“As Machines Become More Intelligent, Humans Must Become More Wise” — Jeff Burningham on the AI Era

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Cut The Tie Podcast with Jeff Burningham

Jeff Burningham has lived on the front edge of success. Serial entrepreneur. Venture investor. Builder of billion-dollar businesses. A candidate for governor. A life defined by scale, momentum, and achievement.

Then the stage collapsed.

In this episode of Cut The Tie, Jeff shares how stepping away from business and politics forced him inward and why the rise of artificial intelligence has clarified what truly matters next. As machines take over more of what humans used to do, Jeff argues that the real work ahead is learning how to be.

This is a conversation about wisdom, presence, identity, and why the future will not be decided by smarter technology alone but by whether humans evolve alongside it.

About Jeff Burningham

Jeff Burningham is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and former candidate for Governor of Utah. He has founded and sold multiple companies across real estate and technology and has been an early investor in several high-growth businesses.

Jeff is the author of The Last Book Written by a Human, a reflection on humanity, wisdom, and the choices we face as artificial intelligence accelerates faster than our cultural and emotional frameworks.

In this episode, Thomas and Jeff discuss:

• Why Jeff ran for governor and what the pandemic revealed
• The “stage of success” and why it eventually falls apart
• Becoming a human being instead of a human doing
• Defining success as living in non-resistance to what is
• Why attachment to outcomes quietly drains meaning
• AI as a mirror reflecting humanity back to itself
• Why wisdom, not intelligence, is the real bottleneck
• How love becomes the only fuel that doesn’t burn out

Key Takeaways

• Doing more does not create fulfillment
  Presence matters more than productivity.
• Success without wisdom feels hollow
  Achievement alone cannot carry meaning.
• AI forces a human reckoning
  As machines advance, character and awareness matter more.
• Outcomes are tools, not identities
  You can pursue results without being owned by them.
• Growth often begins with deconstruction
  Sometimes the stage must collapse to reveal what’s real.

Connect with Jeff Burningham

🌐 Website: https://jeffburningham.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-burningham-15a01a7b/

Connect with Thomas Helfrich

🌐 Website: https://www.cutthetie.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomashelfrich
📧 Email: [e-mail]
🚀 Instantly Relevant: https://www.instantlyrelevant.com

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