No, but…

AI has already revolutionized the way we work, and in the incubator world we see the contours of something that will be a significant change.

There is no doubt that technology will soon be able to offer better analysis, advice and solutions than a human ever can - at least when it comes to specific tasks. Machine learning and natural language processing are accumulating specialized expertise at a rate that means we will soon be able to rely on AI for most technical and analytical challenges.

But, will that make the person redundant in the role of advisor and mentor for startups?

Hardly.

AI: A smarter partner

AI can easily provide a list of the 100 most important things an entrepreneur should do to succeed. In fact, it is likely that an AI already has better insight into what works across markets and industries than most of us. The machine sees patterns, predicts trends and gives advice based on data with a precision we cannot match.

Yet there is one critical component AI lacks: the ability to read space.

Man: The unbeatable relationship maker

In a start-up phase, not all priorities are equally important. This is where human experience and intuition trumps even the most advanced algorithms.

An entrepreneur is often overwhelmed, with a sea of challenges demanding attention. While AI can explain what's important objectively, it's up to the human to understand what actually matters to this specific entrepreneur, right now.

To put it in context: Imagine a newly started business struggling to find a foothold in the market. AI can suggest ten possible marketing strategies, but it takes a human advisor to recognize that the team is really burnt out and needs support to recalibrate their energy before they can take the next step.

The sense of timing

The entrepreneurial world is characterized by timing and relationships.

When you're sitting in a room trying to persuade a potential investor, AI can give you an amazing pitch, but it's you, the human, who knows when the right moment to shut up comes. You see when the investor has lost interest or become engaged. These are capabilities that, at least for now, are beyond AI's reach.

To quote Elon Musk: "Tesla builds cars for people, not computers." The same applies to incubation. We build businesses for people, and it takes human connections to succeed.

The collaboration of the future

So, what exactly will the future hold? It seems clear that AI is going to be an invaluable support partner in the incubator. It will relieve us of tasks such as analysis, business development and strategy, but the human relationship will still be the core.

Leading entrepreneurs is not just about showing the way, but about standing with them through uncertainty and chaos.

This topic is something that we at Kobben follow closely. In 2025, a couple of students from NTNU will write a paper for us that specifically deals with AI in incubation. It will be exciting to see what they find out, and how technology has actually affected our way of working by then.

For me, it's not a question of whether AI can do the job better. It's a matter of who understands which job needs to be done, when.

So yes, AI may be able to do a large part of my job - and I'm really looking forward to that. Because it frees me to do what a machine will never be able to: understand the human, read the space, and support the entrepreneur where they are, not just where the machine says they should be.