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What To Know

Human Skills Gap Threatens AI Rollouts

Startups Magazine warns that weak communication, critical thinking, and change-management skills derail up to 70 percent of AI pilots.

• Teams freeze when models go off-script.

• Training budgets are routinely skipped.

“Soft skills are the real bottleneck, not GPUs” – Read more

What this means to you: Pair every new model with workshops on prompt design, feedback loops, and cross-team hand-offs, or expect stalled adoption and sunk costs.

What to watch for: “AI facilitation” certificates will soon flood LinkedIn; grab one champion early and embed best practices company-wide.

AI Is Stealing Voiceover Gigs

Microsoft, OpenAI, and niche SaaS vendors now sell studio-quality voices for pennies, and freelancers say bookings are disappearing overnight.

• Rates crashed from $300 to $30 per spot.

• Clients rarely disclose swaps to synthetic speech.

“Actors are calling this the Napster moment for voice” – Read more

What this means to you: Update contracts today to cover AI training rights and future reuse, and start A/B testing cloned reads against human talent to see where audiences actually care.

What to watch for: SAG-AFTRA’s pending vocal-likeness rules could impose royalty payments or disclosure labels across all audio ads.

Illinois Bans AI Therapists

Illinois just barred unlicensed AI chatbots from giving mental-health advice, citing safety and privacy risks.

• Fines start at $5k per incident.

• Wellness chatbots stay legal if they avoid diagnoses.

“This is a consumer-protection measure, not anti-tech” – Read more

What this means to you: If your product dispenses advice—fitness, finance, legal—map every jurisdiction’s “therapy” line before launch, and add human hand-off buttons where rules require.

What to watch for: Expect copy-and-paste bills in at least three other states during the next legislative session.

Pinterest Says Agentic Shopping Is Years Away

Pinterest CEO Bill Ready says fully autonomous “agentic shopping,” where bots buy on your behalf, remains “a long way out” due to data gaps and consumer hesitancy.

• Shoppers demand veto power at checkout.

• Merchants lack clean, standardized feeds.

“Agentic shopping is not happening tomorrow” – Read more

What this means to you: Invest in micro-agents that handle discovery and comparison, then return control for the final click, and start cleaning your product data now so you’re ready when the switch flips.

What to watch for: Once catalog metadata and payment rails reach 90 percent coverage, expect adoption to spike quickly.

YouTube’s AI Age Check

YouTube will pilot an AI face-scan to verify users are over 18, replacing self-reported birthdays and credit-card checks.

• Google claims 99 percent accuracy.

• Images delete post-scan, but privacy critics object.

“Safeguarding kids online is a shared responsibility” – Read more

What this means to you: If your product is age-gated—alcohol, finance, gaming—start testing biometric checks now so platform policies don’t lock you out later.

What to watch for: EU regulators will review the tool; their verdict often sets the global standard for age-verification tech.

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Try This

Connect Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts Connectors in ChatGPT Plus

You can now connect ChatGPT to your data sources (e.g., Google Drive, GitHub, SharePoint) so it can search files, pull live data, and reference content in chat.

Here’s how to connect a new app to ChatGPT:

1. Open your profile: click your avatar at the top-right, then choose Settings.

2. Go to Connectors: find and tap the Connectors (or Integrations) tab.

3. Pick the app: browse the list and click Connect on the app you want.

4. Sign in: complete the app’s login flow in the new window.

5. Grant permissions: review and accept the requested permissions so ChatGPT can access the app.

6. Use it in chat: start a new chat → Tools → Use connectors (or Deep research), select the connected app, and ask your question.

That’s all for this week!

— Kofi

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