Not For Show. For Real.

# Not for Show. For Real.

Years ago, I was driving near Midway Airport in Chicago when I saw something that made me laugh so hard I had to pull over and call my wife from a pay phone.

A woman was crossing busy Cicero Avenue carrying one of those old “As Seen on TV” fitness products under her arm.

The box faced directly toward traffic like a moving billboard.

In giant letters it said:

BUNS OF STEEL

The irony was impossible to miss.

The product was not really about health.

It was about appearance.

Perception.

Image.

And honestly, decades later, I think a lot of technology works the exact same way.

Especially AI.

Today, nearly every company claims to have:

- AI assistants

- AI agents

- AI automation

- AI intelligence

But much of it feels more “for show” than “for real.”

Recently, Caryl and I called a restaurant to let them know we were running five or ten minutes late for a reservation.

Simple request.

But they had added an AI receptionist to their phone system, and the experience was awful. It misunderstood us, hallucinated, sounded strangely off for a moment, and eventually had to transfer us to a live person anyway.

By then, we were almost at the restaurant.

When we mentioned it to our server, she immediately said employees calling in were having the same frustrating experience.

That stuck with me.

Because the restaurant did not need technology that sounded impressive.

They needed technology that actually helped.

Something as simple as:

“If you prefer, you can text us on this number.”

Then the message could be routed instantly to the host stand, highlighted properly, and handled by a real person with context.

That is the difference between AI for show and AI for real.

“For show” products focus on perception.

“For real” products focus on outcomes.

I think customers are starting to feel this difference everywhere.

More automation.

More dashboards.

More AI.

More noise.

And often, less humanity.

The best technology should not replace relationships.

It should help people communicate more clearly, respond more effectively, and recognize when real human attention is needed most.

Not for show.

For real.

~ Bryan Anderson