
Episode #33
Ep. 033: The Hidden Cost of AI: What Businesses Need to Know Before Scaling
AI might feel cheap, but using it inside your business can get expensive fast. In Episode 033 of The Logic Speak Podcast, Adam Bieber and Jason Etheridge break down the hidden costs of AI for businesses, including AI tokens and credits, Microsoft Copilot and Co-work usage, AI agents, automation, integrations, maintenance, downtime, and the infrastructure required to make AI reliable at scale. Jason shares a real-world test where a single AI workflow reviewing one day of email consumed $8.72 in Microsoft credits. Multiply that across employees, workflows, and workdays, and the economics of AI start looking very different. Adam and Jason also discuss why businesses should: • Track AI spending as its own budget category • Start small before deploying AI across the organization • Understand the ongoing cost of AI agents and automation • Plan for integrations, API changes, maintenance, and downtime • Avoid adopting AI simply because they fear being left behind • Focus on sustainable business value instead of AI hype AI can create tremendous efficiency and opportunity, but it is not an unlimited or free resource.The takeaway: innovate, experiment, and explore what AI can do for your business, but proceed with caution, measure the real costs, and build intentionally.

