Daryn Smith | Overcoming the AI Readiness Gap

Unlock the *real* path to AI-powered revenue operations.

In this episode of **RevAmp**, Mark Lerner sits down with **Daryn Smith, CEO of Hubble Digital (HubSpot’s Global Partner of the Year)**, to unpack the data-readiness gap that is stalling AI adoption—even inside the world’s biggest B2B sales teams. If you’re wrestling with messy CRM data, rogue spreadsheets, or sky-high expectations for Gen-AI, this conversation is your fast-track primer on getting *truly* AI-ready.

🎙️ Episode Highlights
- Why only **9 %** of enterprises are genuinely ready for AI, despite 60 % wanting it yesterday  
- The “garbage-in, garbage-out” rules of large-language models (and how to clean your data pipeline)  
- Change-management tactics to stop shadow spreadsheets and drive CRM adoption  
- Whether AgentForce, deepseek, or HubSpot’s *framed.ai* acquisition changes the game  
- Why embracing *tech debt*—not avoiding it—may be your best strategic move this year  

⏰ CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro & episode teaser  
00:15 Meet Daryn Smith – CEO of Hubble Digital  
02:25 From Napster to Gen-AI: tech waves Daryn has ridden  
03:24 Why Hubble studied enterprise AI readiness  
05:20 Data quality: the #1 AI bottleneck  
07:31 Ambition vs. reality: 60 % want AI, fewer than 9 % are ready  
08:56 The C-suite’s “AI illusion” explained  
10:25 RevOps tech stacks & the unstructured-data mess  
13:24 Can AI fix unstructured data?  
16:37 What *true* data readiness looks like  
18:15 Change management & user adoption  
20:31 AI as the new user interface  
23:10 Are dashboards dead?  
24:29 Voice, brand, and conversational UX  
25:53 Risk, governance & point-solution sprawl  
30:14 Get AI-ready: auditing data and tech stacks  
32:56 HubSpot’s AI advantage vs. legacy CRMs  
36:53 Embrace tech debt—or fall behind  
38:30 Where to find Daryn & Hubble  
39:06 Outro  

🔗 Resources & Links

- **Download Hubble’s AI-Readiness Report:**   https://huble.com/ai-data-readiness-report
- **Hubble Digital:** https://hubble.com  
- **Connect with Daryn on LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/in/darynsmith  
- **Follow Mark Lerner:** https://www.linkedin.com/in/markzlerner  


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#RevOps #AI #HubSpot #CRM #DataQuality #B2B #Podcast