It’s never been easier to make half-formed thinking look convincing. AI can help us write emails, work through different approaches, and even clean up a presentation. That can save us a lot of time, but it can also make weak logic harder to spot.
The value your people create won't come from knowing how to write the best prompt to put into an AI tool. It will come from knowing how to think, ask questions, and defend the recommendations they make.
That's why I still ask people to walk me through their reasoning when they present an idea. What assumptions are they making? What would have to be true for this recommendation to work? What would change their mind?
You learn a lot by listening to how someone works through a problem.
The companies that benefit most from AI won't be the ones producing the most polished work that came from a prompt. They'll be the ones developing teams with sound judgment, clear reasoning, and the confidence to stand behind what they believe. That's the kind of company I want to build.
PERSPECTIVES
“Knowing what you don't know is more useful than being brilliant." — Charlie Munger
MARK MY WORDS
I deeply believe founders should be using AI every day and should encourage their teams to do the same.
AI can help us examine information, pressure-test our thinking, and get to recommendations faster. But speed doesn’t remove responsibility. The person making the recommendation still needs to decide what they believe, understand the assumptions behind it, and explain what could change their mind. That’s how judgment is built.
AI will keep getting better. That's inevitable. What isn't inevitable is whether we build teams that know how to question the output, explain their reasoning, and change their minds when the evidence changes. That's the work founders are responsible for.
Use AI often. Just don't let it replace understanding.
NINETY MAKES THE INC. 5000 LIST OF AMERICA’S FASTEST-GROWING COMPANIES
We got some pretty cool news this week. Ninety made the 2026 Inc. 5000, coming in at #1,437.
I’m proud of the recognition, but I’m even more proud of the people behind it. Ten years of learning, iterating, rebuilding, and getting clearer about the kind of company we want to be.
And none of it happens without the people who’ve shaped Ninety along the way or the customers who trust us to help them build great companies. There’s a lot more we want to do, but this is a moment worth appreciating.
ON DEMAND
We should never stop learning.
At Ninety, we've brought our webinars together in one place so you can explore conversations on leadership, EOS®, AI, accountability, annual planning, and more. Browse by challenge, topic, or EOS® tool and watch whenever it works for you.
In case you missed it, here’s more from Founder’s Framework:
Why Founders Should Stop Asking for Employee Loyalty
Loyalty can create obligation when what founders really need is care, commitment, and earned belonging.
In this article, I share why strong cultures are built by people who keep choosing the work, meeting the standard, and bringing their best judgment day after day.
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