The $700 Billion AI Productivity Problem No One's Talking About

The podcast explores a major and often overlooked challenge in the AI boom: although companies are investing heavily in AI tools, most lack the ability to measure whether those tools are actually improving productivity. Guest Russ Fradin, co-founder of Larridin, joins a16z’s Alex Rampell to argue that the lack of robust measurement infrastructure—similar to what transformed internet advertising—means organizations are spending billions without knowing if AI is delivering real value. They discuss how employees often use AI autonomously but hide it from management, why counting software licenses isn’t a true productivity metric, and how enterprises need new measurement approaches that combine real usage data with outcomes to unlock AI’s potential and avoid waste.

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