Stephen Gardner
Founder & Fractional Chief AI Officer · AI Consultant · Las Vegas
Business experience. Practical AI leadership.
I've spent twenty years building businesses online, five of them inside Google. Today I help leaders of 7–9 figure businesses make AI work across their operations, develop their teams, and build the capacity for their next stage of growth.
Where it started
Computer science at RIT, then five-plus years on Google's Search team — the years that taught me how information systems actually decide what matters. Then two decades of building, ranking, and scaling businesses online, most of them for founders who'd rather run their company than learn the plumbing.
The $50M problem
In 2020 I joined The Life Coach School as CMO when it was just past $1M in revenue. Three years later it was at a $50M run rate. The hard part was never the marketing. It was doing it without turning the company into a fifty-person org chart. Systems, automation, and ruthless clarity about what a human should be spending time on — that was the job.
That experience shapes how I approach AI: start with the business problem, understand the people doing the work, and measure whether the change helps.
What I do now
I serve as a fractional Chief AI Officer and AI consultant for 7–9 figure businesses. I work with leadership teams to decide where AI can create value, guide investment decisions, put solutions into practice, and help their people use them effectively.
The work can include improving existing tools, connecting workflows, building custom AI agents, or training a team on a better way to work. I stay close to implementation so the strategy connects to what happens inside your business every day.
How I think
- Start with the business. Tie each initiative to a priority worth solving.
- Develop the team. Give people practical skills and support to work more effectively.
- Measure the difference. Track adoption, quality, capacity, and business impact.
- Earn it monthly.Engagements run month to month. I'd rather be re-hired every month than locked in.
Off the clock
Las Vegas, by way of western New York. Pepsi over coffee. Outdoors whenever the temperature allows. And a rescued husky named Everest, who supervises every build and approves none of them.
Make AI work for your business. Book an AI strategy call →
Recent writing
- AI Operations Scorecard: Measure What Matters Most — October 2, 2026
- AI Team Capability: Build a Practice Loop That Sticks — September 30, 2026
- AI Leadership Plan for Service Businesses: First 90 Days — September 28, 2026
- The AI Implementation Roadmap for Service Businesses — September 27, 2026
- AI Governance for Service Businesses: A Practical Model — September 26, 2026
The team behind the work.
Stephen leads strategy and stays involved in implementation. Our team supports operations, delivery, and automation, with AI helping us work more effectively.
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Stephen Gardner
Founder & Fractional CAIO
Former Google Search team. CMO during growth from $1M to a $50M run rate. Leads AI strategy, implementation, and team development for 7–9 figure businesses.
Myla Mercado
Operations Lead
Drives internal efficiency, optimizes systems, and ensures smooth execution across all AI initiatives at Automation Warrior.
Rhodora Villadegracia
Project Manager
Skilled in leading cross-functional teams, managing timelines, and ensuring projects are delivered on time, within scope, and aligned with strategic goals.
Maru Perez
Automation Specialist
Expert in streamlining workflows and implementing automation solutions to optimize processes, increase efficiency, and drive measurable results.