Magnified with Matt Cooper

Louis Walsh is one of the most prolific music moguls of the last 20 years, having managed pop groups such as Westlife, Boyzone and Girls Aloud.Louis joined Matt to talk about growing up in Kiltimagh in Co. Mayo, his time as an X Factor judge, his relationship with Simon Cowell and his experience of living in the Big Brother House.He also addressed the criticism he received after the release of the recent Boyzone documentary on Sky.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

On this week's Magnified, Matt spoke to Yvonne Brewer, Country Manager for Ireland at Auticon. Auticon is an IT solutions company that prides itself on its inclusivity and which is now the largest majority-autistic company in the world.In this week's episode, Yvonne speaks candidly about the passion she has for her work, the importance of implementing inclusivity and diversity practices in the workplace, and her decision to change her career path after being diagnosed with breast cancer.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Pat Farrell is Chief Executive of Irish Institutional Property, but has a CV that covers an extensive range of roles and industries. Among them include General Manager at Sligo General Hospital at just 24 years of age, Chief Executive at the Irish Banking Federation and General Secretary of Fianna Fáil between 1991 and 1997.In this week's Magnified, Matt speaks to Pat about his career and his influence on some pivotal moments in Ireland's economic history, the country's housing shortage and his decision to leave politics after working under Charles Haughey, Albert Reynolds and Bertie Ahern.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Therese Coveney is the co-founder and CEO of the Together Academy, an organization dedicated to creating employment opportunities for young adults with Down syndrome. Inspired by her daughter April, who has Down syndrome, Therese founded the Together Academy to challenge stereotypes and support individuals with intellectual disabilities in achieving their goals and living independent lives.In this week's episode Therese chats to Matt about the genesis and philosphy of the academy and the real world impact it's having on its members and their parents. This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Richard Shakespeare is the Chief Executive of Dublin City Council (DCC). He took over the role from Owen Keegan, who retired in September 2023. Richard has over 30 years of experience in local government, including roles as Assistant Chief Executive at DCC and Director of Municipal Services at Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.In this week's Magnified, Matt gives Richard the opportunity to discuss some of the major issues facing Dublin as a city such as litter, vacant buildings and transport and what his plans are to tackle them.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Daniel Davey is a well-known performance nutritionist and author based in Dublin, Ireland. He has worked with elite athletes, including the Dublin Senior football team and Leinster Rugby team. Daniel is the founder of Davey Nutrition, a platform offering practical nutrition advice, recipes, and personalized consultations.He has authored best-selling books like "Eat Up, Raise Your Game" and "Eat Up, The Next Level," which focus on the connection between nutrition, mindset, and performance. Daniel's approach is rooted in his own experiences as an athlete, having played Gaelic football at an elite level.He also discusses his experience of appearing on 'Room To Improve' and how he resonated with Dermot's approach.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Alan Kerins is a legendary Irish sportsman, humanitarian, social entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He is renowned for his achievements in both hurling and football, having played for Galway at inter-county and at club level with Satlhill and Clarinbridge. Alan has the unique distinction of winning All-Ireland medals in both Gaelic games codes with his county and club teams.Beyond his sports career, Alan is deeply involved in humanitarian work. He founded The Alan Kerins Projects in 2005, raising significant funds for various life-saving projects worldwide. He is also a leadership development specialist and peak performance coach, running retreats and performance development centers for senior executives and top managers.In this week's Magnified, Alan discusses his remarkeable sporting career, what inspired him to pursue his humanitarian work and the impact his young son's illness had as a newborn.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

While we wait to resume the rest of this series of Magnified after the festive break we thought we'd give you the chance to listen back to a collection of some of Matt's favourite interviews so far. HAPPY NEW YEAR! from Magnified HQ.Conor Niland, a former Irish professional tennis player, has written a captivating book titled "The Racket: On Tour with Tennis's Golden Generation – and the other 99%." In this memoir, Niland shares his experiences as part of the 99% of players who travel the globe, hoping to climb the rankings and qualify for Grand Slam tournaments. The book provides insights into the social dynamics on tour, the economics of the game, and the challenges faced by touring pros whose earnings barely cover their expenses1 2. It's a unique look inside the fascinating hidden world of professional tennis and in this week's episode he joins Matt to discuss his fascinating book and career.In the course of a twenty-year friendship, broadcasters, podcasters and best pals, Jenny Kelly and Mairead Ronan have experienced single life, career highs, break-ups, make-ups, marriages, divorce, motherhood, death, diets, hair styles, stress, ageing, lifestyle dilemmas, sadness and lots and lots of good times too. Of a middling age, and after years of talking (and cups of tea), they no longer sweat the small stuff.Their new book What We Know Now! is full of their down-to-earth advice on the serious (and sometimes funny) business of life and they joined their old colleague Matt to discuss it all.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

While we wait to resume the rest of this series of Magnified after the festive break we thought we'd give you the chance to listen back to a collection of some of Matt's favourite interviews so far. Happy Christmas and a wonderful new year from Magnified HQ.Eoghan Murphy, the former Fine Gael Housing Minister, has recently published a memoir titled "Running From Office: Confessions of Ambition and Failure in Politics". The book, provides an unflinching insight into his time in office, detailing the personal and political challenges he faced.Murphy's memoir is described as brutally honest and sometimes harrowing, yet surprisingly funny, offering a deeply personal view of the life of a modern politician12. It covers his tenure as Ireland's Minister for Housing, a role marked by significant criticism and controversyIn this episode Eoghan joins Matt to discuss the book, his turbulent time in politics and the impact it's had on his life since.Anthony Scaramucci is an American financier but he best known for the time he briefly served as the White House Director of Communications from July 21 to July 31, 2017 before being dismissed by President Donald Trump. Scaramucci has also been critical of Trump in the media and voiced support for Joe Biden in the 2020 and 2024 election and is a huge advocate for bitcoin. In this episode of Magnified Matt spoke to Anthony in front of a live audience about his short but eventful time in Trump's White House and why he is such cheerleader for crypto.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

In the course of a twenty-year friendship, broadcasters, podcasters and best pals, Jenny Kelly and Mairead Ronan have experienced single life, career highs, break-ups, make-ups, marriages, divorce, motherhood, death, diets, hair styles, stress, ageing, lifestyle dilemmas, sadness and lots and lots of good times too. Of a middling age, and after years of talking (and cups of tea), they no longer sweat the small stuff. Their new book What We Know Now! is full of their down-to-earth advice on the serious (and sometimes funny) business of life and they joined their old colleague Matt to discuss it all. This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Shane Kenny is a well-known Irish journalist and broadcaster, primarily associated with RTÉ Radio 1. Kenny is notable for launching and being the first editor of RTÉ's flagship radio news program, Morning Ireland. He also served as a news anchor for News at One and This Week, and was RTÉ's US correspondent for ABC network.In addition to his journalism career, Kenny served as the press secretary for the Irish government from 1994 to 1997. .His latest book is titled "Under the Rainbow: Inside John Bruton's Coalition Government" and in this episode he discusses how the book provides an insider account of the Fine Gael, Labour, and Democratic Left coalition government led by John Bruton from late 1994 to June 1997. The book covers significant events such as the Northern Ireland peace process, the Veronica Guerin murder, the 'payments to politicians' tribunal, and the divorce referendum.Shane also opens up about his personal health struggles, particularly with chronic pain and the side effects of benzodiazepinesThis series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Eoghan Murphy, the former Fine Gael Housing Minister, has recently published a memoir titled "Running From Office: Confessions of Ambition and Failure in Politics". The book, provides an unflinching insight into his time in office, detailing the personal and political challenges he faced.Murphy's memoir is described as brutally honest and sometimes harrowing, yet surprisingly funny, offering a deeply personal view of the life of a modern politician12. It covers his tenure as Ireland's Minister for Housing, a role marked by significant criticism and controversyIn this week's episode Eoghan joins Matt to discuss the book, his turbulent time in politics and the impact it's had on his life since. This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Gavin Friday's latest album, "Ecce Homo," has just been realesed. This album marks his first solo release in 13 years and features a mix of thundering electronics and exquisite acoustics. Produced by Dave Ball of Soft Cell and Michael Heffernan, the album explores themes of loss, nostalgia, unity, and defiance.In this week's episode of Magnified, Matt invited Gavin on to discuss the inspiration for the album, the bullying in and outside the classroom that shaped him, the life changing experience of seeing Bowie at the peak of his Ziggy Stardust powers as a teen and the formation of The Virgin Prunes. Bono gets a look in too of course. This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Series 5 of Magnified with Matt Cooper is back and for the first episode Matt is joined by two of the greatest hurlers to ever do it, Joe Canning and Richie Hogan both of whom have two excellent autobiographies out at the moment.In a chat fittingly recorded in front of a live audience in Croke Park, the two greats discuss their remarkable careers, just some of their many historic moments and who THEY think rank amongst the best hurlers of all time.This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper , a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland.For the fifth and special bonus episode of this AI Magnified series, we're going live from A.I.B on Molesworth St to hear from an expert panel and their perspectives on leveraging AI to drive innovation, improve efficiency, and enhance decision making within SMEs.On the panel:Stuart Fitzgerald is Chief Executive of Fitzgerald Power, which is a firm focused on accountancy services with a commitment to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic informed decisions. And as an established leader, he can provide insights into how AI is impacting traditional industries, such as accounting and finance, and share practical steps for other businesses to begin integrating AI.Tariq Zaki is CTO of Shopbox AI, which is an AI driven e commerce solution focused on customer experience and personalization. He has a deep understanding of the retail sector and he's going to offer us insights into how AI is revolutionizing retail. Customer engagement and sales processes. Jane Tolan is head of AI at AIB, responsible for designing and implementation of an AI strategy within a major financial institution. She's going to bring us her perspective on how AI can support transformation in large scale regulated industries. Igor Kochajkiewicz is the head of product design at Nori, and he designed a hospitality OS that helps its users make better business decisions every day. He was previously lead product designer at Glowfox, a B2B SaaS serving the fitness industry worldwide, and head of design at Kuhaba, an award winning digital agency in Dublin and Berlin.And finally, Michael Corcoran is co founder of Frankly, a social media agency. He has extensive experience in digital and social media, places like Paddy Power and Reiner, and he's going to share his insights on how AI is transforming customer interactions and marketing.This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper , a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland.Joining Matt this week are:Kieran McCorry is the National Technology Officer for Microsoft Ireland. With over 29 years of experience in the technology industry, he plays a key role in representing Microsoft to various audiences in Ireland, focusing on technology leadership, AI, trust, technology vision, strategic alignment, and policy.Feargal O'Rourke retired from professional services firm PwC in October 2023 after 37 years there, the last 8 of which he was Managing Partner. He has worked in the Foreign Direct Investment area for almost all of his professional career, focussing mainly, but not exclusively, on companies from the West Coast of the US setting up in Ireland and Europe. He was appointed as chairperson of the I.D.A earlier this year.In the spiode we hear from Kieran about Microsoft's approach and investment in AI here in ireland, the role of proper data governance and working with Chat GPT. Feargal offers insights into the investment opportunities for Irish companies with A.I, how politicians are using it and whether Ireland is being too complacent in keeping up with developments. This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper, a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland. From business, education, the legal system and health, AI is set to revolutionise so many aspects of our lives and in the series Matt will be speaking to some of the leading experts to get their unique insight and analysis.This week's guests are: Elaine Coughlan, Elaine is a co-Founder and General Partner of Atlantic Bridge Capital a Global Growth Equity Technology Fund with over $450 million of assets under management, and over $300m of co-investment from Limited Partners. Elaine has over 20 year's operational experience as CFO/COO in scaling technology companies with extensive operational and M&A experience.Sean Mitchell is the Chairman and Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Ubotica Technologies. He has over 25 years of experience in senior executive management, marketing, and technical roles, particularly in designing imaging, graphics, and DSP processors, as well as AI and computer vision technologiesPatrick McNally is the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Equal1, a company focused on democratizing quantum computing. Equal1 is known for its innovative approach to quantum computing, particularly through their UnityQ chip, which integrates quantum and classical computing components on a single silicon chip. This technology aims to make quantum computing more accessible and scalable, leveraging existing semiconductor technology to achieve significant advancements.Here they discuss how ireland can compete in the AI market, what areas need the most strategic investment and the role can Quantum Computing can play. This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper, a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland. From business, education, the legal system and health, AI is set to revolutionise so many aspects of our lives and in the series Matt will be speaking to some of the leading experts to get their unique insight and analysis.In this week's episode Matt is joined by Bronagh Riordan, a notable figure in the field of data and analytics. She previously served as the Head of Data and Analytics at Primark and has been appointed as the chair of CeADAR, Ireland's Centre for Applied AI. This appointment makes her the first female chair of any technology centre in Ireland.Lawrence Vesey is a prominent figure in the consulting industry, currently serving as a Partner at Sia Partners in the UK and Ireland. He has over 25 years of experience in business transformation practice and has significant experience delivering major technology and transformation programs across various industries such as Financial Services, Healthcare, Agribusiness, Transport, and Utilities. Lawrence was one of the founders of Pathfinder, which became a leading independent consulting firm in Ireland before merging with Sia Partners in 2020.Here they discuss the 'demystification' of AI, issues around data protection and security and what is the best approach for businesses to navigate their journey into AI.This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper, a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland. From business, education, the legal system and health, AI is set to revolutionise so many aspects of our lives and in the series Matt will be speaking to some of the leading experts to get their unique insight and analysis.Our first two guests on the Magnify Plus series definitely suit the criteria. Patricia Scanlon is the country's AI ambassador, the objective of which is to develop, build and facilitate strong public trust in AI as a force for societal good. The role of the AI Ambassador includes leading a national conversation on the role of AI in our lives, emphasising Ireland's commitment to an ethical approach to the use of the technology and in particular its adoption by enterprise.Also with us, John Clancy from Galvia, a Galway company that has an innovative AI programme to provide businesses of any size with easy-to-use AI tools. He also has fascinating opinions as to where we're going in Ireland with AI in businesses.This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Daniel McConnell is one of Ireland's most respected and forward thinking journalists. Prior to being appointed editor of the Business Post, he was political editor of the Irish Examiner since 2015, and is the recipient of Newsbrands Ireland national journalist of the year and political journalist of the year.He previously worked as group political correspondent and chief reporter at Independent News and Media, now Mediahuis Ireland, between 2006 and 2015, as well as at the Irish Times and the Sunday Times.His 2016 book Hell At the Gates, published by Mercier Press, covered the downfall of the Brian Cowen government and was a national best seller.In this week's episode Matt joines his boss to discuss the state of play of journalism in ireland, the role of RTE and how newspapers can futureproof themselves in an ever changing market. We also hear how he could have been the next Thom Yorke. Enjoy!

In an investigation conducted by RTÉ, in association with the Irish Mail on Sunday, reporter Anne Sheridan examines the Catholic Church's handling of allegations against the former Bishop of Galway, Eamonn Casey, who died in 2017. Bishop Casey's Buried Secrets  includes an interview with one of Bishop Casey's accusers, his niece, Patricia Donovan. Speaking for the first time on camera, she claims that he first raped her at the age of five and that the sexual abuse continued for years.In this week's episode of Magnified, Anne Sheridan joins Matt to discuss these shocking revelations, how they were covered up and enabled and above all the courage of the victims in coming forward.

Kenny Jacobs is a hugely successful businessman with a rich and varied career that has brought him from stacking shelves in Dunnes as a teen to heading up the DAA. He graduated from University College Cork in 1997 with a degree in commerce. Having worked with Tesco both here and in England, Jacobs was announced as the CEO of the DAA (Dublin Airport Authority) in November 2022 and began his role in January 2023. Prior to this, he served as the Chief Marketing Officer at Ryanair. His extensive experience includes marketing, commercial, and operational roles in large consumer-serving businesses.Kenny joins Matt to discuss his incredible career, working with Michael O'Leary, why he works airport security security at and his future plans for Dublin and Cork airports.

Avril Copeland is a remarkable individual who has led an adventurous and multifaceted life.Hailing from Dublin, Ireland (her father is none other than legendary tailor Louis Copeland), Avril played international hockey for Ireland and worked in the country music business in Nashville and developed a passion for adventure racing, where she raced seriously for five years.With a background in physiotherapy Avril is the CEO and co-founder of Innerstrength Health, an eHealth company. The company develops digital tools that facilitate collaboration between health professionals and patients for preventing and treating chronic conditions.In this wide-ranging conversation with Matt you get to hear about all the dimensions of her incredible professional and sporting life as well as her journey with IVF and dealing with her sons profound deafness diagnosis. Enjoy!

Currently proving herself to be one of the best pundits in the game at Euro 24, in this edition Matt revisits a conversation he had with one of the most influential Women in World Sport. Lisa Fallon has been a footballer, an analyst, coach, manager and now sits on the FIFA Technical Group and has built a reputation as one of the foremost minds in the game.

Conor Niland, a former Irish professional tennis player, has written a captivating book titled "The Racket: On Tour with Tennis's Golden Generation – and the other 99%." In this memoir, Niland shares his experiences as part of the 99% of players who travel the globe, hoping to climb the rankings and qualify for Grand Slam tournaments. The book provides insights into the social dynamics on tour, the economics of the game, and the challenges faced by touring pros whose earnings barely cover their expenses1 2. It's a unique look inside the fascinating hidden world of professional tennis and in this week's episode he joins Matt to discuss his fascinating book and career.

Rena Maycock is a remarkable entrepreneur who wears multiple hats. She founded Cilter Technologies, a startup that develops child protection software for smartphones. Their software detects and blocks cyberbullying, grooming, and self-harm content in user-generated messages and browsers1. Rena is also the CEO of Cilter, leading the charge to make internet use safer for children.Additionally, Rena co-founded Intro, a matchmaking agency, with her husband Feargal Harrington in 2011. Furthermore, Rena is an advocate for women in tech, emphasizing funding equality and mentoring aspiring female founders Her journey from cold call sales to deep tech CEO is is a fasciating so enjoy her telling it to Matt on this week's episode.

Fresh from being elected Mayor of Limerick, this week we revisit Matt's previous conversation with John Moran. Once dubbed Ireland's Mr Austerity, Limerick's first directly-elected mayor has had a fascinating career, in law, in business, as a senior official in the department of finance during an economic crisis, Chairman of the Land development agency and now he's overcoming cancer. He discusses all of these topics and the need for state intervention in land and housing development in this edition of Magnified.

Anthony Scaramucci is an American financier but he best known for the time he briefly served as the White House Director of Communications from July 21 to July 31, 2017 before being dismissed by President Donald Trump. Scaramucci has also been critical of Trump in the media and voiced support for Joe Biden in the 2020 and 2024 election and is a huge advocate for bitcoin. In this episode of Magnified Matt spoke to Anthony in front of a live audience about his short but eventful time in Trump's White House and whay he is such cheerleader for crypto.

The late Tony O'Reilly was many things to many people. A brilliant rugby player capped by The Lions, a business giant on both sides of the Atlantic, a philathropist, art collector, media mogul and above all one of the most influential figues in recent Irish history. Matt Cooper literally wrote the book on the man so in a special edition of Magnified he has swapped seats and invited Anton Savage to interview him about Tony O'Reilly's quite incredible life.

Conall Laverty is the founder and CEO of Wia, a startup that provides the backend for developers and companies to build Internet of Things (IoT) devices and among his many incredible achievements Conall was recognized on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Europe in the technology category. In this week's episode of Magnified Conall tells Matt of getting started in the tech world at the age of 8, bootlegging sim cards and how he turned his mind to making ventilators more accessible during covid.

Peter Murtagh is an award-winning Irish-born journalist and author. He spent almost 40 years working in newspapers, including The Irish Times, the Sunday Tribune, the Sunday Times, The Guardian and is the co-author of The Boss, the ground-breaking book on Charles Haughey.In addition to his journalistic career, Peter Murtagh has embarked on travel adventures. After retiring in 2019, he decided to explore the world on his trusty motorbike and in this week's episode Peter shares his incredible experiences and stories along the way.

John Gibbons is an Irish environmental campaigner and the founder of the climatechange.ie website. He also co-founded the healthcare publishing and communications specialists MedMedia Group and is known to many radio listeners for his 150 appearances on Last Word On The Environment. John joins Matt on this week's episode to discuss his own farming background, how is dedicated advocacy for climate issues developed as well as the impact his difficult relationship with his father has shaped him.

Ciaran Mulligan, managing director CMUL Investments, and founder and former managing director of Blue Insurance is one of Ireland's most innovative and respected entrepreneurs with a life story to match. From his earliest beginnings in the legendary Lillie's Bordello to the sale of the hugely successful insurance business to blogging his extensive travels as ‘The Fabulous Traveller', it's fair to say Ciaran has taken life head-on. In this week's Magnified he discusses his evolution as a businessman and speaks with incredible courage to Matt about his tragic experience with surrogacy.

In this edition Matt is joined by IBEC Chief Executive Officer Danny McCoy. Now in the role since 2009, he talks about his background as an economist, growing up in Tuam in the seventies and why our critical infrastructure needs to be looked at differently.

In a slightly different edition of Magnified, Matt is joined by The Irish Times Ireland and Britain Editor Mark Hennessy to discuss the 'Common Ground' project currently being undertaken by the newspaper.

In this edition Matt is joined by hospitality entrepreneur Jay Bourke about his plans for Quinns in Drumcondra, his career in the industry and his experience in dealing with insolvency.

In this edition Matt is joined by the founder of new social media consultancy - Frankly, Michael Corcoran. Having most recently made his name as head of social at Ryanair and prior to that Betfair, he discusses the future for brands and social media and his own path in the industry, while navigating around the challenge of dyslexia.

Feargal O'Rourke is the recently appointed Chair of the IDA, having retired as Managing Partner of PWC in Ireland. He is considered to be the architect of many of the corporate tax policies which have seen the country's corporate tax take increase in recent years. In this edition he discusses his career, his family history in politics, and his ambitions for the IDA.

In this edition Matt is joined by one of the most influential Women in World Sport. Lisa Fallon has been a footballer, an analyst, coach, manager and now sits on the FIFA Technical Group and has built a reputation as one of the foremost minds in the game.

Matt is joined for this edition by Aimee Connolly, who at 23 founded the Sculpted by Aimee beauty brand and has built it up into a thriving business since. Having moved into the UK, she now has her sights set on America.

In this edition Matt speaks with former Rugby International and Coach Bernard Jackman about his post rugby career, his business studies and his new role as High Performance Director of Horse Sport Ireland and ambitions for Olympic Gold.

In this edition Matt is joined by Cathal Friel an innovative entrepreneur now operating in the healthcare sector. With a background in finance, he has successfully led numerous companies through strategic growth and development. He had an unlikely start, leaving school after his Inter cert, initially to run the family business. He talks candidly about his past, why IPO's are so important and his thoughts on the future of housing.

In this edition Matt is joined by Ireland's AI Ambassador, Patricia Scanlon. Patricia is a technologist and businesswoman who built up her company Soapbox Labs to become a world leader in speech based artificial intelligence which helps children learn to read. Here she speaks about the potential for AI, the need for regulation and where Ireland sits in its development.

In this edition Matt is Joined by Jacqueline O'Donovan, who at just 19 became Managing Director of O'Donovan Waste Disposal and built the business up from revenues of £175,000 to £20 million last year. Still the company CEO, she last year sold the business to a major Nordic buyer, Sortera. She talks about the challenges of her business career, her home from home in West Cork and mentoring other women in business.

Vicki O'Toole found herself taking over Ireland's oldest packaging company in the most difficult circumstances. Under her leadership it thrived and ultimately she sold the business. In this edition of Magnified she talks about how she started in the business, juggled it with family life and how she dealt with the tragic loss of her husband.

On this the first episode of a new series Matt magnifies the career of the man largely responsible for bringing major College American Football games to Ireland, while also running one of the country's best known restaurants.

In this episode Matt Cooper is joined at his kitchen table by former IDA Ireland C.E.O and now Grant Thornton Partner Martin Shanahan to discuss his career, foreign direct investment in Ireland and where investment in Ireland will come from in the future.

On this edition Matt Cooper is joined by renowned performance and leadership coach Enda McNulty to discuss his career as a sportsman and a business coach and the key takeaways from his new book on leadership.

On this edition, Matt is joined by EMEA Head of Sales for Bear Robotics Malachy Ryan. In a fascinating discussion they traverse his introduction to Robotics and process engineering, through a stint in construction to the future of Robots and Cobots in our daily lives.

On this edition Matt Cooper is joined by cancer survivor, trade unionist and social inclusion advocate for a lengthy discussion on modern Ireland and the role of immigrants in society.

In the first of a new series of Magnified, Matt Cooper is joined by Airtricity and Mainstream renewables founder, and now Supernode Chairman Eddie O'Connor as they discuss the future of clean energy and Ireland's place in it.