Listen to today’s podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/silk-logic-small-business-daily/id1841930957
Welcome to the Small Business Daily Podcast. Today’s podcast episode was created from the following stories:
AI spending is boosting the economy, but many businesses are in survival mode
By Ashley Capoot | October 25, 2025
AI-fueled capital spending is propping up GDP and stock indices, even as many small and mid-sized businesses struggle with tariffs, rising costs, and cautious consumers. The piece highlights the gap between Wall Street’s AI winners and Main Street operators, featuring a florist who’s redesigning bouquets to hold prices steady. With layoffs, muted seasonal hiring, and weaker sentiment, the story underscores why small businesses are tightening operations while watching AI’s boom from the sidelines.
Why small businesses are going remote
By Steven John | October 25, 2025
Remote and virtual-first setups are helping small businesses tap wider talent pools, cut overhead, and build resilience without sacrificing productivity. The article outlines practical wins—on-demand flexibility, faster scaling, and sustainability—along with pitfalls like onboarding, culture, and security that leaders must proactively manage. The takeaway: remote work is now a strategic advantage, not just a perk.
The great SaaS-lighting: How IT users got gaslit
By hack writer | October 11, 2025
This essay argues that modern SaaS has drifted from customer success to customer lock-in, encouraging generic “best practices” and complexity that dull differentiation. It warns of overreliance on ubiquitous platforms and urges businesses to design systems that fit their unique workflows and context. The metaphor: today’s SaaS ecosystem can feel like an overpriced, predictable mall—safe until it isn’t.
5 proven benefits of microlearning for employee training
By Kadamberi Darad | October 25, 2025
Microlearning’s bite-sized modules boost retention, engagement, and speed-to-skill while reducing training time and cost. Because it’s flexible, multi-format, and easy to update, organizations can personalize learning for diverse teams and scale quickly as needs change. Built-in analytics turn training into a measurable, continuous capability builder.
How leaders can avoid the trap of fighting reality
By Chuck Wisner | October 25, 2025
Leaders who override facts win short-term narratives but lose long-term trust and credibility. The article offers practical habits—invite unwelcome data, test stories against evidence, reward truth-telling, and act early—to keep decisions aligned with reality. In an era where misinformation spreads fast, the path to durable leadership runs through humility and evidence.
California’s first step toward artificial integrity: SB 243
By Hamilton Mann | October 25, 2025
California’s SB 243 pioneers requirements for AI companions to disclose they’re not human, intervene in self-harm scenarios, and publish crisis protocols—framing AI’s relational behavior as a design and public-interest issue. While limited to crisis and minors, it signals a shift toward “Artificial Integrity,” where systems are built to protect agency and reduce emotional manipulation. The piece argues that integrity-by-design should evolve alongside intelligence-by-design.
How commercial pest control protects your business reputation
By Zeeshan Yousaf | October 25, 2025
A single pest sighting can damage brand trust, especially in the age of instant reviews. Proactive, industry-tailored pest management safeguards health, regulatory compliance, and customer perception—often saving money by preventing losses and disruptions. The message to operators: prevention and documentation are reputation insurance.
SG Lab’s intelligent golf club G·GRIP is redefining sports tech
By 박상욱 스타트업 기자단 | October 25, 2025
SG Lab’s G·GRIP integrates precision sensors and on-device AI into a seemingly standard club to capture swing data at high frequency and deliver real-time coaching insights. Recognized by CES and Time, the product aims to democratize pro-level analytics for pros and amateurs, with a platform strategy spanning apps, cloud, and academy tools. Pre-orders are open, with global expansion and broader sports applications on the roadmap.
Together, these stories spotlight a market where AI and digital tools are reshaping growth, work, training, regulation, and even sports—while reminding leaders to stay grounded in reality and protect trust. For small businesses, the through-line is clear: deploy technology with intent, build resilient systems and skills, and keep people—customers, employees, and communities—at the center.
