The generative AI space is crowded with dazzling prototypes—yet fewer than 10% make it to production, and even fewer deliver measurable business value. Why? This talk cuts through the hype to systematically diagnose the root causes, from technical pitfalls (unreliable outputs, integration debt) to organizational blockers (short-term thinking, systematic underinvestment). We continue by illustrating how we at Apotea made it to overcome these challenges, reach production, and achieve sustainable value through clear problem definition, continuous evaluation and validation, and meticulous attention to security.