My 5 Favorite AI Influencers

 Any time there’s a big new wave sweeping through your life it can feel intimidating. Scary. Unsettling.

Especially when that wave is running run through the heart of your business – the thing you depend on for your livelihood and your future.

So it can be really helpful to discover allies who can help you through.

Folks who are a step ahead of you.

But not so far ahead that they leave you in the dust.

Which is exactly why I’ve chosen to share my 5 favorite AI Influencers.

Because AI is a real thing. It’s happening now, not something that will be happening someday.

While I’ve leaned on scores of sources to keep me current, these are my go-to’s.

Clear. Informative. Personable. Relatable.

And I want to share them with you now:

Matt Wolfe is the first AI influencer I stumbled across. And grew to be one of the biggest.

It’s a bit weird because he had actually tried several other online businesses, one which was moderately successful. But nothing took off in big way – until this one.

And boy …. did it take off!

Matt is a news aggregator and reports across a very wide spectrum of AI developments. Whether it’s breaking news, behind the scenes dish, cool tools, or timely tips and mini-structional tutorials – he does it all.

Which can make his video feel like drinking from a fire house. But there’s a silver lining:

All his videos have Time Stamps (see graphic). Meaning you can read down the list of topics he covers and click right to the point in the video where you can find that exact nuggets that interest you. 

I first discovered Natalie’s informative and edgy videos on Pinterest, although her primary following is on TikTok.

She’s personable, engaging, fresh and blissfully to the point. No 15 or 30-minute extravaganzas here! Each of her videos covers one nugget only. And with her quick-fire delivery, you may need to watch two or three times to capture everything she shoe horns into 90 seconds.

Her mission is to “demystify AI” and help businesses implement “Humanized Automation” to save time & grow revenue. Her focus is on using AI to get more done in less time. 

She’s the only one I’ve seen who shows you how to combine AI with Zapier integrations to do some really amazing work flows.  And adds awesome cool tips and hidden hacks no one else is talking about.

Plus that itsy-bitsy handheld mic gets me every time!

What I love about FuturePedia is their tutorials are easy to understand: No fluff or endless intros. So you’re never left taping your foot, hoping upon hope they would just get to the damn point.

Their multimedia tutorials are straight forward and easy to understand. They make getting started playing with cool stuff insanely simple. Even with tasks (like creating original AI music) you’ve never done before.

Their purpose is to “leverage AI tools and acquire AI skills to future-proof your life and business.” So in addition to media product announcements and walk throughs, you’ll discover tips on productivity apps, free tools, website builders and more.

Like all these influencers, you never feel like your being talked down to. Or fire-hosed with too much info.  It’s just the right amount of instruction.

While FuturePedia crosses over into productivity and AI tool summaries, Theoretically Media sticks 100% to multimedia:  Music, video, and graphics. As they say on their YouTube channel, “Here, we dive into filmmaking, music, writing, and art, all enhanced by AI latest tools.”

One of the reasons I’m reserving 3 of my top influencer slots for media is that it’s going to become increasingly pivotal for entrepreneurs to master these areas.

While creating them can be labor-intensive now, AI is streamlining the process of taking the complex and technical mainstream. So even if you’re not an artist, musician, or have a video agency, you ignore these new tools and capabilities at your own risk, because they are making creation simpler than ever.

Theoretically Media does not allow its videos to be played on other websites. So you will have to hop over to their YouTube channel to check them out.

Curious Refuge is my guilty pleasure. Maybe it’s a holdover from my days as a Hollywood visual effects artist, but I love the big things they’re up to.

Billing itself as “the world’s first online home for AI storytellers”, the quality and magnitude of what they’re doing definitely pushes the envelope for what’s possible with AI.

And they do it all with a casual friendly vibe and an up-front sense of humor (check out the Star Wars / Wes Anderson send-up above … all done with AI.)

This is really is more like an AI filmmaking school. But its not farfetched to be thinking we may all be pumping out creations like this in the coming years.

Be sure to check out their website for some of the most astounding AI imagery I’ve seen.

Yep, AI is exciting. There’s also enough of it to drown in. Which is why, with the exception of Curious Refuge, I haven’t included any of the influencers actual websites.

Because many of them have endless lists of AI tools. And, if you’re just dipping your toe in the water, that’s enough to make you run to the hills screaming. So:

FIRST:
Sample a video or two from any of the five you’re most drawn to.

THEN:
Hop on over to their website, or sign-up for their newsletter if you want a deeper dive. Most have links in the descriptions of their videos.

I’ve found 95% of the value I need from AI is contained in 3% of the tools out there. So stay lean, mean and selective. That doesn’t mean not jumping into the pool. But being very clear on where you are jumping … and why.

And if you know an awesome influencer or expert I haven’t included, be sure to mention them in the comments!