If any startup can buy the same AI APIs we use, how do we define our Three Uniques on the V/TO® to prevent our business from becoming completely commoditized?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

If your differentiation is based on how fast you can write a report or analyze data, you no longer have a strategic moat. AI has made those outputs cheap and plentiful. To protect your margins, your Three Uniques must shift away from standard deliverables and focus on what cannot be automated.

The solution is to seek to be an indispensable complement to the technology. While AI can generate answers instantly, it cannot build trust, navigate corporate politics, or take accountability for results. Your strategic positioning must focus on these human-centric elements.

On your V/TO®, redefine your Three Uniques to emphasize your proprietary data, your deep industry relationships, and your ability to guarantee business outcomes. For example, if you run an advisory firm, your unique value is no longer the analysis itself, but your ability to help the client execute that analysis in their specific environment.

Stop selling the information. Start selling the implementation and the relationship. When you align your strategic positioning with the high-value, human-led elements of your service, you make the commoditized AI tools work for you rather than against you.