In this episode of Mind the Machine, Cheryl sits down with Patrick Leung, CTO of Faro Health and former engineering lead at Google Duplex. Patrick shares how his team is using AI to transform clinical trial design, dramatically reducing patient burden, trial costs, and delays. He reflects on lessons from building early conversational AI at Google, why clinical trials still operate like it’s the 1990s, and how Faro’s agentic AI systems are reshaping the future of drug development. They explore the real challenges of applying AI in regulated industries, how to earn trust in life sciences, why true AGI is farther away than headlines suggest, and why the future belongs to adaptable builders—not fearful bystanders.
00:10 – Welcome to Mind the Machine
02:04 – Meet Patrick: From Google to Clinical Trials
04:54 – Why Clinical Trial Design Is Still Broken
08:12 – A Better Way Than Word Docs: Faro’s AI-Powered System
11:04 – Large Language Models for Clinical Writing
13:20 – What Are AI Agents, Really?
16:08 – Privacy Concerns and “Double Agents” in Pharma
19:57 – The Real Stakes of AI in Regulated Industries
23:17 – Why Domain-Specific AI Still Wins
25:20 – Pharma’s AI FOMO and the Pressure to Innovate
30:06 – Why This Is a Golden Era for AI Entrepreneurs
33:02 – Making AI Accessible to Non-Tech Experts
35:06 – The Rise of the Three-Person Startup
37:16 – Using AI for Meditation Retreats and Daily Life
40:04 – Patrick’s Hope for AI and Human Potential
41:53 – Open Source vs. Closed Models: What’s Best for Humanity?
44:06 – Are We Actually Close to AGI?
52:47 – Who Would Patrick Invite to Dinner?
55:16 – Where to Find Patrick and Faro Health
Where to find Patrick Lund and Faro Health:
Website: https://farohealth.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/puiwah/
Follow Cheryl:
Website: https://findgood.tech
Instagram: instagram.com/findgood.tech
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ckgoodman/