As you’re considering your business strategy for 2026 and beyond, here’s a big issue you and your leadership team may be facing. Where and how AI can serve your business now and into what’s next. What’s clear is that within the past year, AI’s capabilities have dramatically increased, and will continue to grow. This means there will be many more opportunities for humans and various technologies to complement each other to ignite game-changing growth. What does it take to make “human-friendly tech decisions” in a way that’s ethical and benefits those stakeholders who both impact it and are impacted by it? That’s the focus of our conversation with our guest, Kate O’Neill, widely known as the “Chief Tech Humanist.”
Kate is a digital innovator, author, and global speaker. As CEO of KO Insights, Kate advises on data-driven, human-centered strategy. A former early Netflix employee, she’s worked with top organizations including Google, IBM, and the UN. Her insights appear in major media, and her books guide leaders on solving human problems at scale. Her latest book is “What Matters Next: A Leader’s Guide to Making Human-Friendly Tech Decisions in a World That’s Moving Too Fast.” It’s an International Book Awards finalist, and Thinkers50 named it “one of the top 10 best new management books of 2025.”
This is Part I of our conversation with Kate. We discuss  her perspective on what it means to be a “Tech Humanist.” We speak about the leadership challenges of making complex technology decisions in uncertain, accelerated environments. Kate also shares how her “Now–Next Continuum” can provide a practical framework for integrating lessons from the past, clarity from the present, and foresight into the future.  We also discuss how focusing on “what could go right” can amplify human potential while managing risks. We end Part 1 with why the opportunity for human betterment should be at the center of tech-driven business decisions.
Note: Be sure to join us next week for Episode 378, Part 2 of our conversation with Kate O’Neill.
We’ll dig deeper on making human-friendly tech decisions through a story from Kate’s early years as one of the first 100 employees of Netflix. We also discuss three immediately useful ideas for making human-friendly tech decisions for your company.
Being a ‘tech humanist’ centers on making sure that business objectives and human outcomes are aligned before technology is used to amplify them. — Kate O’Neill
This week on Growth Igniters Radio:

* Kate’s perspective on what it means to be a “Tech Humanist,” and why she wrote her latest book “What Matters Next“
* The leadership challenges of making complex technology decisions in uncertain, accelerated environments
* How Kate’s  “Now–Next Continuum,” can provide a practical framework for integrating lessons from the past, clarity from the present, and foresight into the future
* Why the opportunity for human betterment should be at the center of tech-driven business decisions

Resources for This Episode:

* Read more about Kate O’Neill and connect with her on  “LinkedIn“
* Read about Kate’s  book, “Back to Episodes