Avoiding AI Snake Oil: Red Flags and Hype to Watch Out For in 2025

AI is everywhere right now. If you’re running a business, scrolling through LinkedIn, or even casually browsing the news, you’ve probably seen bold claims like:

• “This AI tool replaces your marketing team.”

• “Just upload your idea, and our AI will build your entire business.”

• “Our AI learns exactly like a human brain.”
  
  

Sounds amazing, right? Unfortunately, a lot of these claims are more sizzle than steak.

As someone who works hands-on with AI tools and automation every day, I’ve seen both the game-changing potential and the smoke and mirrors. Let’s break down the hype, so you don’t get taken for a ride—or worse, invest time and money into something that flat-out doesn’t deliver.

🧪 The Classic Snake Oil Signs

1. “It Does Everything” Without Showing How

If a product claims it can do everything — from writing your emails to managing your SEO to filing your taxes — and doesn’t show a demo, pause right there.

Real example: I recently saw a startup claiming to “automate your entire business with one click.” After digging into the site, I realized it was a landing page with no product demo, vague screenshots, and pricing tiers starting at $499/month. No testimonials, no user walkthroughs, no actual results. Just bold text and a countdown timer. Big yikes.

👉 Reality check: Good AI tools have limits. They solve specific problems. The best ones are clear about what they don’t do.

2. Overuse of Jargon You Can’t Translate

You’ll see phrases like “neuro-symbolic hybrid cognition,” “proprietary deep semantic core,” or “quantum-AI synergistics.”

Let me translate: a lot of these are just buzzwords meant to sound impressive without saying anything concrete.

Test: Can the company explain the tech in a way a smart 12-year-old could understand? If not, they probably don’t understand it either — or they’re hiding something.

3. Screenshots That Don’t Match the Claims

Some AI websites love to toss up beautifully designed dashboards that don’t actually exist. Look closely at the images. Is the tool shown doing what they claim it can? Can you see input and output? Are there real user reviews attached to those visuals?

If all the screenshots are mockups or stock photos of smiling people pointing at charts, run.

🚩 Red Flags in AI Sales Pitches

4. “Set It and Forget It” Promises

AI tools require human guidance. Period. Whether it’s tuning your prompts, reviewing content, or training the system with your data, no tool is truly hands-off.

If someone’s selling you an “autopilot” AI solution, ask how it handles errors, ethical decisions, or changing business goals.

Hypothetical story: Imagine a business had purchased a pricey AI chatbot for customer support. They were told it would “learn as it goes,” but it ended up giving refund guarantees to anyone who mentioned the word “frustrated.” The business then had to hire a specialist to retrain it from scratch.

5. No Trial, No Transparency

AI tools worth their salt usually offer:

• A free trial or demo

• Clear onboarding process

• Real examples or case studies

• A knowledge base or help center
  
  

If all you get is a paywall and a list of vague “features,” take a step back. You deserve to know what you’re buying.

✅ What to Look For Instead

Let’s flip the script. Here are signs you’re dealing with a solid AI product or consultant:

• They define their limitations clearly. “This tool is great for summarizing long content, but not ideal for writing creative copy.” Boom. Honesty.

• They offer transparency about the tech. Not everyone needs to know the math behind transformer models, but they should tell you if they’re using OpenAI, Gemini, Claude, or a custom model—and how your data is handled.

• They show receipts. Look for case studies, walkthrough videos, or at least screenshots with real user input and output.

• They talk about ethics. If a company avoids the topic of data privacy, bias, or hallucination risks, they’re not ready for prime time.
  
  

Final Thoughts

AI is incredible. I use it every day to streamline workflows and automate busywork. But it’s not magic. And the more hype there is, the more important it becomes to stay skeptical, ask questions, and look for proof, not promises.

If you’re ever unsure about an AI product or pitch, feel free to shoot me a message. I’m happy to give you a no-nonsense second opinion.

Stay sharp out there.
—
Shannon McDowell
AI Consultant | Transformative AI Solutions
transformativeaisolutions.com