generative ai: an e-⁠resident’s guide to boosting productivity and innovation

Maya Middlemiss • Dec 13, 2024 • 12 min read

For e-⁠residents running their own companies, generative AI can now provide capabilities that once required entire teams

Proto Invention Factory — Photo: Virgo Haan

Estonia’s reputation as a hub for innovation is continually reinforced by the success stories emerging from its digital ecosystem. So it’s no surprise that Estonian businesses and e-⁠residents are leading the way, at the latest technological frontier: Generative AI.

E-resident founded startups like Co-One exemplify Estonia’s role in cutting-edge technology, by tapping into artificial intelligence (AI) to solve real-world problems on a global scale. Another e-resident startup, Ender Turing, uses AI to enhance voice recognition and improve customer service interactions, creating efficiency for companies and delivering a better experience for users. Beholder AI meanwhile leverages AI for visual intelligence, offering tools that can transform industries from retail to manufacturing by automating visual analysis and quality control.

These pioneering startups highlight how AI isn’t only for tech giants. Now, it's becoming accessible for smaller enterprises and early-stage startups. For e-⁠residents running their own companies, AI can now provide capabilities that once required entire teams. From automating repetitive tasks to generating ideas and content, generative AI offers entrepreneurs a unique edge to operate efficiently, creatively, and with global reach.

So here we’ll explore how e-⁠residents can get started with generative AI to boost productivity and innovation across their businesses, whether in content creation, customer service, or project ideation. You don’t need an AI background to get started—just the curiosity to experiment with the right tools, willingness to learn, and a readiness to integrate AI into your daily workflows.

For e-⁠residents, AI offers a unique opportunity to run lean, efficient businesses by automating repetitive tasks, creating high-quality content, and even tackling complex tasks like basic coding—all without hiring additional staff.

Use generative AI to boost productivity in these key areas
Getting started with generative AI as a business owner
My final thoughts on mastering AI

Use generative AI to boost productivity in these key areas

For small business owners, AI provides the leverage needed to “punch above their weight,” making it possible to accomplish more in less time and with fewer resources. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT can draft client communications, social media content, or blogs, while AI-powered design platforms can produce high-quality visuals in minutes.

These tools allow solopreneurs to handle a broad range of business needs, from marketing and customer service to backend support, giving them the ability to expand their reach and impact. This means that microbusinesses can compete commercially with much larger enterprises, while maintaining their advantage of responsive agility.

Idea generation & brainstorming

AI can act as a creative partner. Tools like ChatGPT and ideation platforms such as Notion’s AI assist feature offer inspiration for solopreneurs who need fresh ideas for campaigns, product offerings, or even social media themes. AI-powered brainstorming can stimulate new ideas or suggest angles and topics that may not be immediately obvious, expanding the creative process without a large team.

Using mind-mapping tools with AI integration, like Whimsical or MindMeister, enables e-⁠residents to explore different creative directions, visualise concepts, and refine ideas faster. These tools turn solitary brainstorming into an engaging, dynamic process, and help you achieve things on your own that would be much harder to do as a sole operator. Pull in other creative inspiration factors which work for you, such as enabling voice mode and brainstorming with ChatGPT on a hike. Bounce ideas around, follow up on nuggets of insight, and dig down into sparks of (hopefully) brilliance. A complete transcript (or nuanced highlights) awaits you on your desktop when you return.

Content creation & digital marketing

Content generation is one of the most popular uses for generative AI. With tools like ChatGPT, Jasper, and Copy.ai, solopreneurs can rapidly create content for blogs, newsletters, and social media. This is ideal for e-⁠residents who want to engage audiences without spending hours drafting or paying for external copywriters.

For video content, AI tools like Synthesia allow users to generate custom video messages and training materials with virtual presenters, adding a personal touch to content without needing to film or edit. Meanwhile, image-generation tools like DALL-E or Midjourney can produce unique visuals for blog posts, advertisements, and social media, creating a cohesive, professional brand without hiring a designer.

AI also has unique advantages in content discoverability too, as everything we have held true about SEO and audience share is now being shaken up. I spoke to Jim Christian, founder of Informatic.ai, who is doing pioneering work with e-⁠resident companies on this frontier. Jim explained:

“Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is emerging as a natural evolution of traditional Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) in response to the rapidly changing landscape of online search.”

Jim Christian

“Search is now moving beyond simple keyword matching and link-based ranking systems," he continued, "and AI-driven search engines are now capable of understanding context, intent, and even generating conversational responses. If you compare a traditional web search to something you can now get out of ChatGPT Plus and Perplexity.ai, there are marked improvements in the latter.”

Does this mean that it’s not worth working on content marketing any more? Definitely not, according to Jim, “I believe that the ‘generative AI gold rush’ has also ushered in a new age of blogging. If that's been on your bucket list, now's as good a time as any to document your journey with AI,” he reflected. “GEO can help showcase the niche expertise that solopreneurs and micro businesses bring more effectively, as AI search engines value comprehensive, authoritative content."

"By focusing on creating high-quality, AI-optimised content, smaller businesses can potentially achieve greater visibility without the need for large marketing budgets.”

Jim Christian

Administrative tasks, workflow automation, & project management

AI is highly effective at reducing repetitive administrative work. Workflow automation tools like Zapier or Make, coupled with AI, can simplify and connect various business tools, allowing solopreneurs to automate processes that would otherwise be time-consuming. For example, solopreneurs can use AI to automatically sort and respond to emails, update CRMs, or sync data between platforms—reducing the need for manual data entry and follow-up.

A lot of knowledge-work entrepreneurs are big-picture strategic people, but as freelancers we have to be across the details too. So thank goodness that keeping projects on track is simpler with AI-driven tools!

As Jim explained, “Notion AI, for example, can help solopreneurs manage project tasks, prioritise deadlines, and even summarise meeting notes automatically. By integrating AI with project management platforms like Asana or Trello, solopreneurs can automate task assignments and receive proactive reminders, ensuring projects run smoothly.”

For solopreneurs balancing multiple clients or product lines, these tools help keep track of timelines and dependencies, reduce the risk of errors, and enhance overall project efficiency. And it makes it easier to collaborate with others, too, even if you’re working asynchronously from anywhere in the world.

Data analysis & market research

For entrepreneurs who want to make data-driven decisions, AI offers valuable insights.

A challenge for business owners can be a lack of insight into their own decision-making and unconscious biases. It’s not always easy to be objective and make hard choices. For example, for a creator to “kill their darlings” and drop the sunk costs of an idea that doesn’t work out, especially without colleagues to discuss it with.

Tools like Tableau and Google Analytics incorporate AI to provide smart data insights, identify trends, and suggest actions based on customer behaviour. Market research tools powered by AI, such as GrowthBar, can deliver SEO and keyword insights to help entrepreneurs develop more targeted marketing strategies and identify niche opportunities.

For those using their e-⁠Residency status to explore new markets, AI tools like Sparktoro can help better understand audience preferences by providing insights into what their target customers are reading, watching, or engaging with online.

And how about if you have identified a fantastic detailed EU research report which you know will be full of nuggets of insight to help your business… Only, it’s 92 pages long, and full of tabulated data, esoteric references, and complicated comparisons? If it’s in the public domain, there is nothing to stop you uploading it into Perplexity or Humata or any other tool. “Have a conversation” with the research directly to laser-target the actions you can apply to your own work.

Getting started with generative AI as a business owner

With so many clear advantages, every freelancer, founder and business owner needs to get up to speed now - and stay up to date - with the fast moving generative AI space. It’s simply a matter of competitive advantage.

“AI won’t take your job, but someone who knows how to use it will.”

Fei-Fei Li

The above phrase is widely attributed to Fei-Fei Li, a prominent computer science professor at Stanford University and former Chief Scientist of AI at Google Cloud. Indeed, variations have circulated for several years, reflecting the rapid integration of AI into workplaces and the growing need for digital skills. Many freelancers have been worrying about AI replacing them and taking their jobs. But the reality is more subtle and less worrying - if you're willing to learn.

So, get started today, if you haven’t already!

infographic overview of how to get started with generative AI

1. Start testing free and trial versions

The key is to begin with small projects using free or trial versions. This allows you to experiment with how AI can make your day-to-day work more efficient, creative, or impactful. All without making a big commitment upfront. This approach will also help you identify which tools fit best with your unique business needs and workflow.

2. Dip your toe in with copywriting AI

One easy entry point is using AI to generate ideas for blog posts or social media content. Tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or Jasper, can quickly suggest topics based on your niche. They can even draft initial outlines, saving time and sparking fresh ideas when you’re pressed for creativity. Just input a prompt about a theme or product, and see what AI comes up with. From there, you can refine and expand on the ideas that feel like the best fit for your audience.

3. Progress to AI-generated visuals

If your business relies on visual content, try using AI-driven design tools to make simple social media images or branded graphics. Midjourney or even OpenAI's tools are easy to experiment with. Even if you’re not a designer, these tools can help you produce professional-looking visuals in minutes, giving your brand a consistent, polished presence online.

Be wary of using AI to generate text within images, as the free tools still frequently produce terrible results with this! But why not generate a unique visual with DALL-E, then pull it into Canva to add your captions and branding?

Alex Enache from Northstar talks about the 10-80-10 rule with generative AI, and the above is a good example of that principle in action. 10% of the work you need to do up front, iterating on your prompt to get it right. Then the AI does the 80% heavy lifting to create the right image - which you polish up in Canva, to put your final human distinctive 10% on it, which makes all the difference.

4. Start where you are, and keep learning!

By starting with small projects like these, you’ll gain practical experience and confidence in using AI. These experiments will also help you see the potential benefits without feeling pressured to adopt complex systems right away. Embracing AI is all about taking manageable steps, finding what works, and gradually expanding your toolkit.

“I can hear every freelancer saying, ‘Oh heck, there's yet another new technology to learn. I'm already outdated, how can I manage to keep up?’” Jim pointed out. But the truth is, your clients and future clients are on the learning curve too. We all have a genuine opportunity to get on top of this stuff and use it for incredible competitive advantage.

5. Try the AI embedded in tools you’re already using

“Follow whatever version of generative AI you're using on YouTube - OpenAI, Anthropic, Perplexity etc. They're all on there. Subscribe and put them on in the background,” Jim Christian suggests. “ Subscribe to many AI publications and filter them through a reading app… I find it helps to start wide, then narrow down so that you don't get too bogged down in the crazy techie stuff if that's not interesting to you.”

Indeed, for the developers creating these tools, they can just about name their price. But the rest of us - and our addressable business markets - are much greater in range and scope.

6. Explore, experiment and embrace new tools

We all need to explore, experiment, and embrace these new tools. At the same time, we should never lose sight of the unique human aspects of our creative work, which add the value that AI cannot. It isn’t always easy for clients purchasing our services to understand this differentiation. Personally, I prefer to be completely transparent about how I do and do not use these tools, by publishing a detailed statement about it.

To help you explore what else is possible, here is my list of recommended reading and resources:

Stay up-to-date with the good, the bad and the ugly of all things AI on the Verge website
Fortune's Eye On AI newsletter explores how algorithms, deep learning and natural language processing are rapidly changing the business landscape
⁠Last Week in AI on Substack contains weekly text and audio summaries of the most interesting AI news, as well as editorials commenting on recent events
Listen to AI news and analysis on the AI Chat Podcast
Watch video demos, tutorials, reviews and insider tips on Skill Leap AI on YouTube

My final thoughts on mastering AI

As a solo entrepreneur, mastering AI may feel like one more item on a growing list of skills to juggle. But the payoff could be unimaginatively vast.

Generative AI offers a potential force multiplier, the like of which we haven’t seen since the inception of the internet. Especially for freelancers, it allows you to achieve more with less time, fewer resources, and with the finesse usually reserved for larger companies. All without losing your lean and nimble mode of operating. In fact, learning how to leverage AI effectively may be one of the most valuable skills you acquire in your career. You'll work smarter, and have more time and energy to innovate and amplify your impact.

E-⁠residents are already forward-thinking by nature and part of Estonia’s uniquely digital ecosystem. This means that the potential to harness AI is even greater. AI may be one more skill to master, but for the visionary e-⁠resident, it’s an opportunity to future-proof your business and step confidently into a new era of entrepreneurship.

Estonia’s digital-first infrastructure and commitment to security provide the ideal platform for adopting these tools safely and efficiently. This allows entrepreneurial people to explore new possibilities without traditional limitations. As an e-⁠resident, you’re in a prime position to capitalise on AI to grow your business, connect globally, and push the boundaries of what a one-person operation can achieve.

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generative ai: an e-⁠resident’s guide to boosting productivity and innovation

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