If Benjamin Franklin were alive today, there’s no doubt in my mind he’d be elbows-deep in AI. Franklin was an inventor, entrepreneur, statesman, writer, and a master of leverage. He understood the compounding power of time, relationships, and systems — so imagine what he’d do with a force multiplier like artificial intelligence.
Franklin didn’t just observe change — he created it. He launched the first subscription library, founded the University of Pennsylvania, started a successful printing business, and invented the lightning rod (among many other things).
He was constantly asking: How can I make this better, smarter, and serve more people?
Sound familiar? That’s the exact mindset you need when leveraging AI today.
AI as the New Printing Press
In Franklin’s time, the printing press was a transformational technology. He used it not just to make money, but to scale his ideas and influence. With AI, Franklin would see a similar opportunity: the chance to automate knowledge work, distill insights, and spread thought leadership with exponential reach.
He’d be building GPT-powered platforms that write, edit, and distribute content tailored to thousands of niche audiences. Franklin would recognize that AI doesn’t replace human insight — it augments it. He’d use it to prototype faster, communicate clearer, and scale smarter.
Systems, Systems, Systems
Franklin was obsessed with daily routines, habit tracking, and self-improvement. AI tools like personalized habit trackers, language models, and decision-making assistants would be his playground. He’d likely use AI to optimize everything from his calendar to his sleep.
Imagine Franklin with a Notion-GPT integration that reflects his 13 virtues framework — daily reflections, automated reminders, and pattern recognition over time. He’d be using AI not just to do more, but to be better.
NOTE: Check out Benjamin Franklin’s Book of Virtues. A+
AI + Entrepreneurship = Flywheel
Let’s not forget Franklin was a growth strategist at heart. He scaled his printing business through licensing — a pre-digital version of network effects. With AI, he’d be spinning entrepreneurial flywheels at an unprecedented pace.
He’d identify high-margin, repeatable workflows and automate them with AI agents. He’d be training virtual apprentices — AI-powered tools trained on his methodologies — to multiply his output and impact. In today’s terms, Franklin would be a solopreneur with the leverage of a 50-person team.
The Franklin-Style Playbook for Today’s Leaders
If you want to think like Franklin in the age of AI, start here:
- Systematize everything that repeats. Use AI to document and improve.
- Leverage AI to scale your voice, your vision, and your unique insights.
- Track and reflect—build feedback loops with AI to optimize decision-making.
- Teach and license—create AI-powered tools that spread your knowledge.
In Franklin’s day, only a handful of people had access to cutting-edge tools. Today, the playing field is more level than ever. The question is: are you thinking big enough—and leveraging smart enough?
Because if Franklin had GPT-4, he wouldn’t be worried about it replacing him.
He’d be training it to think like him.
If you would like to open a discussion on AI, let’s connect!