Unlocking ROI with AI in Chemicals | Insights from Kendall Justiniano - Ep. 267

Join industry leaders at The Chemical Summit on September 29-30, 2026 in Houston, Texas.  Visit thechemicalsummit.comOn this episode of The Chemical Show, Victoria Meyer talks with Kendall Justiniano, Managing Director of Growth Arc Advisors, about the state of AI in the chemical industry. Kendall argues that the “exploratory phase” is over, and the focus must now shift to achieving real business value. They discuss why many companies remain stuck in experimentation mode and what it takes to move beyond isolated pilots to deliver ROI. The conversation covers key ingredients for effective AI use: governance, connected systems, and building internal expertise. Victoria and Kendall explore practical barriers like security and data silos, outline where ROI is taking shape in commercial and document-heavy processes, and examine how companies can build context-rich systems for long-term competitive advantage.  Topics covered this week: AI Maturity Curve: Why has the exploratory phase ended? Adoption vs. ROI: Where chemical companies are seeing returns—and where they aren’t Generative AI beyond chat prompts: Building connections with data systems The Governance Imperative: Data access, security, and responsible experimentation Commercial Applications: Sales, marketing, and procurement as major opportunity areas Context Layers: Embedding company know-how into AI workflows for differentiation Measuring and validating AI performance as systems evolve  Killer Quote: "We’re the ones doing the cross-system scanning—and that’s where your AI is going to live. It’s going to live right next to us." — Kendall Justiniano  Other links: AI Series by Kendall Justiniano  Don’t miss an episode: Subscribe to The Chemical Show on your favorite podcast player. Like what you hear? Leave a rating and review. *Want more insights? Sign up for our email list at https://www.thechemicalshow.com