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In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson, Kyle Poyar, and Ben Hillman dive into the question on everyone’s mind: are we in an AI bubble? What starts as a lighthearted riff on the U.S. Postal Service launching a podcast quickly spirals into a sharp, funny breakdown of today’s AI hype cycle — from Nvidia, OpenAI, and AMD trading money and GPUs in a trillion-dollar feedback loop, to startups burning cash chasing “AI-powered” everything. The trio share real examples of when AI helps and when it backfires (including one newsletter that totally tanked), debate whether companies are over-optimizing for automation, and laugh through the absurdity of the hype while grounding it in practical insights on product, finance, and growth.

Timestamps:

00:00 Preview and Intro

00:14 Are We in an AI Bubble?

00:44 The AI Feedback Loop: Nvidia, OpenAI, and AMD

01:00 Perplexity, We Caught You (Again)

02:18 The USPS Podcast and the End of Original Ideas

04:24 How the Team Actually Uses AI at Work

06:07 CJ’s DIY Dunning Saga

08:38 When Automation Goes Too Far

10:49 The Perplexity Gaslight Moment

13:27 AI vs. AI: Outsmarting Resume Screeners

16:09 What Recruiters Really Think of AI Resumes

17:17 The Chief of Staff Hiring Story

19:15 Is AI Adoption Already Slowing Down?

22:42 The “Crossing the Chasm” Moment for AI Tools

26:22 Bundling AI Like Streaming Services

28:49 Everyone’s Paying Everyone: The Circular AI Economy

31:15 Betting Big on AGI and Data Centers

34:09 The Margin: AI Erotica and Peak Absurdity

35:23 OpenAI’s Token Leaderboard and Other Blunders

41:43 What Kyle Tried This Week: Building an AI Agent

44:52 Wrap-Up and Outro

Episodes Referenced:

5,762 Job Applications. Zero Offers.

Episodes Referenced:

5,762 Job Applications. Zero Offers.

Why Only 2% of Startups Make It

The War for Talent is just getting started | Joe Floyd

Links:

https://usps-mailin-it.simplecast.com/

https://i.imgflip.com/a92oy5.jpg

https://tabs.inc/webinar/tabs-agent

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/07/business/ai-chatbot-prompts-resumes.html?_bhlid=1b5906cdc6781a738a150d9c32f846ebf11fc318

https://substack.com/home/post/p-175615945

https://ramp.com/data/ai-index?utm_source=econlab.substack.com

https://medium.com/@samuelvandeth/crossing-the-chasm-162802d1cf27

https://x.com/TrungTPhan/status/1922669292929024017/photo/1

https://x.com/zerohedge/status/1977902195472322620?s=42

https://topline.beehiiv.com/p/the-era-of-haves-and-have-nots

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpd2qv58yl5o

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/cj-gustafson-13140948_imagine-getting-called-into-your-cfos-office-activity-7381681514532458496-NOqa/

https://fortune.com/2025/10/01/red-lobster-ceo-damola-adamolekun-comeback-plan-bankruptcy/

https://fortune.com/2024/11/13/red-lobster-ceo-damola-adamolekun-says-endless-shrimp-is-never-coming-back/#

https://www.relay.app/

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com