our approach is different
We learn the business first. Technology comes second.
If AI can help you make more money, save money, or get meaningful time back, we'll show you how.
And if it can't, we're not interested in selling you AI just because AI happens to be popular.
Built by Small Business People, for Small Business Owners
Mitten State AI didn't start because we thought AI was cool. It started because we saw what this technology could potentially do for the kinds of business owners we've spent our lives around.
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We understand the long days, constant interruptions, employee questions, customer problems, administrative work, and the never-ending list of things an owner knows should get done—but rarely has enough time to actually do.
ABOUT US
Meet Mark & Lisa
Mark Sauve
Founder & Small Business AI Consultant
I owned and operated two restaurants in Michigan — Twins Pizza Pasta & More for 16 years and The Pine Run Inn for three. I know what it feels like to be the last one out at night, the first one in the next morning, and the person everyone calls when something goes wrong. I lived that for nearly two decades.
After 19 years in the restaurant business, I sold Twins. Not because I wanted to, but because I was burnt out. The constant grind, the repetitive questions, the administrative work that never seemed to end — eventually, it wore me down.
Looking back, I wish I had access to some of the tools small business owners have today. The right systems wouldn't have eliminated the hard work of owning a business, but they could have taken a lot off my plate. They could have given me back some of my time, reduced the daily stress, and allowed me to spend more of my energy on the parts of the business that actually mattered.
That is why I started Mitten State AI.
I bring nearly two decades of firsthand small business ownership to what I do today, along with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management from the University of Michigan–Flint. I don't come at this from a tech background or a corporate boardroom. I come at it as someone who has sat exactly where you are sitting right now.
My job isn't to sell you AI. It's to understand your business, figure out what's taking too much of your time or costing you opportunities, and determine whether there's a practical way technology can help.
When I'm not working, you'll probably find me on a golf course. Most importantly, I'm a proud dad to my daughter Vivian, who keeps me grounded and reminds me why building something worthwhile matters.
Lisa Gillespie
Co-Founder | AI Training & Implementation
For the past 18 years, I have been a teacher. And if there's one thing I've learned in the classroom, it's that giving someone a new tool isn't enough — you have to help them understand how to actually use it.
That is a big part of what I bring to Mitten State AI.
I hold a master's degree in education and have spent nearly two decades taking complicated information, breaking it down into something understandable, and helping people become confident using what they've learned. Today, I bring that same approach to helping small business owners and their employees use AI.
Technology can be intimidating, especially when it seems like it's changing every day. You shouldn't have to become an AI expert to benefit from it. Our job is to understand your business, build practical solutions around the way you actually work, and make sure you and your team are comfortable using them.
At Mitten State AI, I focus on training and implementation — helping turn the solutions we build into tools that actually become part of the business. Because even the best technology isn't very useful if nobody understands it or wants to use it.
I'm originally from Grand Blanc, Michigan, and I'm also a proud mom to Lily and Madelyn. Being a teacher and a mom has taught me plenty about patience, communication, problem-solving, and occasionally explaining the same thing more than once — all skills that turn out to be pretty useful in AI consulting, too.
My goal is simple: make AI feel less intimidating, more understandable, and genuinely useful to the people who use it every day.
Why Mitten State AI?
We're not trying to turn small-business owners into AI experts.
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We're here to understand your business, identify where technology can actually help, build practical solutions around the way you work, and stay involved after implementation.