As the senior vice president of automotive at CI&T, Nick Haywood helps clients navigate the digital landscape and build high-impact solutions for it. From major OEMs to dealership groups and niche players, Nick specializes in driving businesses forward through technology, focusing on data management, e-commerce platforms and apps to elevate the customer experience.
Lately, AI has taken center stage in his work. Beyond helping clients integrate AI into their daily workflows, Nick is currently spearheading a major initiative to establish AI use standards for the automotive retail industry, further streamlining the car-buying journey.
On this episode of the “Only The Strong Survive” podcast, Nick joins host Dan Kahn to share his deep expertise on how AI is reshaping the business landscape. It’s an incredibly insightful, must-listen episode for any entrepreneur or brand leader.
Click the icon above to listen to the full episode, and here are our top five takeaways:
AI is now acting as a filter for consumers.
The eventual rise of agentic AI will change everything.
AI first movers will see major benefits.
You need to understand your business before throwing AI at it.
AI is actually in its “easy phase” right now.
Things Are Messy Right Now
One of the big shifts right now is from an attention-based economy to a filter-based one. LLMs are now acting as shopping companions, filtering information for their users. The challenge many brands now face is to alter outdated marketing tactics to be included in those AI-powered recommendations.
“AI as a companion to me as a customer is changing fundamentally how dealer groups and OEMS are used to interacting with their customers,” said Nick. “My AI companion now decides what comes into my world. It starts to know me and knows I might value convenience over price. It will then suggest particular options based on that.”
And It Will Get Even Messier
AI is evolving rapidly, and businesses are struggling to adapt. However, Nick notes that even more changes are just over the horizon. The eventual rise of AI agents capable of making shopping decisions for consumers, rather than acting solely as consultants, will greatly complicate the retail and marketing landscape.
“Everything is set up at the moment to market to humans and to service humans. That is all about to change,” said Nick. “So, now, how do I market to a synthetic customer who isn’t affected by emotion and has guardrails built in? We are going to need a lot of new stuff and more experiences built.”
The Time to Move on AI is Now
Some brands have been hesitant to adopt AI, thinking that it is a fad that might eventually go away. Others are merely stuck in their ways and afraid of change. However, Nick notes that there is a serious advantage to being a first mover, but that window is closing.
“If you remember back to when Google Search started becoming a thing, the people who got into it first had all the traffic. Eventually, everyone got there, and it became competitive,” said Nick. “We are exactly in that same window now with AI. The first movers who embrace this tech and see customer behavior changing and jump in with two feet are going to get all the traffic, attention and eyeballs.”
Before You Leap
In the rush to be first movers, many brands have run headfirst into AI. There are now plenty of companies using AI but not effectively. To make the most of AI, you need a deep understanding of your business, its strengths and weaknesses, and where AI can have the greatest impact.
“More importantly, especially on the automotive retail side, you need to understand your business first before you throw AI at it. If you don’t, all you are going to do is do the wrong things faster,” said Nick. “You used to call some customers, but now you can call 1,000 customers in a minute. But is that the right channel to now be contacting your customers on?”
We’re at the Easy Phase of AI
Believe it or not, even with all the changes, things are relatively simple with AI right now. That is because most of us are currently using AI to enhance productivity and become more efficient. As consumer behavior radically changes in the near future, increased efficiency will become essential to ensure we have the capacity to handle all those shifts.
“We are at the easy phase of AI right now because we are using it as an efficiency play to do more of the same stuff,” said Nick. “However, if you go back to those customer behavior changes, every business is going to be radically different in five years. As we get more efficient at doing stuff, we are going to need that efficiency to capitalize on these new opportunities that are emerging in an AI-first world.”
