sits down with the mother-son duo Sue and Matt Guiher to discuss how they are using Google’s NotebookLM to revolutionize business systems and academic research. From "source grounding" to the "Writing Wingman," learn how to use AI as a tool rather than a replacement.

Is AI making you more productive or just more "busy"? Dr. Ana Melikian, host of the Mindset Zone podcast, joins Lou Bortone to discuss how to navigate the "100-foot wave" of AI without losing your humanity—or your mind. What You’ll Learn: The ACE Framework: A simple, 3-step method (Act as, Context, Engage) for high-impact prompting. The Savant Intern Mindset: Why you should treat AI like a brilliant assistant—but never accept the first draft. The 4 Rules of Co-Intelligence: From acknowledging...

Think AI is too generic for your brand? Rob Schultz joins Lou Bortone to explain why the problem isn't the AI—it's your willingness to push it further. What You’ll Learn: The "Jump Through Hoops" Philosophy: Why you should never settle for the first AI response. Contextual AI: How to use transcripts to teach ChatGPT your specific voice, tone, and point of view. Visual Storytelling: A look at the tools bridging the gap between text and high-end video production. The "Take 48" Mindset: Why eli...

Are you overwhelmed by the "tool-of-the-week" fatigue? Jen Lehner joins Lou Bortone to pull back the curtain on how to actually integrate AI into your business workflow rather than just playing with it. What You’ll Learn: The Meta-Prompting Secret: How to make ChatGPT interview you to build a perfect business knowledge base. Google Workspace Studio: How to use the "Zapier-killer" built directly into your Gmail. Custom "Gems": The difference between automation and AI, and how to use Gems as sp...

Are you overwhelmed by the "New AI Tool of the Week" cycle? Lou Bortone welcomes social media agency founder and short-form video expert Nika Stewart to discuss how to quiet the noise and use AI to amplify your unique human voice. What You’ll Learn: The Overwhelm Antidote: Why focusing on one tool 100% is better than testing four tools at 25%. Meet "Goldie": How Nika trained a Custom GPT on her books and life story to create an effortless writing assistant. ChatGPT vs. Claude: Why Nika disagr...

Ready to move past "playing" with AI and start profiting from it? Lou Bortone sits down with the "Live Stream Queen," Tanya Smith, to discuss the high-level frameworks she uses to automate video production and analyze social data. What You’ll Learn: The "VIDEO" Framework: A specific strategy for creating high-conversion prompts in Sora. The Copywriting Shift: Why Claude is Tanya's go-to for brand-consistent copy over ChatGPT. Agental Automation: How to connect Vista Social to Claude via MCP s...

Is AI a replacement for your creativity, or the ultimate amplifier? Lou Bortone welcomes long-time friend and digital marketing expert Bob Sparkins to cut through the "shiny object" noise and focus on tools that actually save time and generate revenue. What You’ll Learn: The "Invisible" AI: Why SaneBox is the must-have tool for email sanity you didn't know was AI. Juicing the Brain: How to use interviews and ChatGPT as a ghostwriter to create high-converting content. The Realist’s Privacy Tak...

Are you using AI as a toy or a teammate? Rich Brooks, founder of flyte new media and the Agents of Change podcast, joins Lou Bortone to pull back the curtain on the exact AI workflows driving his multi-decade agency. What You’ll Learn: The Workflow Shift: Why Claude is beating ChatGPT for brand-voice writing. The "Invisible" Teammate: How to build an AI assistant for podcast show notes and social promo. The Privacy Play: How (and why) to run LLMs locally on your own laptop. SEO Evolution: Wh...

http://www.LouBortone.com presents…Unlock Next-Level Research with Perplexity AI: Day 6 of 12 Days of AI ToolsJoin Lou Bortone as he introduces Perplexity, an AI-powered research and answer engine, on day 6 of his '12 Days of AI Tools' series. Perplexity offers real-time research with actual citations, combining the strengths of search engines and conversational AI. Ideal for anyone in need of accurate, current information quickly, Lou demonstrates its capabilities with a real research example a...

Day 5 of 12 Days of AI Tools: Unlocking the Power of ChatGPTIn day five of the 12 Days of AI Tools series, Lou Bortone explores the transformative impact of ChatGPT, OpenAI's conversational AI that became mainstream in November 2022. Lou discusses how ChatGPT has evolved beyond a simple chatbot into a comprehensive AI platform featuring GPT-4, custom GPTs, DALL-E integration, web browsing, code interpreter, and voice conversations. He emphasizes its versatility and advanced functionalities, like...

http://www.LouBortone.com presents…Day 4: Transform Your Video Editing with Descript - 12 Days of AI ToolsWelcome to day four of the 12 Days of AI Tools! Join Lou as he introduces Descript, an AI-powered video and audio editing platform that simplifies media editing to the level of text document editing. Learn how Descript transcribes your media content and allows you to edit by deleting words from the transcript. Discover features like removing filler words, background noise, and even adding st...

Day 3: Discover Claude — The Ultimate AI Tool for Writers & Researchers!Join Lou on day three of the '12 Days of AI Tools' series, where he introduces Claude, an advanced conversational AI by Anthropic. Lou highlights why Claude is his go-to tool for daily tasks, describing its robust capabilities like handling complex reasoning, natural writing, and advanced coding. He shares his personal experiences using Claude for various tasks, such as writing emails, editing books, and planning podcasts, e...

Unlock Google's AI Marketing Assistant: Pomelli | Day 2 of 12 Days of AI ToolsJoin Lou on day two of the 12 Days of AI Tools as he explores Pomelli, Google's new experimental AI marketing assistant. Pomelli helps marketers create comprehensive campaigns, including social media posts, email sequences, and landing pages, by analyzing content from your website. Lou demonstrates how to use Pomelli and highlights its features, such as brand values, tone of voice, and custom creatives. Don't miss out ...