Podcast with Patrick | EP 1: AI Adoption, Experimentation, and the Rise of the AI Workforce

Podcast with Patrick is part of the Optimizely Unfiltered series — informal conversations with Optimizely Most Valuable Professionals (OMVPs) sharing their experiences, perspectives, and lessons from the field.

If you’re working with Optimizely and thinking about how AI will reshape experimentation, content operations, and digital teams, this conversation is a great place to start. -- Agenda: EP 1: AI Adoption, Experimentation, and the Rise of the AI Workforce

In the first episode of Podcast with Patrick, Patrick Lam sits down with OMVP Polly Walton for a candid conversation about how AI is changing the way digital teams work.

Rather than focusing on hype or headlines, this episode explores what AI adoption actually looks like inside organisations today — from early experimentation to the emergence of AI-powered “digital workers” supporting marketing, experimentation, and content teams.

Polly shares practical perspectives from working with enterprise clients navigating this shift, along with lessons on how teams can start creating real value with AI today.

In this episode, Patrick and Polly explore:

AI adoption beyond the hype: Why AI is moving out of the experimental phase and becoming part of everyday digital workflows.

The three stages of AI maturity: How organisations typically progress from early curiosity to meaningful business transformation.

What “AI workers” really mean: How AI tools can move beyond simple automation to become collaborators within digital teams.

Experimentation in the AI era: Why AI has the potential to dramatically accelerate testing, optimisation, and learning loops.

The risk of endless pilots: Why many AI initiatives stall — and what teams can do to move from experimentation to real impact.

Practical advice for getting started: Where businesses should focus today if they want to create meaningful value with AI.