THE FRICTION PROBLEM
Why the Future of AI isn’t about new tools, it’s making them disappear….
This week was FULL of crazy announcements. But they also felt VERY different.
Consider the announcments coming out of Google I/O. Microsoft Build. The OpenAI + Jony Ive device announcement.
To me, there wasn't the whole WHOA LOOK WHAT IT CAN DO!! Followed by people spitting out their cereal. This was more of a recognition that the WOW moments aren't moving the needle for you, for me, for enterprise.
That's because the tech is already far beyond what we can imagine. The tech isn't the problem. We're the problem. Our brains are the problem.
Friction is the problem.
We need people actually using this tech, not shrieking, Beatle-mania-style over it.
We are in the stage of making AI... easier.
THE THING EVERYONE MISSED
At Google I/O, they didn't announce a better search engine.
They announced that you can now just talk to your phone and it figures out what you want. No search bar. No keywords. Just: "Help me plan dinner for my vegetarian sister-in-law."
At Microsoft Build, they didn't unveil more powerful software.
They showed Excel that writes its own formulas. Word that formats itself. Outlook that drafts your replies.
The OpenAI device isn't going to be more capable than your phone.
It's designed to eliminate the friction between thinking something and getting help with it.
Here's what's actually happening:
The technology is already incredible. The problem is that using it still feels like...well, work.
THE HISTORY LESSON WE KEEP FORGETTING
This is how every breakthrough technology actually succeeds.
The printing press didn't win because it made better books. It won because it made books cheap and fast to produce.
The telephone didn't win because it had better sound quality than meeting in person. It won because you didn't have to travel across town to have a conversation.
The internet didn't win because it was more accurate than the library. It won because you could search it in your pajamas at 2 AM.
Same pattern, every time:
The technology gets developed in labs by brilliant people.
Then it sits there, unused, until someone figures out how to make it frictionless for normal humans doing normal things.
WHY YOUR TEAM ISN'T USING AI
Here's the uncomfortable truth:
Your company probably has access to incredibly powerful AI tools right now.
Microsoft Copilot. Google Workspace AI. ChatGPT Enterprise.
Tools that could genuinely transform how work gets done.
So why isn't anyone using them?
Because the friction is still too high. Because our brains don't work that way. It's the same reason we don't use that bread maker we got for our wedding. Do we want fresh bread? We do. But we already have super easy bread from the store. So let's just go with that, amiright?
Think about it:
Opening a separate app to ask AI for help
Learning new "prompting techniques" (or whatever we want to call them)
Figuring out which tool does what
Explaining to IT why you need access
Training yourself to think differently about routine tasks
Each tiny bit of friction is a reason to just... not bother.
It's easier to write the email yourself. Format the spreadsheet manually. Google it the old way.
Your current workflow already works. Why change?
THE FRICTION BREAKTHROUGH
Here's what this week's announcements actually solved:
Google: Made AI conversation as simple as pointing your phone at something and talking.
Microsoft: Put AI inside the tools you're already using every day, so you don't have to learn anything new.
OpenAI + Jony Ive: Designed a device that responds to intention, not commands.
Notice the pattern?
They're not adding features. They're removing steps.
THE THREE FRICTION POINTS (AND HOW TO FIX THEM)
If you want your team to actually use AI, focus on these three barriers:
FRICTION POINT #1: THE SWITCH
Right now, using AI means stopping what you're doing, opening something else, and starting over.
Fix: Look for AI that lives inside your existing workflow.
Microsoft is putting Copilot directly into Word, Excel, and Teams. Google is putting Gemini into Gmail and Docs. Use those versions, not separate AI apps.
FRICTION POINT #2: THE IMAGINARY LEARNING CURVE
Right now, using AI well requires the perception that we need to learn new skills. Prompt engineering. Tool selection. Best practices. We actually don't - we just need to talk to it like a human. But that perception is stopping people from using it.
Fix: Just get started. Here's what I mean.
Instead of learning how ChatGPT can help you at work, just ask it a personal question. Start building trust with it. Or ask Copilot to help with Excel formulas using the same language you'd use with a coworker.
FRICTION POINT #3: THE CHANGE
Right now, using AI requires changing how you think about your work.
Fix: Don't change your process. Enhance it.
Instead of "How do I use AI for this task?" ask "How can AI remove the annoying parts of what I'm already doing?"
THE REAL TEST
Want to know if an AI tool will actually get used?
Apply the Lazy Thursday Test:
It's 4 PM on a Thursday. You're tired. You have three emails to respond to, a report to format, and a meeting to prep for.
Will you remember to use the AI tool?
Will it be faster than just doing it the old way?
Will it work without you having to think about how to make it work?
If the answer to any of those is no, the tool won't stick.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU
The companies that win with AI won't be the ones with the best technology.
They'll be the ones that make that technology disappear into the background of work that's already happening.
Your job isn't to become an AI expert. Everyone already has those skills - if you want to change your organization, you have to change the behavior of the individuals inside that organization. That's what we do, at scale, at AI Mindset. We shift behavior. We reduce friction.
That's the way forward. Not better tools, not better tech.
Just a better approach. And you already have everything you need.
