I recently met the owner of a company that sells windows and doors. He told me he invested about $10,000 in an AI application that is used by his salespeople in his showroom. The application listens to the conversations between the salesperson and the prospective customer and then automatically creates a quote for the salesperson to review and send.
“It allows my salespeople to talk to more customers and spend less time doing paperwork,” he said. “And it cuts down on errors.”
Another businessperson I know connected Claude to a folder containing the specifications, manuals, instruction guides, technical sheets and other documentation for the equipment her company sells. She says that her customer-support team can now ask Claude questions on any issue and get quick answers. Her next step is to roll out the platform to her customers.
There are many more projects like these under way. Last year, most small businesses were using AI to get answers to questions, review contracts, create policies and rewrite emails. Now they’re starting to move into real-life applications that are showing true return on investment.
The AI story on Main Street seems so far to not be mass layoffs. It is exhausted owners using technology to help scarce employees do more work, make fewer mistakes and serve more customers.
Since mid-2021, the Department of Labor has reported an overall 9% increase – not decrease – of people employed. If you don’t believe the government, then read the numbers from HR and payroll processors such as ADP, Gusto and Paychex, who all report continued job gains among their customers – especially their smaller customers – during the same period of time. Gusto says that small businesses are expected to hire about 974,000 recent grads ages 20 to 24 in the 2026 season, up from 962,000 in 2025. There are almost 7.6m job openings this month, an increase from pre-Covid levels and most predominantly at small businesses. And recent surveys from numerous outlets have found that most small businesses – who employ half of the country’s workers – are not only optimistic about their growth but plan to hire more people in the coming months.
AI is not replacing people. And, despite media reports and the warnings from pundits, academics and experts, it’s not going to, at least for small companies. Why?
For starters, there just aren’t enough people to do the work that needs to be done. The US workforce is expected to significantly decline over the next decade, thanks to an ageing population and a slowdown in birthrates. Immigrant workers who perform much of our services are in short supply. Robot technology – even if a smaller company could afford them – is years away from installing dishwashers, fixing HVAC systems, laying pipes and putting up drywall. The construction industry is desperate for workers. Business owners now view AI as something that can help their workers do their jobs better while they’re easing into retirement.
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