In this episode of AI Trailblazers, we sit down with Marilyn McDonald—product leader, Moderna alum, and co-founder of Yokai Labs—to unpack how the best AI strategies in healthcare are often born from tight regulatory constraints.
Key takeaways:
✅ How Moderna scaled its COVID response
✅ Why compliance isn’t a blocker—it’s a design opportunity
✅ How to build AI that solves “the stuff that sucks”
✅ The magic wand test: why every AI project should start with a real human problem
Marilyn brings a rare blend of product discipline, AI insight, and real-world healthcare experience. If you work at the intersection of innovation and regulation, this episode is for you.
🔗 Learn more about Marilyn’s work:🎧 Podcast: Practical Product Management💼 LinkedIn: Marilyn McDonald🌐 Company: Yokai Labs
Episode Chapters:
00:00 – Intro: AI, Product Thinking & Regulated Innovation
02:05 – Scaling Moderna’s COVID Response
06:50 – Starting with the Problem (The Magic Wand Test)
10:30 – Don’t Fear the Regulator: Turning Constraints into Strategy
14:45 – AI and Product Design: Solving the Stuff That Sucks
19:10 – Building with Unstructured Data vs. Data Warehouses
22:00 – Final Takeaways: Design, Trust & Human-Centered AI
24:40 – Outro: Where to Find Marilyn McDonald