The 10-Minute Vendor Reality Check: Stop Wasting Time on Generic AI Demos

How News Corp's VP of Strategic Products filters AI vendors before they waste your time

You've been there. Another AI vendor demo. Another generic chatbot pitch. Another hour of your life you'll never get back watching slides about "revolutionary AI solutions" that look exactly like the last five demos. Yep. :/

Nicole Castillo, VP of Strategic Products at News Corp, got so fed up with this pattern that she developed what might be the most efficient vendor evaluation method in enterprise AI. Her approach? Give vendors exactly 10 minutes to prove they understand your actual business, and don't be afraid to cut things short when they don't.

The Story That Started It All

"I was in a vendor demo and about maybe 10 minutes in I got some slide where they started telling me about an HR chatbot," Nicole recalls. "I feel like I've seen a lot of HR chatbots... I immediately was like, 'You need to show me something else because this just isn't going to work for me. I've seen it. I get you can create one, but I need you to show me something different because everyone's pitched that to me.'"

That moment crystallized her vendor evaluation philosophy: if they can't show genuine business understanding in the first 10 minutes, they haven't done their homework.

The Three-Part Reality Check Framework

1. The Business Understanding Test

"If somebody's going to come to a meeting with me and my team, I can pretty much tell within... it's sort of like doing a job interview with an intern. If they can't show that they understand your company, they're probably not going to be worth working with."

Before the meeting, prepare:

• Three specific business challenges you're currently facing
• Your company's primary revenue model
• One recent operational pain point that kept you up at night

During the first 10 minutes, listen for:

• References to your industry's specific challenges
• Understanding of your business model
• Questions about your unique constraints or opportunities

2. The Solution Specificity Filter

Nicole gets tired of vendors showing "things that have sort of, we've made this for somebody else and you could use it. Like, you don't really understand our business."

Red flags to watch for:

• "This solution worked great for [completely different industry]"
• Generic use cases that could apply to any business
• Demos that focus on features rather than your problems

Green flags to look for:

• Specific examples relevant to your industry
• Questions about your current processes
• Acknowledgment of your unique constraints

3. The Vocabulary Alignment Check

"I also do this a lot with vendors is understand the vernacular. So I see a lot of people using agent tech and agents... I'll get into a call and be like, what do you mean by agents? Like, give me your definition because... I want to make sure that we're speaking the same language."

Key terms to clarify:

• What they mean by "AI agents" vs. simple automation
• Their definition of "personalization"
• How they define "success" for your use case
• What "integration" actually involves

Your 10-Minute Vendor Evaluation Checklist

Before the demo:

• [ ] List three specific business problems you need solved
• [ ] Identify your must-have vs. nice-to-have requirements
• [ ] Prepare one "test question" about your industry

During the first 10 minutes:

• [ ] Do they reference your industry's specific challenges?
• [ ] Do they ask about your current processes?
• [ ] Can they explain their solution in your terms, not tech jargon?
• [ ] Do they acknowledge your unique constraints?

The go/no-go decision:If they haven't demonstrated genuine business understanding by minute 10, politely redirect or end the call. Your time is valuable, and vendors who haven't done basic homework won't deliver custom solutions.

Why This Works for Any Size Business

Nicole's 10-minute test isn't just for enterprise buyers. It's especially valuable for SMBs who can't afford expensive AI mistakes. When you're working with limited resources, every vendor meeting needs to count.

Most AI implementations fail not because of technical issues, but because vendors don't understand the business context. By filtering for genuine business understanding upfront, you avoid wasting time on solutions that look impressive in demos but fall apart in real-world implementation.

The Bottom Line

Nicole's approach saves her from countless expensive mistakes by identifying vendors who've actually done their homework. The 10-minute reality check is less about  being harsh than respecting your time and focusing on solutions that genuinely fit your business.

As Nicole puts it: if they can't demonstrate business understanding in the first 10 minutes, they probably can't deliver business value in the first 10 months.

Stop settling for generic AI demos. Demand vendors who understand your business from minute one.

Want more practical AI strategy insights? This playbook is part of our series on real-world AI implementation lessons from enterprise leaders.