"Powered by AI" Is Not a Value Proposition (www.nngroup.com)

“Powered by AI” is not a value proposition — it’s a technology label. The article argues that product teams should lead with a clear user-centered value proposition (the specific problem and user journey) and choose technologies — including AI — only when they directly help deliver that value. Starting with the “how” (e.g., adding generative AI because it’s trendy) leads to scattered features, higher adoption barriers (broad-scope chatbots, generic summarizers), and user confusion or anxiety. Empirical work shows disclosing AI can even reduce purchase intent by undermining emotional trust, and consumer-facing examples like Grammarly succeed because their AI is tightly scoped to one task and directly addresses user concerns. For the AI/ML community this has practical implications: foundation models and LLMs are powerful but overly general, so product teams must translate capabilities into narrowly scoped, explainable, and trustable features that map to a single user goal. That means prioritizing features that complete a specific workflow, avoiding feature bloat driven by ease of implementation or stakeholder hype, and designing for domain-specific anxieties (privacy, authenticity, style). In B2B, AI for “bragging rights” risks short-term sales without long-term retention unless tied to a clear, measurable value. In short: use AI as an enabler, not the headline — let the user problem define the product.