Be a Nigella but don’t let AI Bake the Whole Cake
Written by Abi Hill, Entrepreneur, Mentor & Coach
Abi Hill is a UK entrepreneur, mentor & coach, and the founder of Just Starting Out. Widely recognised for championing underserved communities and cost-of-living resilience, she’s on a mission to cut first-year failure rates. “If you want to make waves, pack a swimsuit!”
Artificial intelligence may be the most fashionable ingredient in today’s commercial kitchen, but should it really be running the restaurant? From automated emails to machine-generated marketing, it’s tempting to lean heavily on convenience. Yet while AI is undeniably powerful, it cannot replicate your ingenuity, nuance, or human judgement. In this article, I’ll explore why entrepreneurs should remain at the helm, how to integrate AI judiciously, and why a Nigella Lawson chocolate cake remains my most enduring metaphor for today’s business landscape.
A recipe for disaster?
Take, for example, a small enterprise in April 2025 that unveiled its new website, yes, drafted entirely by AI. The result? A text that resembled a mass-produced microwave meal, functional, yet frozen in places. The copy was peppered with awkward Americanisms, and the “about us” page introduced the founder as a “visionary pioneer of snackable synergies.” Customers disengaged immediately, and the brand’s credibility evaporated overnight.
We have all witnessed similar faux pas. AI-generated portraits with extra fingers, limbs bizarrely intertwined, or emails that scream ‘automation’ with no evidence of proofreading. These oversights don’t just look unappetising, they erode trust.
The moral? Businesses that surrender entirely to AI risk serving a product that is hollow, flavourless, and ultimately unpalatable.
Food for thought: Remember the pre-AI days?
Do you recall the pre-AI era? I certainly do. In fact, I’m old enough to remember life before social media, which now feels like an artefact in its own right. One day, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a plaque in the Natural History Museum marking the “AI period,” neatly sandwiched between the Industrial Revolution and whatever technological marvel (or mishap) comes next.
Here’s the key. Technological shifts are inevitable, and adaptability is written into the entrepreneurial DNA. Ignoring AI altogether would be shortsighted. Instead, it should be treated like salt or butter, enhancing the dish when used with discernment, but overwhelming when poured in by the ladle.
Just for fun, I often inform people that the GPT in ChatGPT stands for “Goodness Please Taste” because, like any recipe, it needs human judgement before serving. Of course, the real meaning is Generative Pre-trained Transformer (in layman's terms, a tool trained on mountains of information to generate human-like responses). A bit of a morbid gatecrasher in this otherwise food-themed article, but it makes my point, there are only a few guarantees in life, and AI isn’t one of them, it never will be.
So, be a Nigella
Years (possibly decades) ago, I watched Nigella Lawson prepare a chocolate cake. Rather than painstakingly weigh out the ingredients and make the base from scratch, she bought a ready-made sponge and poured her energy into the spectacular topping. I remember thinking. What a wonderfully pragmatic attitude to life!
Here’s my confession. Every Macmillan coffee morning thereafter, I’ve purchased a cake from M&S, discreetly deconstructed and reconstructed it, and proudly passed it off as my own (adding a cherry or two on top).
The point? In both gastronomy and business, you need not create every element yourself. AI can be the sponge base, a foundation it’s there to use, so why not? But the flourish, the icing, the garnish, the distinctive flair, that’s yours and yours alone.
Running a business vs. Running a kitchen
Launching and scaling a business can feel akin to running an entire brigade de cuisine single-handedly. You’re suddenly head chef, sous chef, waiter, bartender, and KP rolled into one. It’s exhausting and, unsurprisingly, unsustainable.
Our research at Just Starting Out (February 2025) revealed that 94% of consumers prioritise authentic, human service over AI substitution. One participant remarked, “I’d rather someone made a mistake, even a whopper of a mistake, than mask their services with AI”. Another added, “Well, I’d like to see AI being able to cut a lawn for a gardener”!
This data underscores a vital truth. Real success in business isn’t measured solely by profit, but by the quality and integrity of the service you deliver. You could generate millions, but if your business is the equivalent of a pancake stuck to the ceiling (badly mixed and barely holding together), that isn’t success, it’s luck. And if we rely solely on AI, we risk presenting a glossy façade rather than genuine value, in other words, catfishing our customers.
Stir in the stats
Instant detection: 77% of customers claim they can instantly detect an AI-generated email, many interpreting unedited content as indolence.
Downward struggle: Organisations relying exclusively on AI for all communications report a 39% decline in engagement, compared to those that blend automation with human input.
Complimentary capability: Conversely, businesses that deploy AI as a complement rather than a replacement demonstrate measurable growth, proof that, as with any recipe, equilibrium matters.
And here’s the takeaway
When it comes to your business, you are the bread and butter. By definition, you are the difference between a dish that delights and one that disappoints. That said, don’t be afraid to use the technology that we are fortunate enough to have at our fingertips. Like anything in life, moderation is key. So, in my opinion, there’s a reason why it’s called Co-Pilot instead of pilot. I’ll leave you with that.
Tell me your story/share your AI experiences, get in touch!
Read more from Abi Hill
Abi Hill, Entrepreneur, Mentor & Coach
Drawing from a Senior Management background and 20+ years working alongside minority and underserved communities, Abi is best known for advocating within the start-up community, her mission being to reduce the 20% of small businesses that don’t make it through year one by giving them the tools, training, and trust they deserve. Because why should starting out mean forking out?
