Christopher Mims recently wrote about how Clorox and its employees are using generative AI to power “new R&D ideas” and “better customer insights.” These tools are only going to get better at automating away repetitive work—but for now, I think the real value is in using them to augment your day-to-day. You still need to be in the loop.

While AI does pose a threat to workers if it’s used by companies to automate away jobs, usage of it in corporate America is still largely grassroots: Employees are grabbing available tools to augment their capabilities and enhance their work, say workplace researchers.

And that’s necessary, because the tools—while improving seemingly by the hour—still lack the nuance to know when something’s just… wrong 💩:

“If you go in with the expectation that the AI is as smart or smarter than humans, you’re quickly disappointed by the reality,” says Eric Schwartz, Clorox’s chief marketing officer.

During brainstorms, the AI tried to push the idea of “bleachless bleach,” he adds, which isn’t something that would actually work in real life. It’s a nonstarter, especially at Clorox.

When brainstorming about cat litter, the AI pushed the idea that since you love your pet, you might also love your pet’s poop. It takes a human to realize, “No, that wouldn’t sound good,” he says.

But in the more repeatable parts of the workflow, generative AI really shines. Like review analysis:

Clorox uses an AI-powered analytics tool that scans reviews and ratings of its products from Amazon, Walmart and dozens of smaller retailers. The company’s systems can summarize those reviews and dive into “attribute based sentiment analysis,” to learn what aspects of a product really resonate.

All of that’s interesting—but the stat that floored me comes right at the top of Mims’ article:

Hidden Valley Ranch needed a new formula. No, the recipe for America’s favorite condiment wasn’t changing. After all, last year it beat ketchup in sales.

Ranch > Ketchup. Who knew?