Would a tool that combines AI workflow automation with automatic carbon tracking make sense for SMEs?

Hey everyone 👋

I’m developing a concept called VerdeAI as part of my MBA product development course, and I’d love to get some honest feedback from founders, SME owners, and product-minded people here.

The idea:
VerdeAI is an AI-powered SaaS platform that helps small and medium-sized businesses work smarter and operate greener.
It combines:

• AI Workflow Assistant – automates repetitive tasks like summarizing meetings, drafting reports, preparing RFP responses, and updating project trackers.
• Carbon Intelligence Engine – analyzes operational data (invoices, logistics, utilities, travel) to automatically estimate CO₂ emissions and suggest reduction strategies.

The vision: “Smarter workflows, smaller footprint.”
SMEs face both operational inefficiency and sustainability pressure, but most tools focus on only one. VerdeAI aims to bridge that gap.

💬 I’d really appreciate your input

If you run, work with, or advise small or medium-sized businesses, I’d love your thoughts on the following questions.
Please answer as many as you like. Even short, honest responses are incredibly helpful 🙏

💡 Concept, Value & Priorities

1. Does combining workflow automation and carbon tracking make sense, or should I focus on one first?
2. Which challenge feels more urgent for SMEs today — inefficient workflows or sustainability/ESG compliance?
3. How would you describe this kind of product in a single sentence?
4. What outcomes would make this product genuinely valuable to you (e.g., time savings, compliance, reputation, cost reduction)?

⚙️ Workflow Automation

1. What are the most repetitive or time-consuming tasks in your company that you’d love to automate?
2. How do you currently manage reports, RFPs, or documentation — and what frustrates you most about those processes?
3. Which existing AI or automation tools (if any) do you use today, and what do you wish they did better?

🌱 Carbon Emissions & Sustainability

1. Do you or the SMEs you know currently track carbon emissions or sustainability metrics?
2. What makes carbon measurement or ESG reporting challenging for smaller businesses?
3. Would you see value in automatically deriving emissions insights from operational data (instead of manual entry)?
4. What kind of sustainability dashboard, alerts, or reports would be most useful for decision-making?

🔐 Trust & Data

1. Would you feel comfortable connecting your business data (finance, operations, travel) to a platform like this?
2. What would make you trust or distrust an AI tool analyzing your company’s data?

💰 Pricing & Business Model

1. Does a freemium → €49–199/month pricing model sound realistic for SMEs?
2. What pricing or value metric (per user, per project, per ton of CO₂, etc.) would feel fairest?
3. What would make this product feel “worth paying for” to you?

This isn’t a pitch - it’s a learning and validation exercise for my MBA course. But who knows in the future! This idea came to my mind because I am tired of RFIs in my current company! :)

Any feedback - short or detailed - will be super valuable 🙏
If anyone’s open to a quick follow-up chat, feel free to DM me.