Send us a text Hit replay on this high-energy conversation with Ben Lowe, Founder and CEO of Lighthouse Technology, as he breaks down what it really takes to build something from scratch in a fast-changing AI world. From finding the right co‑founder and stepping into the CEO role, to navigating the toughest challenges of entrepreneurship, Ben shares practical lessons and hard‑won insights for builders at every stage. Ben also lifts the curtain on Lighthouse Technology’s mission at the intersection of cloud modernisation, cost optimisation, and Agentic AI, and how enterprises can turn AI hype into outcomes with the right GTM motion and architecture. If you care about innovation, AI for the enterprise, or your own startup journey, this replay is packed with career gold, strategic perspective, and a candid look at what’s next. 01:34 Finding a Entrepreneurial Partner 04:43 The Creation of Lighthouse 08:10 Becoming the CEO 09:34 The Biggest Challenge of Entrepreneurship 11:30 Lighthouse Technology 19:07 Agentic AI 20:16 The Lighthouse Trajectory 22:12 The GTM 31:39 Reseller versus Innovator 36:53 AI for the Enterprise 41:35 The 2-Min Pitch 43:30 What's True?LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lowebenjamin/?originalSubdomain=uk Website: https://lighthousetechnology.ai/

Entrepreneurship #AgenticAI #TechLeadership #Innovation #BusinessGrowth #CareerAdvice #AIForEnterprise #StartupJourney #MakingDataSimple #LighthouseTechnology #PodcastReplay

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Hit replay on one of the most thought-provoking Agentic AI conversations on Making Data Simple. GTM Account Director Megan Gallagher makes the case for Agentic AI from the Maven AGI front lines, where AI agents stop following rigid decision trees and start acting with real autonomy over enterprise workflows. “We’re still living like everything is deterministic,” Megan argues, “but this new generation of agents is inherently generative and predictive.” In this replay, she unpacks what that shift means for smaller specialized models, using real enterprise data, rethinking “assistant vs person,” and how to get started without boiling the ocean. If you want to understand how Agentic AI moves from slideware to shipped value, this is the episode to queue up again.

01:30 All Great Podcasts start with Drinks05:27 Maven AGI 09:13 Smaller Models! 10:50 Why Maven AGI12:04 The Secret Sauce or Use Case15:13 Typical Client Persona 20:31 Using Enterprise Data 26:19 But AGI, Really?30:12 Assistant or Person?39:06 What's Next?40:28 My Thoughts on Getting Started?46:30 The AI Example49:30 The Maven AGI Pitch53:23 Learning

Maven AGI: https://www.mavenagi.com/  Megan's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megfgallagher/ Al's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/al-martin-ku/

AgenticAI #FutureOfAI #MakingDataSimple #MavenAGI #AIAgents #EnterpriseAI #CustomerExperience #AIInProduction #PodcastReplay​

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Dive into the powerful world of mainframes! Chief Product Officer of IBM Z and LinuxONE, Tina Tarquinio, reveals the truth behind those eight nines of uptime and explores how mainframes are evolving with AI, hybrid cloud, and future-proofing strategies for mission-critical business decisions. 

Discover the cutting-edge innovations transforming enterprise computing—from on-chip AIU and Spyre AI accelerators enabling real-time inferencing at transaction speed, to how LinuxONE is redefining hybrid cloud architecture.  Tina discusses DevOps integration, AI-powered code assistants revolutionizing mainframe development, compelling AI use cases, and shares her bold predictions for the mainframe’s next 100 years.  Plus, career advice from a tech leader and what she does for fun! 00:46 Tina Tarquinio03:18 The Most Mainframe Surprise09:12 What IS the Mainframe Really?  8 Nines!14:40 On Chip AIU, Spyre Inferencing18:11 Mainframes with Hybrid Cloud19:11 The Linux One Pitch19:59 Exciting Mainframe Innovations22:09 DevOps23:36 Code Assistants26:03 AI Use Case27:49 Future Proofing Decisions37:17 Regulations38:45 Bold Prediction38:58 Mainframe 10040:48 Career Advice42:24 For FunLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tina-tarquinio Website: https://www.ibm.com/products/z

MakingDataSimple #IBMz #Mainframe #LinuxONE #AIInferencing #SpyreAccelerator #HybridCloud #EnterpriseAI #DevOps #AICodeAssistant #EightNines #TinaTarquinio #MainframeModernization #AIUChip #FutureProofing #TechLeadership #WatsonxCodeAssistant #CloudComputing #TelumII

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Data’s everywhere, but so often it feels… stuck. Joining us today is Jure Leskovec, Chief Scientist at Kumo and a Stanford Professor who's fundamentally reshaped how we understand networks—from Pinterest's recommendations to tracking the spread of disease. We’ll unpack why structured data is lagging behind the AI revolution, exploring how techniques like Graph Neural Networks are finally unlocking its potential, and how this all plays out in real-world applications

00:57 Meet Jure Leskovec02:31 Knowing When to Move On04:01 Academia versus Industry07:30 Learnings from Pinterest10:28 The Kumo Pitch17:57 The Secret Sauce25:51 Monetization27:12 Only the Enterprise?29:49 The Sandbox to Try Before Buy31:42 The Best Use Cases35:00 Summarizing37:38 Predicting AI40:15 What's True and No One Agrees41:19 Learning

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leskovec/ Website: https://kumo.ai/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Exploring the intersection of creativity and innovation, Geoff Thatcher, Founder and CCO Creative Principals, shares his insights on how AI is revolutionizing live experiences. From personalized exhibits to universal storytelling, Geoff delves into the possibilities and pitfalls of harnessing AI to elevate our connections with others.  01:39 Introducing Geoff Thatcher  02:48 Thinking about AI Differently  13:47 What Does it Mean to "Create" Now? 19:32 Augmented Intelligence  22:27 Death By PowerPoint  23:57 Five Rules for Using AI  24:47 Difference between Better and Easier? 30:16 Don't Let AI Steal Moments of Inspiration 33:18 Always Use the Most Reliable Source 34:57 Use AI to Tell Stories  37:36 The Worry of Getting Lazy  39:48 Humanizing AI!  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffthatcher/  Website: https://www.creativeprincipals.com/  Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text We're joined by Douwe Kiela, CEO of Contextual.ai and pioneer in RAG research. From deploying AI agents at Fortune 500 companies to shedding light on data privacy and security, Douwe shares his expertise and insights on how to make data simple, effective, and secure. 00:46 Introducing Douwe Kiela 01:37 RAG - Here to Stay or Go? 06:59 LLMs with Context 08:20 Making AI Successful 10:34 Why Contextual AI? 17:18 LLM versus SLMs 20:28 Speed over Perfection 22:07 Hallucinations 26:02 Making AI Easy to Consume 28:50 Defining an Agent 32:53 Reaching Contextual AI 33:14 The Contrarian View 34:37 The Risks of AI 36:53 For Fun

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/douwekiela Website: https://contextual.ai/   Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple?  Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next.  The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.  Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text This week, we’re rewinding one of our most talked-about episodes! Richmond Alake, Developer Advocate at MongoDB, joins us to explore how databases power the future of AI. From RAG best practices to the truth behind AGI hype, Richmond breaks down what it takes to build systems that scale — and think. Show Notes 02:05 Meet Rich Alake 03:57 A Developer Advocate at MongoDB 05:57 Passions and Fate! 08:52 AI Hype 13:14 Oh No… AGI Again 17:30 What Makes an AI Database? 20:42 Use Cases 25:41 RAG Best Practices 27:40 The Role of Databases 30:05 Why MongoDB Does It Better 32:43 What’s Next 36:13 Advice on Continuous Learning 38:44 Where to Find RichConnect with Richmond: 🔗 LinkedIn 🌐 MongoDB Website 🧠 Register for MongoDB 🤖 AI Agents Article 💾 Best Repo for AI Developers Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Replay Episode: Python, Anaconda, and the AI Frontier with Peter Wang Peter Wang — Chief AI & Innovation Officer and Co-founder of Anaconda — is back on Making Data Simple! Known for shaping the open-source ecosystem and making Python a powerhouse, Peter dives into Anaconda’s new AI incubator, the future of GenAI, and why Python isn’t just “still a thing”… it’s the thing. From branding and security to leadership and philosophy, this episode is a wild ride through the biggest opportunities (and risks) shaping AI today. Timestamps:  01:27 Meet Peter Wang 05:10 Python or R? 05:51 Anaconda’s Differentiation 07:08 Why the Name Anaconda 08:24 The AI Incubator 11:40 GenAI 14:39 Enter Python 16:08 Anaconda Commercial Services 18:40 Security 20:57 Common Points of Failure 22:53 Branding 24:50 watsonx Partnership 28:40 AI Risks 34:13 Getting Philosophical 36:13 China 44:52 Leadership Style

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/pzwang Website: https://www.linkedin.com/company/anacondainc/, https://www.anaconda.com/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text This week on Making Data Simple, join Ajay Kulkarni, CEO and co-founder of TigerData, as we dive into the rapidly evolving world of data. Ajay shares his front-row perspective on the challenges and opportunities of building and scaling time-series databases in an era of AI-driven automation. From the mechanics of managing massive data streams to the bold bets shaping the future of IoT, this conversation goes deep into what’s breaking, what’s working, and what’s next. Whether you’re a data engineer, tech leader, or simply fascinated by the speed of AI innovation, this episode is packed with insights you won’t want to miss. 01:15 Meet AJ Kulkarni04:29 TigerData07:16 Timeseries 09:25 Use Cases 11:03 Why Progress? 11:58 Why TigerData16:05 AI is Everything21:06 The Fastest Postgres 25:45 Advanced Features28:53 Future of IOT36:48 The Future of TigerData38:03 San Francisco38:26 A Big Bet41:06 Good BooksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajaykulkarni/ Website:  https://tigerdata.com Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text What if AI could tap into live operational data — without ETL or RAG? In this episode, Deepti Srivastava, founder of Snow Leopard, reveals how her company is transforming enterprise data access with intelligent data retrieval, semantic intelligence, and a governance-first approach. Tune in for a fresh perspective on the future of AI and the startup journey behind it.

We explore how companies are revolutionizing their data access and AI strategies. Deepti Srivastava, founder of Snow Leopard, shares her insights on bridging the gap between live operational data and generative AI — and how it’s changing the game for enterprises worldwide. We dive into Snow Leopard’s innovative approach to data retrieval, semantic intelligence, and governance-first architecture. 04:54 Meeting Deepti Srivastava 14:06 AI with No ETL, no RAG 17:11 Snow Leopard's Intelligent Data Fetching 19:00 Live Query Challenges 21:01 Snow Leopard's Secret Sauce 22:14 Latency 23:48 Schema Changes 25:02 Use Cases 26:06 Snow Leopard's Roadmap 29:16 Getting Started 33:30 The Startup Journey 34:12 A Woman in Technology 36:03 The Contrarian View🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thedeepti/ 🔗 Website:  https://www.snowleopard.ai/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Get ready for an insightful conversation on the future of data integration and real-time decision making with Dima Spivak, Director of Product Management at StreamSets. We cover everything from the “why StreamSets” story to its secret sauce, how it plays in regulated industries, and what makes it a powerful player in data fabric, AI, and streaming use cases. If you’re passionate about the future of data pipelines, governance, and AI-driven insights, this one’s for you! ⏱️ Episode Guide: 02:02 | Meet Dima Spivak04:19 | Why StreamSets?06:00 | What is StreamSets?09:48 | On-Demand Expense11:34 | Regulated Industries12:36 | The Secret Sauce14:41 | A Competitive View15:50 | Data Fabric + StreamSets18:25 | StreamSets + AI21:12 | Use Cases That Matter24:02 | The Future of Streaming25:48 | Quality + Testing31:19 | For Fun 🎉🔗 Connect with Dima: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dmitryspivak Website: https://www.ibm.com/blog/announcement/ibm-acquires-streamSets/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Ready to reclaim your time and live with intention? In this episode, Katherine Mayne sits down with Jacob Hicks, Coach and Speaker, to explore the intersection of productivity and intentional living. We dive into the tools, habits, and strategies that can help you master time management, optimize your workflow, and unlock your full potential. From the Four Disciplines of Execution to Atomic Habits and the role of AI in coaching, Jacob shares practical, real-world insights you can put into action today. Whether you’re a leader, entrepreneur, or simply looking to get more out of your day, this conversation will give you the frameworks and mindset shifts you need. 🕒 Episode Timestamps 01:34 Meet Jacob Hicks 04:12 Mastering Time Management via WPRI 14:01 Four Disciplines of Execution 15:12 Time Management Misconceptions 21:30 What Stops People from Managing Time 23:32 Tools and Giving AI a Role 26:31 Atomic Habits 28:11 What to Stop 29:36 Coaching and AI 31:05 Jacob's Coaching Business

🔗 Connect with Jacob Hicks LinkedIn: Jacob HicksWebsite: jacobhickscoach.comPodcast: Purpose Driven Progress

MakingDataSimple #TimeManagement #IntentionalLiving #AtomicHabits #AIandCoaching #ProductivityHacks #Leadership #WorkflowOptimization #JacobHicks

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Episode Description (Show Notes): Step into the world of IBM Power Systems with insider insights from Tom McPherson, former GM of IBM Power. In this conversation, Tom shares leadership lessons, debunks common misconceptions, and dives deep into the innovations shaping the future of Power infrastructure. From AI integration to hybrid cloud strategies, competitive positioning to compelling client use cases — it’s a powerhouse discussion you won’t want to miss. Timestamps:  00:49 Meet Tom McPherson 03:00 Leadership Advice 04:58 Hobbies 07:53 IBM Power 10:24 Power 11 13:53 Common Misconception 14:39 Favorite Power Features 21:51 Promise to Profits of AI 25:28 Hybrid Cloud 27:34 Power Competitors 28:36 Compelling Use Cases 29:51 The Future of Power 31:20 Rapid Fire 33:51 Business Partners in Power 35:16 LeadershipGuest Links: 🔗 Tom McPherson on LinkedIn 🌐 IBM Power Systems Social: #IBMPower #Leadership #HybridCloud #AI #EnterpriseTech #TechInnovation #MakingDataSimple #PowerSystems #BusinessStrategy #DigitalTransformation #CloudComputing #AIinBusiness Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text 🎙 Replay Alert: Symbolic AI, QLattice, and Mind-Bending Ideas with Casper Wilstrup We’re bringing back one of our most thought-provoking episodes! Join us for a replay with Casper Skern Wilstrup, CEO of Abzu and the mind behind QLattice. We dive into Symbolic AI, the why behind Abzu, and Casper’s wild take on consciousness, simulation theory, and panpsychism. It’s science, AI, and philosophy in one unforgettable conversation. Grab a drink, sit back, and prepare to have your mind blown — again. 🔹 Timestamps: • 01:39 Introducing Casper Wilstrup • 06:34 Abzu the Name • 09:09 Abzu the Mission • 12:32 Symbolic AI • 22:20 Foundational Models? • 24:42 The QLattice Explanation • 26:33 Abzu Use Cases • 30:57 More on QLattice • 32:52 The Abzu Pitch • 34:56 Reaching Abzu • 36:10 Are We in a Simulation? • 38:03 Panpsychism 🤯 • 43:03 For Fun 🔗 LinkedIn: Casper Wilstrup 🌐 Website: abzu.ai Hashtags: #ReplayEpisode #MakingDataSimple #SymbolicAI #QLattice #AbzuAI #ArtificialIntelligence #AIPhilosophy #Panpsychism #SimulationTheory #AIandScience #DataPodcast

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text Deep Diving into the future of AI:

Join Dr. Sean Falconer — AI Entrepreneur in Residence at Confluent, software engineering leader, and developer relations expert — for a deep dive into the future of AI, data streaming, and what it really means to build at the edge of innovation. From managing multiple LLMs to testing autonomous agents and sharing his bold contrarian takes, Sean helps us simplify the complexity of today's tech. 📌 Timestamps  04:38 – Meet Sean Falconer 11:11 – Lifelong Learning 12:31 – AI Entrepreneur in Residence 16:28 – Multiple LLMs in Action 21:07 – The Tech Behind Confluent 25:51 – Why Sean Chose Confluent 28:40 – Invest or Short? 36:58 – Testing Agents IRL 40:51 – The Contrarian AI Take 42:27 – Looking Ahead: The Future of AI🔗 Connect with Sean: LinkedInSubstackMedium

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text She’s the legal powerhouse behind IBM’s AI ethics strategy — and she makes law fun. In this encore episode, we revisit a fan favorite: Christina Montgomery, formerly IBM’s Chief Privacy and Trust Officer, now Chief Privacy and Trust Officer, GM. From guarding the gates of generative AI risk to advising on global regulation, Christina gives us a front-row seat to what’s now, what’s next, and what needs rethinking when it comes to trust, synthetic data, and the future of AI law. 📍 Timestamps:  • 01:00 Christina Montgomery!  • 04:36 My Daughter and the Bar  • 08:36 Chief Privacy and Trust Officer  • 11:37 Keeping IBM Out of Trouble  • 13:34 Client Conversations  • 16:23 Where to Be Bullish and Bearish  • 20:52 The Risks of LLMs  • 24:21 NIST and AI Alliance  • 28:26 AI Regulation  • 36:13 Synthetic Data  • 38:00 Misconceptions  • 40:07 Worries  • 41:27 The Path to AI  • 43:13 Aspiring Lawyers 🔗 Christina on LinkedIn 🌐 IBM AI Ethics Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text The AI Advantage: Get Better Results from LLMs with the Perfect Prompt On this episode of Making Data Simple, we’re joined by Jonathan Mast, AI consultant and coach at Whitebeard Strategies and creator of the Perfect Prompting Framework™. Jonathan’s not just riding the AI wave—he’s teaching business leaders and everyday users how to surf it, with simple, actionable tools that unlock meaningful results from large language models. If you've ever stared at a prompt box wondering what to type—or worse, gotten garbage back from AI—this episode is for you. We talk about what works, what doesn’t, and what’s coming next (agents, anyone?). Plus, Jonathan breaks down his 4-step framework that’s helping 300K+ community members and clients scale AI with clarity and confidence. ⏱️ Episode Timestamps 01:34 Introducing Jonathan Mast04:13 Digital Agency05:29 Whitebeard Strategies08:06 ADD09:57 Back to Whitebeard14:51 The Perfect Prompting Framework21:36 The Four Step Method24:58 What if You Don't Use AI?28:37 Agents30:08 Whitebeard Engagements32:42 Getting Started36:39 What's True But Not a Consensus?37:23 For Fun🔗 Connect with Jonathan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanjmast/Website: https://whitebeardstrategies.com#MakingDataSimple #PerfectPromptingFramework #AIforBusiness #AIProductivity #JonathanMast #PromptEngineering #LLMs #AIAgents #WhitebeardStrategies #TechPodcast #DataSimplified Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text We’re back with Part 2 of our must-listen conversation with Dave Garrison, leadership strategist and veteran CEO, on what it really takes to unlock performance through engagement. In this episode, we go deeper into the psychological drivers of motivation — autonomy, mastery, and purpose — and explore how to stop employee churn, combat burnout, and lead with clarity (not just charisma). Plus: how to rethink your approach to hiring and the controversial take on using AI in leadership decisions. Stick around for a surprise recap guest who brings it all home. 💥 🕒 Time-Stamps: 00:12 – Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose 04:48 – How to Stop Churn 07:10 – Laying the Hammer Down 08:00 – Burnout 14:50 – Are You Using AI Wrong? 16:27 – Energy Level 17:40 – Coach Katherine Mayne's Take 19:57 – Hire for Aptitude, Fire for Attitude 22:19 – The Recap 🔗 Connect with Dave on LinkedIn 📘 Explore his book, Buy-In Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text From Elephant Butts to Ethical AI — Duncan Curtis on De-Risking GenAI at Sama Episode intro Duncan Curtis, SVP for GenAI & AI Product + Technology at Sama, has shipped everything from autonomous-vehicle platforms at Zoox to game-changing data products at Google. Today he leads a 160-person team that’s reinventing how training data is curated, labeled, and audited so enterprises can ship production-ready GenAI—without the lurking model risk. Sama’s newest release, Sama Automate, is already cutting annotation time by 40 percent while keeping quality above SLAs, and Duncan says they’re “aiming for a 10× improvement by 2025.” (aiuserconference.com, sama.com) If you want the inside track on AI ROI, ethical guardrails, and why A’s hire A’s (but B’s hire C’s!), lean in—this one’s for you. (And yes, we do get to elephant butts.) Timestamped roadmap 00:46 Meet Duncan Curtis03:51 The Duncan Brand05:52 Making Time for Yourself08:47 Autonomous Cars — 9× Safer12:21 Favorite Jobs13:24 Inside Sama14:39 Data & LLM Training16:04 De-Risking Models19:08 Ethical AI22:43 Stopping Hallucinations27:18 Data Labeling Deep-Dive31:56 Production-Ready GenAI33:44 AGI Horizons35:34 What Makes Sama Different36:31 Calculating AI ROI38:50 State of the LLMs44:48 Elephant Butts & Closing ThoughtsQuick links LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/duncan-curtis/Sama: https://www.sama.com/Latest blog: “Sama Introduces New Data Automation Platform” (sama.com)Hear more: Duncan on “Human Guardrails in Generative AI” (DataCamp podcast) (datacamp.com)Hashtags

MakingDataSimple #AIProduct #GenAI #DataLabeling #EthicalAI #AIROI #AutonomousVehicles #Podcast

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

Send us a text This week on Making Data Simple, we welcome Ralph Gootee, CTO and co-founder of TigerEye, a company reshaping strategic sales intelligence with a data-driven edge. Ralph’s journey spans Pixar, Sony, and PlanGrid — and now he’s building tools to help sales leaders see around corners. From the secrets behind TigerEye's intuitive reporting to the realities of entrepreneurship and the affordability of LLMs, this episode hits both the business brain and the tech heart. 00:52 Meet Ralph Gootee 01:43 TigerEye 04:49 PlanGrid 07:43 Monetization 08:50 TigerEye's Objective 12:38 Reinventing Reporting 17:06 How it Works 22:21 The Secret Sauce 27:48 LLM Affordability 34:14 Last Call 38:57 The Entrepreneur Dilemma 39:47 Where to Reach TigerEye 40:07 Do Code Assistants Work? 47:32 For Fun🔗 Connect with Ralph & TigerEye LinkedIn: Ralph Gootee  Website: TigerEye Blog: TigerEye Blog

MakingDataSimple #SalesIntelligence #AIinSales #EntrepreneurMindset #LLMs #StartupLife #PixarToPipeline #DataDrivenDecisions #TechLeadership #TigerEye

Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [email protected] and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.