Should I buy an AI SDR, or keep prospecting human?

The honest 2025-2026 answer: fully autonomous AI SDRs have mostly disappointed, with high churn, burned sending domains, and at least one high-profile scandal about inflated customer claims. What works is the hybrid: AI handles research, list building, and drafts, while a human (usually you, the founder) reviews what goes out and takes every conversation. Buy tools that make you faster, be very skeptical of anything promising meetings on autopilot.

A quick orientation. The real value is below: resources worth your time, from people who've actually done it.