In this episode, Rob interviews Anthony Goonetilleke, the Group President and Head of Technology at Amdocs, who shares insights from his 26-year career at the company. They discuss the rapid evolution of technology, the democratization of coding, and the importance of empathy in AI interactions. Anthony also shares his experiences from the Nvidia GTC conference, highlighting user preferences for AI avatars and the future of customer service in an AI-driven world. The conversation emphasizes the evolving role of humans in technology and the need for understanding user needs to create effective AI solutions.

What can physics teach us about machine health in manufacturing? Joining us today to unpack this question is Mica Rubinson, a physicist with a PhD from the Weizmann Institute of Science. She currently serves as the algorithms lead for Augury, a company providing AI-driven insights into machines, processes, and operations in manufacturing. We sit down to discuss her transition from physics and neuroscience to working in AI, and how her background has informed her understanding of complex systems and improving machine health algorithms

Generative AI is still part of the conversation, but perhaps more relevant today is the question of how to develop and leverage more advanced agents. Srini Iragavarapu is the Director of Generative AI applications and Developer Experiences at AWS, and he joins us today to discuss this key topic. Srini explores the evolution from basic generative AI models to sophisticated agents capable of autonomous decision-making and task execution.

AI is transforming industries worldwide, but how is it reshaping the retail experience? In this episode, we sit down with Lisa Avvocato and Mika Yamamoto to delve into the role of AI in retail and marketing. Lisa and Mika are seasoned marketing and business leaders specializing in AI, customer experience, and enterprise transformation. Lisa is the VP of Global Marketing and AI Community at Sama, where she champions ethical AI development through high-quality training data. Mika serves as the Chief Customer and Marketing Officer at Freshworks, a company driving global growth with AI-powered solutions that enhance customer and employee experiences. In our conversation, we unpack how AI is transforming retail operations, customer service, and online shopping experiences.

How is AI disrupting the retail landscape? In this episode, we welcome Nitzan Mekel-Bobrov to explore the transformative role of AI in reshaping online marketplaces. Nitzan is a visionary leader and AI expert driving innovation at the intersection of technology and commerce. As Chief AI Officer at eBay, he spearheads cutting-edge AI initiatives that transform the online marketplace experience. Committed to empowering people and creating economic opportunity, eBay uses advanced technology to deliver a seamless, secure, personalized shopping experience for all users.

How can data science and AI drive sustainable innovation in a rapidly evolving world? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Satyajit Wattamwar, Data Science and Statistical Leader at Unilever, to explore how these technologies are shaping novel solutions. Unilever is a global leader in consumer goods committed to creating responsible, impactful products that improve lives. Leveraging cutting-edge research and development, the company addresses some of the world’s most pressing challenges, from reducing environmental impact to enhancing well-being.

Jing Wang, Principal and Head of the Center for Analytics and Insights at Vanguard, shares her fascinating journey from high-energy physics to leading AI initiatives that are reshaping investor outcomes for the better.

Today, we are joined by Ram Venkatesh, the founder of Sema4.ai – an enterprise AI agent platform that enables businesses to build, operate, and scale AI agents. Ram shares the risks of training LLMs from agent data, and the contextual work training protocol for agents. We also unpack the requirements of a large language model when you’re not responsible for training it, the various modalities and how they can be improved, the threat that agents pose to SaaS, and Ram’s vision of the future of AI.

Fresh from Sama's AI Research Book Club are Solutions Engineer Yannick Donnelly and Sr. Applied Scientist Pascal Jauffret, who join the podcast to unpack the use cases, limitations, and implications of Meta's SAM-2.

Siddhika worked on groundbreaking projects at Microsoft and Apple before co-founding Tetra AI Hub, later acquired by Qualcomm, where she now serves as the Senior Director of Project Management. Our guest explains why she switched focus from cloud to edge computing, why there’s a need to both increase compute on edge devices and develop more efficient AI models, and how the conversation around edge has evolved since the very first murmurs.

Rizel describes how she helped others to understand how GitHub Copilot should be used, her duties and ongoing projects at Block, how the conversation around AI copilots has evolved in the last 18 months, and the importance of having a refined system for objection handling.

Drew details the emergence of cloud data warehouses and the rapid adoption that followed, unpacks the practical uses of LLMs , and demystifies some of their reasoning-based limitations. He also sheds light on vector embeddings, their transformative potential, and what’s next for this dynamic space.

There will always be a certain level of risk associated with building AI models, but it is the responsibility of the creators to minimize those risks and ensure sustainable development. Today, we are joined by Meeri Haataja, the Founder of AI governance platform Saidot, to discuss all things responsible AI-building and risk mitigation.

Today, we're joined by Dr. Scott Zoldi, Chief Analytics Officer at FICO, a global analytics software company that empowers businesses to improve customer experiences, lower risks, and operate more efficiently through its FICO Platform. Dr. Zoldi is also a named inventor on over 130 active and pending patents, including a recent breakthrough in using blockchain for auditable machine learning decision-making.His research and work have earned him a spot as one of American Banker’s 2024 Innovators of the Year. 

The future of AI depends on overcoming its biggest challenges, chief among them being hardware limitations. Joining us today is Jay Dawani, Founder and CEO of Lemurian Labs, to share how his company is addressing this central issue by building a platform designed to make AI development more efficient, affordable, and environmentally friendly.

Melissa shares the factors that determine whether an open-source community is healthy, speaks to Intel’s philosophy on innovation and open AI.

Thomas tells us all about reinforcement learning, their constant process of learning and reinvention, and the power of generative AI (with good data). Finally, Thomas shares some words of wisdom for anyone looking to forge a career in the world of AI.

Kandarp dives into the development of the Xactly AI Copilot before expanding on the complexities of measuring AI’s true value and impact. We also explore the future of AI, with Kandarp sharing his view that while AI may be overhyped in the short term, its long-term potential is vastly underappreciated.

How can we ensure that AI is used ethically in a rapidly evolving world? Today, we sit down with Srujana Kaddevarmuth to delve into AI ethics, workforce upskilling, and the need for global regulations to ensure ethical AI adoption and deployment.

Today on How AI Happens we are joined by the leader of digital change at UPS, Sunzay Passari. You’ll hear all about Sunzay’s extensive career, how he landed his role at UPS, how he plans on driving technological transformation, and how AI has made its way into the company in recent years.