Most AI Messaging Feels Vague Because We’re Still Figuring Out the Shift

And the thing is, I don’t even think the products are bad.I think product marketing just hasn’t fully caught up with what AI products are becoming.Over the last few months, I’ve noticed the same terms showing up everywhere:AI agents.MCP.Agentic workflows.AI-native systems.Everyone is using the language.Very few people are explaining what actually changes because of it.So I recorded a Behind the Brief episode as a bit of an experiment, partly to simplify these ideas for other PMMs, but honestly also to process what I’ve been noticing myself.Because I think we’re entering a pretty major positioning shift:AI-assisted → AI-native.And that changes the messaging game entirely.For a long time, AI products were positioned like helpers:“AI makes your workflow faster.”“AI helps your team move quicker.”“AI assists with execution.”But AI-native systems are different.The AI isn’t helping the workflow anymore.The AI is becoming the workflow.And buyers can feel that shift, even if they don’t always have the language for it yet.That’s why vague messaging is starting to break down.Buyers are asking sharper questions now:* What does the AI actually do?* What data does it touch?* What happens when it fails?* How autonomous is it really?And honestly, I think a lot of AI jargon right now is just positioning confusion wearing technical clothing.One thing that’s become very obvious to me from working in cybersecurity and AI product marketing is this:Invisible systems only work when buyers trust them.Nobody can “see” how your AI model works.They can’t see the decision logic.They can’t see the training data.So messaging becomes the trust layer.And that’s why “AI-powered” by itself is no longer enough.One simple exercise I’d recommend: Open your homepage and look at every place you use the word “AI.”Then ask: Does the next sentence clearly explain:* what the AI is doing,* for whom,* and what changes because of it?If not, your buyers are probably already feeling that gap.I unpacked all of this more deeply in the latest Behind the Brief episode, including:* AI agents* MCP (Model Context Protocol)* Agentic AI vs generative AI* AI washing* And why positioning is becoming the competitive advantage in AICurious what’s showing up in your world right now.What’s one AI term everyone keeps using in meetings that nobody actually explains properly?Reply and let me know, I might decode the next one.Watch the full video explanation here: Get full access to The PMM Brief at pmmshruti.substack.com/subscribe