GRAVITY CREATIVE
Cost analysis · Las Vegas · Year 1 · October 2026

8 roles.
Two ways to staff them.

What it costs to hire 8 people, vs. run an AI team for the same 8 roles.

Human team AI team
1

The bottom line

Human team · 8 hires
$959K
per year · $79,931 / month
Fully loaded: salary, benefits, taxes, hiring, ramp, gear.
The difference
97%+
lower cost, even at the AI high end
AI team · 8 assistants
$3K–$25K
per year · $260–$2,100 / month
Estimated range: AI seats + supporting tools.
Where the human $959,174 goes
  • Base salaries$630,000
  • Benefits + payroll taxes (29.0%)$182,624
  • Onboarding / ramp (est.)$78,750
  • Recruiting (8 × $5,475)$43,800
  • Equipment & software (est.)$24,000
Year 2 and after
  • Human$836,624 / yr
  • AI (high end)$25,200 / yr
  • Lower by97.0%
With a human lead
  • Lead, ~10 hrs/wk (est.)~$25,000 / yr
  • AI + lead~$50,000 / yr
  • Still lower by~95%
2

Role by role

Human: Las Vegas, Year 1, fully loaded. AI: estimated cost per seat.

Chief of Staff

Human match: General & Operations Manager
Human $146,129/ year
AI $20–$200/ month

Business Development (Cold Outreach)

Human match: Sales Rep (SDR / BDR)
Human $94,754/ year
AI $20–$200/ month

Warm Relationship Development

Human match: Public Relations Specialist
Human $112,950/ year
AI $20–$200/ month

Talent & Visibility

Human match: Agent / Business Manager
Human $162,103/ year
AI $20–$200/ month

Recruiter

Human match: HR Specialist
Human $107,446/ year
AI $20–$200/ month

Social Media & Audience Intel

Human match: Marketing Specialist
Human $114,124/ year
AI $20–$200/ month

Partnerships & Monetization

Human match: Sponsorship Sales
Human $100,187/ year
AI $20–$200/ month
Uses US salary (no Las Vegas data).

Strategy Partner

Human match: Management Analyst
Human $121,481/ year
AI $20–$200/ month
Equity not included.
3

Honest caveats

  1. 1
    Cost, not output.

    AI isn't one-for-one with a seasoned pro. No lived relationships or accountability.

  2. 2
    AI needs human direction.

    Someone sets priorities and reviews drafts. AI can be confidently wrong.

  3. 3
    Judgment stays human.

    Relationships, ethics, brand voice and commitments belong to people.

  4. 4
    Setup takes real time.

    A few weeks to define roles, connect tools and test outputs.

  5. 5
    Leading it is the skill.

    A person who can direct the team is what makes it work.

  6. 6
    The data has limits.

    BLS medians run low for special titles. Ramp and gear are estimates. Equity isn't modeled.