Why 'human' is the perfect theme song for Andromeda.

SAM is an artificial intelligence and, I think, important to the mission.  I doubt a lot of successes would have been possible without SAM.  Certainly, the connection Ryder had to SAM versus what others on the pathfinder team had was significantly different.  Still, SAM remains a tool.  That tool is utterly useless without someone to do something with it.  This remains true of SAM.

But let's put it like this.  Remove EDI from the equation in ME2.  Do we get the IFF?  Is the ship able to remove the Collector virus from its system?  Who stops Joker from being abducted by the Collectors, along with the ship no doubt?  No one.  Without EDI, the mission is a failure, the Reapers invade and the MW gets reset for a new cycle.  In that case, be thankful SAM exists when the AI reaches Andromeda because all of the MW races would be long dead.