stop buying ai tools.
start solving content problems.
AI is not a strategy. It is one possible solution.
Summer Friday helps enterprise teams find the friction in their operations and build the systems that directly improve ROI.
Animated overview narration: The pace of AI right now is exciting, but it's also created a lot of noise. There are more tools, more promises, and more pressure to keep up with than ever. But buying another AI tool is not the same thing as solving a business problem. The core idea is simple: we need to approach these opportunities like solutions architects. Start with the problem, understand the workflow, look at the people, process, and goals. Then decide whether AI is the right solution or whether something else is. At Summer Friday, we often play the architect role for our clients, charting an approach and crafting solutions that create true efficiencies. We truly hope to have the opportunity to help you identify where those real opportunities are.
the tool is not
the transformation.
Most AI content conversations start with software. Ours start with a question: where is your content actually breaking down?
The wrong starting point leads to expensive solutions that don't fit the problem. We've seen it across financial services, healthcare, and enterprise brands: six-figure AI platforms, generic output, and no path to scale.
The right solution might be AI-enabled video. It might be modular templates. It might not involve AI at all.
the value is knowing which fits.
diagnose. architect. build.
find the bottleneck
Where is your content operation slow, expensive, or inconsistent?
design the right system
The right tools, workflow, and guardrails for your actual challenge.
prove it
Pilot, validate, and hand off a system your team can run.
where ai-enabled content pays off:
Thought leadership at scale, without scaling the production lift.
scaling thought leadership content without scaling production time.
A global financial services firm wanted to expand the volume and reach of content featuring its senior leaders, without demanding more of their already limited time.
As organizations scale executive thought leadership and educational content, the traditional production model quickly becomes a constraint. The question: how to grow output featuring senior leaders without pulling on their limited time.
We ran a comparative analysis of live-action production versus AI-generated avatars built from existing talent, accounting for the hidden investment from high-value employees: travel, scheduling, filming, revisions, and ongoing participation.
A scalable avatar framework. Executives contribute their expertise once and extend their presence across dozens of future deliverables: script updates, localization, and versioning happen without pulling leaders away from their core work.
| Comparison criteria | Live Action | AI Production |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Live Action1 shoot day plus crew and gear, roughly $12,000 per video deliverable. | AI ProductionInitial avatar build: $4,100. ~$8,000 per AI video once the look and feel is established and the avatar is built. |
| Time | Live Action3–4 weeks minimum for pre-pro, 1 shoot day, and 4–6+ weeks of post for up to 6 videos and cut-downs, depending on review, talent, and location availability. | AI Production1–2 weeks once the script is approved, faster still if the talent avatar is pre-built. Production kicks off at scale without lengthy pre-pro, across multiple deliverables at once. |
| Level of effort | Live ActionHeavy logistics coordinating location and talent availability; lighter in post. 15+ people across production and post-production teams. | AI ProductionVery little pre-pro logistics. Once the avatar is built, scripts execute quickly across many videos. Add-on: lip-sync for translations. 5 people for AI production. |
| Platforms used | Live ActionAfter Effects for animation; Premiere Pro for edit and color correction. | AI ProductionHeyGen, Google Veo 3, After Effects, Premiere Pro, Runway, ElevenLabs, Photoshop, Artlist |
| Effort for talent | Live ActionShoot-day logistics, ~1–2 hours to film, a 30-minute pre-pro call, plus travel to location. | AI ProductionWith existing footage, ~10 minutes for video consent. Without footage, ~30–60 minutes to consent and capture reference footage remotely. |
| Existing footage required? | Live ActionNot required | AI ProductionHelpful, but not necessary; high-res photos can also work. |
ai production dramatically reduced time, cost, and logistical lift: more videos, faster, without pulling talent off their core work.
we don't sell software.
we solve problems.
Twenty-plus years building content for some of the largest financial services, healthcare, and enterprise brands in the country. No vendor relationships. No platform to push. Just the right answer for your situation.
before you spend another dollar on ai tools, let's talk.
Book a Strategy CallSummer Friday is a boutique brand, creative, and content agency founded in New York, specializing in financial services, fintech, and healthcare. Clients include Morgan Stanley, E*TRADE, J.P. Morgan, Cigna Healthcare, Addepar, VanEck, and BNY Mellon. Learn more at heysummerfriday.com.
Vertical expertise:Wealth Tech·Health·AI Companies·Energy·Fintech·Insurance