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About Shmuel Koltov

So, You Want to Know About Me?

Fair enough. You clicked on the “About” page, which means you’re either procrastinating on something important (stay focused!) or genuinely curious about who’s behind all this AI rambling. Either way, welcome.

I’m Shmuel, and I have a confession: I’m a bit too self-absorbed, so a social media account wasn’t enough, I need a whole website! Okay, that and that I really do care about the subject and want to share my – hopefully relevant – thoughts.

Oddly, the thing that got me hooked on this whole AI business wasn’t some dramatic moment of technological revelation. It was more like slowly realizing I was watching history happen in real time, and most people seemed to be either panicking or pretending it wasn’t happening at all. I’ve always been fascinated by technology and having seen how our realities (in plural) have changed since I was a kid until today has left its impact on me. And that’s even though I don’t have a technical background.

My academic background is in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from Copenhagen, which sounds completely unrelated until you realize that studying how societies adapt to massive disruption is exactly what we need right now. Plus, it taught me to be skeptical of simple narratives and comfortable with complexity, which turns out to be incredibly useful when everyone’s trying to predict the future of work.

Here’s what actually drives me: I’m curious about the gap between what technology can do and what actually happens when real people try to use it. I’ve become convinced that most of our AI conversations are missing the point. We’re so focused on capabilities that we’re ignoring the much more interesting question of how humans actually adapt to change. And yet, part of what I’m really curious about is also (not only) how we can use this new curious technology to make our lives more easy and comfortable.

Why This Website Exists (And Why I’m Not Just Another pretend AI Guru)

Let me be honest with you. The internet is already drowning in AI content. We have the breathless evangelists promising AI will solve everything, the doom prophets warning it’ll destroy civilization, and approximately 47,000 LinkedIn thought leaders explaining how ChatGPT changed their morning routine.

So why add another voice to this cacophony?

Because I think most of the conversation is happening at the wrong altitude. Everyone’s either discussing theoretical capabilities or sharing productivity hacks, but nobody’s talking about the messy middle, that is, what actually happens when organizations try to implement this stuff, why some people adapt easily while others struggle, and how we can make this transition work for everyone instead of just the early adopters. And, how can we use this stuff on a low-practical basis without creating huge agentic workflows that automate everything from reading books to raising our kids.

This website exists because I’m documenting something specific: my systematic attempt to understand AI not just as a user, but as someone who might need to help others navigate this transformation. I call it building expertise across three dimensions; understanding how humans and AI actually work (theory), becoming genuinely competent with the tools (technical skills), and developing frameworks for helping people and organizations adapt effectively (execution).

I’ve decided to do this publicly, in real time, with all the failures and course corrections included. Not because I think my specific journey is fascinating, but because I suspect the process itself might be useful to others trying to figure out their own path through this maze.

I’m particularly interested in what I call the “human factors”, for example, the psychology of adoption, the organizational dynamics that make or break AI implementations, and the question of how we ensure this technology actually serves human flourishing rather than just optimizing metrics.

If you’re looking for someone to tell you definitively what the future holds, you’re in the wrong place. If you’re interested in joining someone who’s trying to figure it out thoughtfully, with intellectual honesty and a focus on real-world application, then stick around.

The Part You Can Skip (But Probably Shouldn’t)

Look, you’ve already invested this much time reading about me, so you might as well understand why I think any of this matters beyond my personal and career development.

We’re living through one of those historical points in time that future historians will probably name something dramatic like “The Great AI Transition” or “The Second Machine Age” or whatever. The problem is that while we’re living through it, it mostly feels like a confusing mix of hype, anxiety, and incremental changes that add up to something bigger than their individual parts. Ironically, when I was a kid I always dreamed about having lived during one of these historical periods, where the world would experience grand changes that would move us from one reality to another. Well, I seemed to have gotten what I ask for.

Here’s what I’ve observed from watching this unfold from my little corner: the gap between AI capabilities and AI implementation is enormous. Organizations are investing billions in AI infrastructure while their employees are struggling with basic adoption questions. We have technology that can pass bar exams, but most companies can’t figure out how to integrate AI tools into their workflow without creating chaos.

The data tells us that 14% of workers have already experienced job displacement due to AI, unemployment among young tech workers has jumped significantly, and anxiety about AI’s workplace impact is affecting mental health on a measurable scale. But the same research shows that 75% of knowledge workers are using AI tools professionally, and new roles are being created even as others disappear.

What fascinates me is that the psychological impact of AI discourse may be as significant as the technology itself. When half the workforce is worried about their jobs being automated, that anxiety shapes decision-making, productivity, and workplace dynamics in ways that compound the actual technological effects.

The stakes are particularly high because this transition isn’t affecting everyone equally. Women face higher automation risk due to their concentration in knowledge work. Young workers are experiencing displacement first. People without technical backgrounds risk being left behind not because they can’t adapt, but because the support systems for adaptation are inadequate.

Here’s why I think this matters to all of us: We’re not just witnessing technological change – we’re participating in it. The choices we make about how to learn, adapt, and support each other through this transition will determine whether AI enhances human potential or just optimizes us out of relevance.

This isn’t something any of us can navigate alone. The complexity is too high, the pace of change too fast, and the stakes too significant. We need communities of people who are committed to figuring this out together; sharing knowledge, supporting each other through the learning curve, and ensuring that the benefits of this transformation are distributed more widely than just to the people who were already winning. Sharing is caring, as they say – whoever “they” are.

That’s what I’m trying to build here. Not a platform for self-promotion (okay, maybe also that), but a place for people who want to approach this transition thoughtfully, with intellectual honesty and mutual support can be inspired and, more important to me, inspire.

Because ultimately, we’re all in this together whether we realize it or not. We might as well help each other make it work.

Make sure to read my AI Adaptation Framework to understand how I approach my own personal transformation.

Let’s connect and figure this out together:

The future is something we build together, one conversation at a time.

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