AI advisory for product and technology leaders
AI advisory is senior guidance that helps a leadership team decide where AI pays off in its business, plan the change with named owners and measures, and get a first use case into use in its own work. Værksted sells it as two fixed-scope offers: planning for 105,000 kr and a first use case for 52,500 kr (ex VAT). It is led by Sebastian, who has trained 250+ product managers and co-built Maskin, an open-source workspace for people and AI agents.
Or write to [email protected]. We work in English and Danish.
The problem: pilots without an owner or a result
Most leadership teams are past the question of whether to use AI. There are licences, a few enthusiastic people and a handful of pilots. What is usually missing is three things: a clear view of where AI changes the result in your own product and technology work, a plan with a name against every item, and one use case that lives in the daily work instead of in a demo.
Without those, pilots stall when the enthusiast gets busy. Tools get used in ways that save ten minutes but do not change how the team decides, builds or ships. And the next budget conversation has nothing to point to.
Advisory fixes that sequence. You leave with a map, a plan and a working use case. Not a slide deck about AI in general.
Who this is for
This is built for people who lead product and technology and have to answer for the result:
- Chief product officers, chief technology officers, heads of product and heads of engineering
- Founders who lead product and tech themselves
- Leadership teams that have already started with AI tools and now need direction, ownership and a first result
It is probably not the right fit if you want a vendor to build or run a system for you, or if you want a general introduction to what AI is. Værksted gives advice and plans, not delivery. For introductions and team skills, Værksted also offers training and workshops for product teams (more on that below).
Two offers, three phases
The work is split into three phases, sold as two separate offers with separate scopes and separate prices. Each phase ends in something you can hold, show to your board and hand to the people who own it.
- Offer 1, planning: phase 1 (the map) and phase 2 (the plan), plus 2 days of follow-up advice about 30 days later.
- Offer 2, first use case: phase 3.
They are separate on purpose. Planning is a complete piece of work that stands on its own. The first use case is a different kind of work, done by your team in its daily routine with us guiding, and you should see its cost as its own line.
Phase 1: Map where AI pays off
We go through how your product and technology work is done today: how decisions get made, how work moves from idea to release, and where people spend their time. Then we mark each area one of three ways: AI changes the result, AI only saves time, or it is not worth the effort right now.
Deliverable: a written map of opportunities, ranked, with the reasoning behind each ranking so your team can challenge it.
Phase 2: A plan with owners and measures
A map is not a plan. In this phase we turn the top of the ranking into a short, prioritised plan. Every item gets one owner from your organisation, one measure that tells you whether it worked, and an explicit list of what you will not do this quarter. About 30 days later we follow up with 2 days of advice, so the plan is adjusted while it is in use.
Deliverable: a prioritised plan, with an owner and a measure per item, that your leadership team has agreed to.
Phase 3: A first use case, in use
We pick one item from the plan and get it into use in the team's own work, with the people who will keep using it. Your team does the work and we guide, challenge and unblock. This is the phase that separates advisory from a report. The point is that one real piece of work now works differently, and the team can say why.
Deliverable: a working use case in your own work, and a short written playbook so it can be repeated on the next item.
How an engagement works
- Intro call. Book a call. We talk about your team, what has been tried and what you want to be true in six months. If we are not the right fit, we say so on the call.
- Scoping. We agree scope, dates and who we work with. You get this in writing before any work begins.
- Planning (offer 1). Map and plan, with a review with your leadership team at the end of each phase, and 2 days of follow-up advice about 30 days later.
- First use case (offer 2). One item from the plan, in use in your team's work, with a review at the end.
- Handover. It ends when the first use case is in use and the plan is in the hands of your owners. We tell you what we would do next, and you decide who carries it out: your own team or a supplier.
What you bring: a sponsor on the leadership team, access to the people who do the work, and one real piece of work to test on. A real piece of work matters more than a perfect one. A use case chosen to look good in a demo teaches nobody anything.
What makes a good first use case
The choice decides whether the rest of the plan is taken seriously. Four questions sort candidates quickly:
- Is it used in the daily work? A use case that only lives in a workshop does not last.
- Does it have a named owner? If nobody can say "this is mine", it dies when attention moves.
- Can you measure it? One number you already track beats a new dashboard.
- Is it small enough to succeed? Do not pick the most impressive item. Pick the one that can show a result soon and teach you something.
Why Værksted
You should know who you would work with before you book. Here is the person, and what stands behind the advice.
- Sebastian has trained 250+ product managers in AI, lean and agile.
- He created LEGO Life as a master's thesis at LEGO Future Lab (launched 2017, 8M+ active users).
- He has held product leadership roles at momondo, KAYAK, TELUS and Trackunit.
- Since 2020 he has given advisory and interim product leadership through Mesh Firm, including for Ørsted, BEC, Recright and LEGO Ventures.
- Værksted is an EU-registered company based in Copenhagen. Sebastian and Magnus have been building together since 2020.
Sebastian co-built Maskin with Magnus (read the Maskin case), and Værksted builds Skjald (read the Skjald case). That means the advice comes from people who build with AI themselves. The principles we hold ourselves to are on the Værksted home page.
Key takeaways
- AI advisory means deciding where AI pays off, planning it with owners and measures, and getting a first use case into use.
- It is sold as two fixed-scope offers: planning at 105,000 kr (10 days: about 8 days over about 4 weeks, plus 2 days of follow-up advice about 30 days later) and a first use case at 52,500 kr (5 days over about 4 weeks). Prices exclude VAT.
- Value comes from three deliverables: a ranked opportunity map, a prioritised plan with an owner and a measure per item, and one working use case.
- It suits product and technology leaders who have started with AI tools and need direction and a first result.
- It is advice and plans. Værksted does not build or run systems for clients.
- It is led by a named person: Sebastian, who has trained 250+ product managers and has held product leadership roles at momondo, KAYAK, TELUS and Trackunit.
- Sebastian co-built Maskin with Magnus, and Værksted builds Skjald.
- Sebastian is an approved SMV:Digital advisor. Danish SMEs can apply for a grant covering 50% of an external advisor's fee. Planning is the offer that can be assessed for it. Check the official page for current terms.
Price
All prices are in Danish kroner, excluding VAT. Scope is fixed and agreed in writing before work starts, so you know the cost up front. One list price, no discounts.
| Offer | What it covers | Price (DKK ex VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Planning | Phases 1 and 2: the map and the plan. 10 days: about 8 days over about 4 weeks, plus 2 days of follow-up advice about 30 days later, for a leadership team of up to 8 | 105,000 kr |
| First use case | Phase 3: one use case in use in your team's work. 5 days over about 4 weeks, same team of up to 8 | 52,500 kr |
| Extra days | If the scope grows, agreed in writing first | 10,500 kr per day |
They are two lines on purpose: you can see what each one costs and decide on each separately.
Funding for Danish companies
Sebastian is an approved SMV:Digital advisor. SMV:Digital is an advisory grant for digitalisation, managed by the Danish Business Hubs (Erhvervshusene) with support from the EU Regional Fund. It applies to Danish buyers only. The official Virksomhedsguiden page on the digitalisation advisory grant has the current terms.
- What the grant is: 50% of an external advisor's fee. The grant itself is 50,000 to 150,000 kr, so the fee must be at least 100,000 kr ex VAT. The company pays the other half in cash.
- What it covers: analysing, preparing, planning and follow-up advice. It does not cover software, licences, setup, programming or operating a system.
- Who can apply: SMEs with a Danish CVR number and at least 2 full-time equivalents.
- No guarantee: applications are scored, so a grant is not certain.
- Next application window: 9 November (09:00) to 16 November (23:55) 2026.
- Order of events: you do a market check before you sign, the advisor must be chosen in the application system before any advice starts, and the advisory agreement is signed only after the grant letter.
- Grant period: 8 months from the grant letter.
Planning is the offer that can be assessed for the grant, because its fee of 105,000 kr is above the 100,000 kr that the minimum grant needs. Questions about the grant? Write to us. The first use case is a separate line and a separate agreement, signed after the grant letter, and is not part of the funding.
Terms and dates change, so check the official page before you apply. The advice must be impartial, and if we recommend a product we build ourselves, we say so.
Værksted also builds Maskin and Skjald.
Training and workshops
If your question is less "where should we start" and more "how do my people learn to work with AI", the answer is usually training or a workshop, not advisory. Værksted offers training and workshops for product teams. They can happen before, during or after an advisory engagement.
FAQ
What is AI advisory?
AI advisory is senior guidance for a leadership team on where AI will change the result in the business, how to plan that change and who owns each part of it. It differs from a tool rollout because it starts with your work and ends with a plan and a working use case, not a licence count.
How is AI advisory different from AI consulting?
The terms overlap, and firms use them loosely. In how we use them: advisory is guidance and a plan that your own people carry out, with a first use case in use in your team's work. Værksted gives advice and plans. We do not build, ship or run systems for clients, so if you need a supplier to do that, we will say so and you hire one separately.
How much does AI advisory cost?
Planning, which maps where AI pays off and produces a plan with owners and measures, is a fixed 105,000 kr: 10 days, about 8 over about 4 weeks plus 2 days of follow-up advice about 30 days later. The first use case is a separate fixed 52,500 kr: 5 days over about 4 weeks. Extra days are 10,500 kr. All prices exclude VAT, and scope is agreed in writing before work starts.
Who does the work?
Sebastian leads the advisory. Your team does the work on its own product and delivery, and we guide, challenge and help get the first use case into use. You know who you are working with before you start, and the proof for that person is on this page.
Can we get funding for AI advisory?
Sebastian is an approved SMV:Digital advisor. The grant pays 50% of an external advisor's fee, at least 50,000 kr and at most 150,000 kr, and it applies to Danish SMEs only. It covers analysis, planning and follow-up advice, not software or building a system. Planning at 105,000 kr is the offer that can be assessed. A grant is not guaranteed. Check the official page for current terms.
How do we get started?
Book a call using the link below or email [email protected]. On the call we talk about your team and what has been tried. If advisory is the right fit, we agree scope in writing before any work starts. If it is not, we say so.
Talk to us
Tell us where your team is with AI and what you want to be true in six months. We will say whether advisory is the right next step.
Or email [email protected]. Back to the Værksted home page.