Podcasts about presidential innovation fellow

With the rising desire for authentic cultural experiences, how is technology evolving to enrich both travel and artisan livelihoods? Rana Saad is an entrepreneur and innovator connecting cultures through technology. Rana Saad is the founder of Tuzmo – a startup that helps travelers and tourists find authentic, local artisans. He is a former Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House. Prior to that, in his role as the North America Digital Innovation Lead at Accenture, he helped some of the largest corporations and organizations innovate like startups and at startup speed. Previously he founded a global technology services company spanning four countries, that exited with a listing on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange. He advises many early stage companies and has built digital innovation labs and programs at multiple organizations.

Two years ago, no one could imagine the impact generative AI would have on our world, and most of us can't even begin to imagine the impact the next generation of AI will have on our world two years from now. The only thing that is certain is uncertainty.But that uncertainty brings with it great opportunities and choices. We can choose to sit back and let the future of AI play out in front of us or engage with this new technology and shape the future of AI and the world as we know it.In this episode, Dr Eric Daimler joins Dr Genevieve Hayes to discuss his extraordinary work in shaping the future of AI and what that future might look like.Guest BioDr. Eric Daimler is the Chair, CEO and Co-Founder of Conexus AI and has previously co-founded five other companies in the technology space. He served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics. He is also the author of the upcoming book The Future is Formal: The Roadmap for Using Technology to Solve Society's Biggest Problems.Highlights(00:00) Meet Dr. Eric Daimler(01:46) Eric's role in the Obama Administration(06:32) Challenges in government data integration(10:31) The importance of technical expertise in policy(16:06) Founding Connexus AI(18:09) Understanding category theory(20:51) Applications of Conexus AI(27:16) The future of AI: safe and symbolic(38:35) Insights from Eric's upcoming book(47:49) Advice for data scientists and final thoughtsLinksConnect with Eric on LinkedInConexus AI websiteConnect with Genevieve on LinkedInBe among the first to hear about the release of each new podcast episode by signing up HERE

Genevieve Hayes Consulting Episode 43: Shaping the Future of AI Two years ago, no one could imagine the impact generative AI would have on our world, and most of us can't even begin to imagine the impact the next generation of AI will have on our world two years from now. The only thing that is certain is uncertainty.But that uncertainty brings with it great opportunities and choices. We can choose to sit back and let the future of AI play out in front of us or engage with this new technology and shape the future of AI and the world as we know it.In this episode, Dr Eric Daimler joins Dr Genevieve Hayes to discuss his extraordinary work in shaping the future of AI and what that future might look like. Guest Bio Dr. Eric Daimler is the Chair, CEO and Co-Founder of Conexus AI and has previously co-founded five other companies in the technology space. He served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics. He is also the author of the upcoming book The Future is Formal: The Roadmap for Using Technology to Solve Society's Biggest Problems. Highlights (00:00) Meet Dr. Eric Daimler(01:46) Eric’s role in the Obama Administration(06:32) Challenges in government data integration(10:31) The importance of technical expertise in policy(16:06) Founding Connexus AI(18:09) Understanding category theory(20:51) Applications of Conexus AI(27:16) The future of AI: safe and symbolic(38:35) Insights from Eric’s upcoming book(47:49) Advice for data scientists and final thoughts Links Connect with Eric on LinkedInConexus AI website Connect with Genevieve on LinkedInBe among the first to hear about the release of each new podcast episode by signing up HERE The post Episode 43: Shaping the Future of AI first appeared on Genevieve Hayes Consulting and is written by Dr Genevieve Hayes.

In this episode, we connect with Dr. Sokwoo Rhee, EVP of Innovation at LG Electronics and Head of the LG Nova Innovation Center in Silicon Valley.  We talk about Dr. Rhee's past as an entrepreneur and Presidential Innovation Fellow, and also the goals of LG Nova — collaborating with startups and new partners, and making investments. Two areas of interest: healthcare and cleantech. Dr. Rhee also serves up advice about getting (and keeping) the backing of senior leaders.

Dr. Eric Daimler is a leading authority in robotics and artificial intelligence with over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker. He served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics under the Obama Administration, driving U.S. leadership in AI research and commercialization. Eric has founded and led several pioneering tech companies and currently serves on the boards of WelWaze Medical and Petuum. His latest venture, Conexus, addresses the critical issue of data deluge in information technology. With a career spanning business, academia, and policy, Eric offers a unique perspective on shaping the future of AI for societal benefit.  00:00 Snippet01:09 Our Guest05:40 AI is much more than Machine Learning10:57 Lisp and data30:54 Conexus 32:53 Type Theory and Quantum compiling34:44 The government's role in AI39:14 Connecting with Eric ------------------------------------------------------------------ To learn more about Eric visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericdaimler/ To learn more about Dark Rhiino Security visit https://www.darkrhiinosecurity.com ------------------------------------------------------------------ SOCIAL MEDIA: Stay connected with us on our social media pages where we'll give you snippets, alerts for new podcasts, and even behind the scenes of our studio! Instagram: @securityconfidential and @Darkrhiinosecurity Facebook: @Dark-Rhiino-Security-Inc Twitter: @darkrhiinosec LinkedIn: @dark-rhiino-security Youtube: @DarkRhiinoSecurity ​

Victoria Guido hosts Robbie Holmes, the founder and CEO of Holmes Consulting Group. The conversation kicks off with Robbie recounting his initial foray into the tech world at a small web hosting company named A1 Terabit.net, chosen for its alphabetical advantage in the white pages. This job was a stepping stone to a more significant role at Unisys, working for the state of New York's Department of Social Services, where Robbie inadvertently ventured into civic tech and public interest technology. Robbie shares his career progression from supporting welfare systems in New York to becoming a technological liaison between the city and state, leading to a deeper involvement in open-source solutions. His journey through tech spaces includes developing websites, diving into the Drupal community, and eventually establishing his consulting business. Robbie emphasizes the serendipitous nature of his career path, influenced significantly by community involvement and networking rather than a planned trajectory. Additionally, Robbie gives insights on the impact of technology in public services and his stint with the U.S. Digital Service (USDS), where he contributed to significant projects like vets.gov. Robbie promotes the value of community engagement in shaping one's career, stressing how connections and being in the right place at the right time can lead to unexpected opportunities and career pivots. Follow Robbie Holmes on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbiethegeek/), X (https://twitter.com/RobbieTheGeek), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/robbiethegeek), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/robbiethegeek), or GitHub (https://github.com/robbiethegeek). Check out his website at robbiethegeek (https://about.me/robbiethegeek). Follow thoughtbot on X (https://twitter.com/thoughtbot) or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/150727/). Transcript: VICTORIA: This is the Giant Robots Smashing Into Other Giant Robots podcast, where we explore the design, development, and business of great products. I'm your host, Victoria Guido. And with me today is Robbie Holmes, Founder and CEO of Holmes Consulting Group. Robbie, thank you for joining me. ROBBIE: I'm so happy to be here. It's great to talk to you, Victoria. VICTORIA: Yes. I have known you for a long time now, but I don't know everything about you. So, I thought I would start with the question: What was your first job that you ever had? ROBBIE: My first technical job, I ended up working for an internet web hosting company called A1 Terabit.net. And note the A1 because it came first in the white pages. It was a really small web hosting company run by a man named [SP] Maxim Avrutsky. I worked there for about six months before I submitted my resume to an online job forum. That's how old I am. And it ended up in the hands of Unisys, where I eventually worked for the state of New York. VICTORIA: Wow [laughs]. So, what a journey that you've been on to get from starting there, and what a marketing ploy back in the day with the white pages. So, tell me a little bit more about how you went from that first job to where you are today with having your own business in consulting. ROBBIE: Yeah, I wasn't even aware that I was jumping into the sort of civic tech space and public interest technology because the job I ended up with was working for New York State in the Department of Social Services. And welfare is federally funded and distributed to states and then states to localities. And New York City and New York State have a weird parasymbiotic relationship because over 50% of the welfare in New York State goes to the five boroughs in New York City. So, so much of my job was supporting the welfare system within the city, which was run by the human resources administration. So, that just led to this cascade of me, like, getting invested in supporting that, and then eventually jumping over to the other side where I worked for the City of New York. And at that point, I ended up becoming sort of a technology project manager and almost a tech liaison between the city and state. And I was out in the welfare centers, helping get the job centers up to a new application called the Paperless Office System, which was a client-server app that was a wrapper around welfare. All of that ended up leading to me finally making it to the network operation center for the City of New York, where I started replacing expensive solutions like HP OpenView with open-source solutions like Nagios and another open-source solution that provided an interface. And it really opened my eyes to the idea of open source. And I had really paid attention to a lot of open-source operating systems. So, I was kind of just a general tech nerd. And eventually, I started building websites, and that led me to the Drupal community in New York City, which was sort of this cascade that led me to communities. And I think that's sort of a through line for my entire career is I don't really think I ever had a plan. I think my entire career has been this sort of a lucky happenstance of being prepared when an opportunity arose and sometimes being in the right place because of my connections and community. VICTORIA: That's interesting about being involved with the people around you and seeing what problems are out there to solve and letting that lead you to where your interests lie. And then, following that, naturally led you to, like, this really long career and these really interesting, big projects and problems that you get to solve. ROBBIE: Yeah. And I think one interesting aspect is like, I feel I spent a lot of time worried about what I was going to do and where I was going to do it. I don't have a bachelor's degree. I don't have an advanced degree. I have a high school diploma and a couple of years in college. Well, 137 credits, not the right 125 or 124 to have a bachelor's degree. I have enough credits for a couple of minors though, definitely Greek art history, I think mathematics, maybe one more. I just never got it together and actually got my degree. But that was so interesting because it was limiting to what jobs I could find. So, I was in the tech space as an IT person and specifically doing networking. So, I was running the network operation center. I helped, like, create a whole process for how we track tickets, and how we created tickets, and how things were moved along. And, in the process, I started building websites for family and friends. And I built a website for our network operation center, so that way we could have photos to go with our diagrams of the network. So that way, when we were troubleshooting remotely, we could actually pull up images and say, "The cable that's in port six goes off to the router. I think that port is dead. Can we move it to the port two to its right, and I'll activate it?" And that made a really interesting solution for something we weren't even aware we had, which was lack of visibility. So many of the people in the fields were newer or were trying to figure it out. And some of us had really deep knowledge of what was going on in those network rooms and hubs. It led me to this solution of like, well, why don't we just start documenting it and making it easier for us to help when they're in the field? That led me to, like, the Drupal community because I started building sites in the Drupal CMS. And I went to, like, my first Drupal meetup in 2007, and there was, like, five of us around the table. That led to eventually me working for Sony Music and all these other things. But the year before I found my way to the Drupal community, I probably sent out, like, 400 resumes for jobs in the tech space, didn't really get any callbacks. And then, I met the community, and I started attending events, and then eventually, I started organizing events. And then, Sony I interviewed and talked to them a couple of times. And then, a friend of mine became the boss. And she contacted me and was like, "Hey, are you in the market?" And I was like, "I don't know. Why? What's up?" And she's like, "I became Doug." And I was like, "What?" And she was like, "I'm now replacing Doug at Sony. I'm running the team." And I was like, "Yeah, I'm happy to talk." And that was the big transition in my career from IT to sort of development and to delivery, right? Like, when it comes right down to it, is I became the manager of interactive media at Sony Music, which was really a job I landed because I was connected to the community, and running events, and getting to know everyone. VICTORIA: Yeah. And I think it's really cool that you had this exposure early on to what you called civic tech, which we'll get into a little bit, and then you went from the community into a commercial technology space and really getting into engineering with Drupal. ROBBIE: Yeah, it was an interesting transition because what they needed at Sony was sort of somebody who could ride the line between systems engineer, database administrator, and Drupal engineer, and also probably pre-DevOps DevOps person. So, I was responsible for all deployments and all tickets that came in. I was sort of both the technical arm of the help desk. When I joined, there was 24 websites on the Drupal platform, and when I left, there was over 200. And we upgraded it from Drupal 5 to Drupal 6 to Drupal 7 while I was there. So, I was heavily involved in all of those updates, and all those upgrades, and all of the deployments of all the new themes, and all the changes to all these sites. So, what was great was they, I believe, if I understand it correctly, they actually created a role for me out of, like, two or three jobs because they needed a me, and they didn't have a role that existed. So, all of a sudden, they made a manager of interactive media role. And I was able to work there for two years, sort of being what I jokingly say, like, a digital janitor. I used to say that I had, like, an eight-bit key ring in a push broom. And I was always mad at your kids for trying to break my stuff. VICTORIA: [laughs] That's so good. A digital service janitor [laughs]? The connection for me between that and where I met you in the U.S. digital service space [laughs] I feel like there's a lot of parallels between that and where your career evolved later on in life. ROBBIE: Yeah. What's amazing is I did all this early work in my career in civic tech and didn't realize it was civic tech at the time. I just realized what I was doing was providing this huge impact and was value. You know, I spent a couple of years in the welfare centers, and I used to say all the time that the two hardest jobs in the welfare center are the person applying for welfare and the person deciding whether or not that person gets welfare. So, being a technologist and trying to help make that as simple as possible or easier and smooth the edges off of that process was really important. And it really taught me how important technology is to delivering service. And I really never thought about it before. And then, when I was working for Phase2 technologies, I was a director of Digital Services. And I read in a blog post, I believe that was written by Mikey Dickerson, who was the original administrator for USDS, and he talked about HealthCare.gov. And he walked in the door, and he said, "How do you know HealthCare.gov is down?" And I think there was some allusion to the fact that we were like, we turn on the television and if they're yelling at us, we know it's down. And Mikey was like, "We know how to monitor things." So, like, if you don't know Mikey Dickerson, he's the person who sort of created the web application hierarchy of needs in Google. He was an SRE. And his pyramid, like Maslow's hierarchy of needs, was all over Google when I was there. I was so impressed with the idea that, like, we aren't talking about how do we solve this problem? We're talking about knowing when there's a problem. And then, if we know there's a problem, we can put some messaging around that. We can say, like, "We're aware," right? Like if the president calls the secretary, the secretary can say, "We know it's down. We're working on it," which is building up political capital. It's a really amazing process that I kept reading this blog post, and I was like, God, that's how I would approach it. And then, I was like, wow, I wonder if I could use my skills to help America, and very shortly submitted an application and was like, well, we'll see what happens. And about six months later, I walked in the door at the VA and was the eighth employee of the Digital Service team at the VA. That was a franchise team of the USDS model. VICTORIA: And can you say a little bit more about what is the U.S. Digital Service and expand upon your early experience there? ROBBIE: Yeah. So, the United States Digital Service was created after HealthCare.gov had its issues. Todd Park had convinced President Obama to reach out to get support from the private industry. And the few of the people who were there, Todd convinced to stick around and start creating a team that could support if there was this kind of issue in the future. I believe the team that was there on the ground was Mikey Dickerson, Erie Meyer, Haley Van Dyck, and Todd. And there was a few other people who came back or were very close at the beginning, including the current administrator of USDS. She has been around a long time and really helped with HealthCare.gov. It's amazing that Mina is back in government. We're very lucky to have her. But what came out of that was what if we were able to stand up a team that was here in case agencies needed support or could vet solutions before these types of problems could exist? So, USDS was what they called the startup inside the White House that was created during the 2014 administration of President Obama. The team started that year, and I joined in May of 2016. So, I would be, like, sort of the beginning of the second team of the VA U.S. Digital Service team. So, USDS supported this idea of tours of duty, where you're a schedule A employee, which meant you were a full-time government employee, but you were term-limited. You could do up to two years of duty and work, and then you could theoretically stick around and do two more years. That was how these roles were envisioned. I think there's lots of reasons why that was the case. But what's nice is it meant that you would come in with fresh eyes and would never become part of the entrenched IT ecosystem. There are people that transition from USDS into government, and I think that's a huge value prop nowadays. It's something that I don't know they were thinking about when the original United States Digital Service was stood up, but it was hugely impactful. Like, I was part of the team at the VA that helped digitize the first form on vets.gov and all the work that was done. When the VA team started, there was a team that was helping with veteran benefits, and they worked on the appeals process for veteran benefits. And I joined. And there was a team that was...eventually, it became dubbed the veteran-facing tools team. And we worked on vets.gov, which was a new front door to expose and let veterans interact with the VA digitally. And over time, all the work that went into the tools and the solutions that were built there, everything was user-researched. And all of that work eventually got brought into VA.gov in what they called a brand merger. So, we took, like, the sixth most trafficked front door of the VA and took all the modern solutioning that that was and brought it into VA.gov, the main front door. So, all of a sudden, there was an identity, a login provided on VA.gov for the first time. So big, impactful work that many people were a part of and is still ongoing today. Surprisingly, so much of this work has now fallen under OCTO, which is the Office of the CTO in the VA. And the CTO is Charles Worthington, who was a USDSer who's the epitome of a person who goes where the work is. Charles was a Presidential Innovation Fellow who helped out in the times of HealthCare.gov and, joined USDS and did anything and everything that was necessary. He interviewed engineers. He was a product person. Charles is one of the most unique technologists and civic tech people I've ever met in my life. But Charles, at the end of the Obama administration and in this transition, realized that the VA was in need of someone to fill the CTO role. So, he came over to become the interim CTO because one of the values of USDS is to go where the work is. And he realized, with the transition, that Marina Nitze, who was the CTO who was transitioning out, there was going to be a need for continuity. So, he came in to provide that continuity and eventually became the full-time CTO and has been there ever since. So, he has helped shape the vision of what the VA is working towards digitally and is now...he was just named the Chief AI Officer for the agency. Charles is a great person. He has successfully, you know, shepherded the work that was being done early by some of us into what is now becoming a sort of enterprise-wide solution, and it's really impressive. VICTORIA: I appreciate you sharing that. And, you know, I think there's a perception about working for public service or for government, state or federal agencies, that they are bureaucratic, difficult to work with, very slow. And I think that the USDS was a great example of trying to really create a massive change. And there's been this ripple effect of how the government acquires products and services to support public needs, right? ROBBIE: Yeah, I would say there's a couple of arms of the government that were sort of modernization approaches, so you have the Presidential Innovation Fellows, which are the equivalent of, like, entrepreneurs and residents in government. And they run out of...I think they're out of the TTS, the Technology Transformation Service over at GSA, which is the General Services Administration. But the PIFs are this really interesting group of people that get a chance to go in and try to dig in and use their entrepreneurial mindset and approach to try to solve problems in government. And a lot of PIFS work in offices. Like, Charles' early team when he first became the CTO included a lot of Presidential Innovation Fellows. It was basically like, "Hey, the VA could use some support," and these people were available and were able to be convinced to come and do this work. And then, you have the Presidential Management Fellows, which I think is a little bit more on the administration side. And then, we have 18F and USDS. The United States Digital Service is a funded agency with an OMB. And we were created as a way to provide the government with support either by detailing people over or dropping in when there was a problem. And then, 18F is an organization that is named because the offices of GSA and TTS (Technology Transformation Service), where it's housed, are on the corner of 18th Street and F in DC. And 18F is sort of like having a technology or a digital agency for hire within the government. So, they are full-time employees of the government, sort of like USDS, except government agencies can procure the support of that 18F team, just like they would procure the support of your company. And it was a really interesting play. They are fully cost-recoupable subcomponent of TTS, which means they have to basically make back all the money that they spend, whereas USDS is different. It's congressionally funded for what it does. But they're all similar sibling organizations that are all trying to change how government works or to bring a more modern idea or parlance into the government. I used to say to people all the time that at USDS, you know, we would set a broken bone say, and then we would come back around and say, like, "Hey, does your arm hurt anymore?" The idea being like, no. Be like, "Cool, cool. Maybe you should go to the gym, and you should eat better." And that would be, like, procurement change. That would be, like, changing for the long term. So, all the work I was doing was building political capital so we could do better work in changing how procurement was done and then changing how the government delivered these things. So, what was awesome was, like, we used to have these fights at USDS about whether or not we were a culture change or we were firefighters. And I think the reality is once we're involved, culture changes happen. The bigger question is, are we going to be there for the long haul, or are we only there for a shorter period of time? And I think there are reasons why USDS teams had both plays. And I think it really is just two different plays for the same outcome. VICTORIA: Yeah, that makes sense. And to pivot a little bit, I think, you know, our audience, we have clients and listeners who are founders of products that are aimed at making these, like, public service needs, or to give some examples, like, maybe they're trying to track Congressional voting patterns or contact information for different state representatives, and they're trying to navigate this space [laughs]. So, maybe you can give some advice for founders interested in selling their products to government agencies. What can they do to make it more appealing and less painful for themselves? ROBBIE: I wouldn't consider myself a procurement expert, but at USDS, the procurement team called themselves the [SP] procurementati. And I was a secret member of the procurementati. I often was the engineer they would call to evaluate statements of work or sometimes be on technology evaluation panels. And it was fun to be a part of that. Things that most companies don't realize is government agencies will put out things like request for information or sources sought in the government space. And this is a way for industry to influence how government tries to solve problems. If you are trying to go after government work and you're only responding to an RFP, you're probably behind in your influence that you could have on the type of work. So, you'll see if a procurement seems to be, like, specifically focused on an approach, or a technology, or a framework, it's probably because some companies have come through and said, "I think this would probably solve your problem," and they gave examples. So, that's one way to be more connected to what's going on is to follow those types of requests. Another is to follow the money. My wife is this amazing woman who helped write The Data Act and get it passed through government. And The Data Act is the Data and Transparency Act. And that led to her heading over to treasury and leading up a team that built USAspending.gov. So, there is a website that tracks every dollar, with some exceptions, of the funding that comes out of Congress every year. And what's great is you can track it down to where it's spent, and how it's spent, and things like that. For education purposes, I think that is a really good thing that business and growth people can focus on is try to see and target where competitors or where solutions that you've looked at have gone in the past. It's just a good set of data for you to take a look at. The other piece is if you're creating a solution that is a delivery or a deliverable, like a SaaS solution, in order for something to be utilized in the government, it probably needs to be FedRAMP-approved, which is a process by which security approvals have been given so that government agencies have the green light to utilize your solution. So, there's tons of documentation out there about FedRAMP and the FedRAMP approval process. But that is one of those things that becomes a very big stopping point for product companies that are trying to work in the government. The easiest way to work your way through that is to read up on it a bunch, but also find an agency that was probably willing to sponsor you getting FedRAMP approval. Most companies start working with a government agency, get an exemption for them to utilize your product, and then you get to shape what that FedRAMP process looks like. You start applying for it, and then you have to have some sort of person who's helping shepherd it for you internally in the government and accepting any issues that come along in the process. So, I guess FedRAMP approval is one that's a little complicated but would be worth looking into if you were planning on delivering a product in government. VICTORIA: Right. And does that apply to state governments as well? ROBBIE: So, lots of state-related and city and locality-related governments will actually adopt federal solutions or federal paradigms. So, I think in the state of California, I think FedRAMP as one of the guiding principles for accepting work into the state of California, so it's not consistent. There's not a one-to-one that every state, or every city, or every locality will pull this in. But if you are already approved to be a federal contractor, or a federal business, or a federal product, it's probably going to be easier to make your way into the local spaces also. VICTORIA: Right. And as you said, there's plenty of resources, and tools, and everything to help you go along that journey if that's the group you're going for [laughs]. Mid-Roll Ad: When starting a new project, we understand that you want to make the right choices in technology, features, and investment but that you don't have all year to do extended research. In just a few weeks, thoughtbot's Discovery Sprints deliver a user-centered product journey, a clickable prototype or Proof of Concept, and key market insights from focused user research. We'll help you to identify the primary user flow, decide which framework should be used to bring it to life, and set a firm estimate on future development efforts. Maximize impact and minimize risk with a validated roadmap for your new product. Get started at: tbot.io/sprint. VICTORIA: So, kind of bringing it back to you, like, you're saying you want those partnerships within the government. You want someone advocating for you or for your product or your service. Drawing that back to what you said earlier about community, like, how do you form a community with this group of people who are in the state, or federal government, or civic tech spaces? ROBBIE: Yeah, I think it's an interesting problem because so much of it feels impenetrable from the outside. Most people don't even know where to start. There are organizations out there that are pretty good community connections, an example I would give is ACT-IAC. It is a public-private partnership where people from within the government, experts in their fields, and people in the private industry who are experts in their fields will be together on community boards and engaging in panels. And so, it's a really nice way to start connecting those dots. I have no direct affiliation with ACT-IAC. But if they'd like to give me my own account, that would be great. But it is one of those organizations I've seen be successful for people trying to find their way into a community that is a little harder to find. I think, also, so much of the community engagement happens at conferences and around...so, like, if you're in the healthcare space, this last month, you've had multiple conferences that I think were really great for people to get to know one another, you know, an example is ViVE. It just happened out in LA, which is a little more on the private sector health space, but still, government agencies were there. I know that the Department of Veterans Affairs had people there and were on panels. And then, HIMSS is another conference that takes place, and that just took place down in Miami. And in Miami, HIMSS happened and a whole bunch of other social community events took place. So, I'm close with a thing called the Digital Services Coalition, which is 47 companies that all try to deliver good government based on the Digital Services Playbook that was created by USDS that lives at playbook.cio.gov and the way that they try to accomplish this work. And that organization, while they were in Miami, hosted a happy hour. So, there's a lot of connections that can be made once you start seeing the players and getting to know who's around. So, it's a little bit about trying to find your way to that first event, and I think that will really open up everything for you. Within a week or two, I was at an International Women's Day event at MetroStar, which is a really great company that I've gotten a chance to spend some time with. And then, I was at an event for the Digital Services Coalition talking about open source in government. So, there's a lot of stuff out there for you to be a part of that isn't super cost-prohibitive and also doesn't take a lot once you start to open the door. You know, once you peek around that corner and you find some people, there's a lot more to be done. VICTORIA: Yeah. And you touched on something at the end there that wants me to bring up some of the advantages you can have being a small business, a minority-owned business, or woman-owned business, or veteran-owned business, so thinking about how you can form those connections, especially if you have one of those socio and economic set-asides that you might want to consider if they're looking to work with the government as well. ROBBIE: Yeah. Those socioeconomic set-asides include small businesses, woman-owned small business. I think it's Native and Alaskan 8(a), which is historically underrepresented and service-disabled veteran-owned. So, there are also sub-communities of associations, like there's the Digital WOSB, the digital Women-Owned Small Business alliance that was founded by Jess Morris from Pluribus Digital, and a bunch of other companies in the Digital Services Coalition. I believe she's the president of the Digital WOSB right now. That is a sub-community of women-owned small businesses that are trying to connect and create a community that they can support one another. And that's just one example of the type of connection you can make through those types of socioeconomic set-asides. But once you have those official socioeconomic set-asides, it will allow you to get specific contracts engagements in the government that are not allowed or available for others. So, the government procurement process will have some amount of these specific socioeconomic set-asides that need to be hit. Like, 8% of all procurements need to go to this and 10% of all procurements need to go to this. So, I think the VA is probably one of the most effective at hitting any of the socioeconomic set-asides, specifically related to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. So, if you happen to be a person of color and you found a business and you are female presenting, right? You may have 8(a) woman-owned small business. If you also happen to be a veteran and you're service-disabled, all of those things stack. You don't just get to have one of them. And they can be really effective in helping a business get a leg up and starting out and trying to help even the playing field for those communities. VICTORIA: Yeah. What I really appreciated about my experience working with Pluribus Digital, and you, and people who had had that experience in the U.S. Digital Services, that there is this community and desire to help each other out and that you can have access to people who know how to move your product forward, get you the connections that you need to be competitive, and to go after the work. So, I love encouraging people to consider civic tech options. And maybe even say more about just how impactful some of it can be. And what kind of missions are you solving in these spaces? ROBBIE: Yeah, I often try to remind people, especially those who are heading towards or considering civic tech, there are very few places in this world that you can work on something that can impact millions of people. Sure, I was lucky enough. I have tons of privilege. I worked at a lot of wacky places that have given me the access to do the type of work that I think is impactful, but very little has the kind of impact. Like, when I was interviewed by Marina Nitze as, my last interview when I joined USDS, she sent me an email at the end of it and said like, "Everything was great. I look forward to working with you. And remember, every time you commit code into our GitHub, you'll be helping 8 million veterans." And then, she cc'd Todd Park. And Todd was the CTO of the U.S., and he responded back within a minute. Todd is one of the most busy people. It was amazing to me how fast he responded. But he was like, "Lemme tell you, as somebody who can talk on behalf of our president, our country needs you." And those kinds of things they're hard to comprehend. And then, I joined the Digital Service team at the VA. And one of the first things that I got to support was the 10-10EZ. It's the healthcare application for veterans. And before I got there, it was a hosted PDF that we were trying to replace. And the team had been working for months to try to build a new, modern solution. What it was is it was, like, less than six submissions were happening a day because it only worked in Adobe Acrobat, I think it was 6.5 and below, and Internet Explorer 8.5 and below. And if you think about the people that could submit utilizing that limited set of technologies, it was slowly becoming homeless veterans who were using library computers that had not been upgraded. So, there was a diminishing amount of value that it was providing. And then, on top of it, it was sort of lying to veterans. If the version of the Adobe Acrobat was out of date, or wrong, or too new, it would tell them to upgrade their browser. So, like, it was effectively not providing any value over time. We were able to create a new version of that and that was already well on its way when I joined, but we were able to get it out the door. And it was a React frontend using a Node backend to talk to that SOAP API endpoint. Within the first week, we went from 6 submissions a day to 60 submissions a day. It's a joke, right? We were all 10x developers. We were like, "Look at us. We're killing it." But about three years later, Matt Cutts came to a staff meeting of USDS, and he was the second administrator of the USDS. And he brought the cake that had the actual 10-10EZ form on it, and it said, "500,000." And he had checked with the analytics team, and there were over 500,000 submissions of that form, which means there are 500,000 possible veterans that now may or may not have access to healthcare benefits. Those are big problems. All of that was done by changing out one form. It opened up the world. It opened up to a group of veterans that no one else was able to do. They would have had to go into a veteran's office, and they would have had to fill it out in paper. And some veterans just don't have the ability to do that, or don't have an address, or don't have a...so, there are so many reasons why having a digital form that worked for veterans was so important. But this one form that we digitized and we helped make modern has been submitted so many times and has helped so many veterans and their families. And that's just one example. That's just one form that we helped digitize. But now the team, I mean, I'm back in the VA ecosystem. There's, like, 2,500 people in the general channel in the office of the CTO Slack organization. That's amazing. There's people there that are working all day, every day, trying to solve the same problems that I was trying to solve when I got here. And there's so much work being done to help veterans. But that's just one example, right? Like, at USDS, I know that the digital filing for the free version of your tax form, the IRS e-file Direct, just went live. That was something that USDS had been working on for a very long time behind the scenes. And that's going to impact everybody who submits their taxes. These are the kind of problems that you get to work on or the scope of some of the problems if you work in these types of organizations, and that's really powerful. It's the thing that keeps drawing me back. I'm back supporting the VA again through some contracts in my business. But it's funny, like, I was working for another agency. I was over working at DHS on an asylum project. And a friend of mine kept telling people to tell me, "Man, veterans need you. If only there was another one of you to help us over here, that would be great." And eventually, it led to me being like, well, veterans need me. I'm going to go back to the VA. And that was my second tour at USDS at the Department of Veteran Affairs. And now I'm back there again. So, it's a very impactful place to work. There's tons of value you can provide to veterans. And, to me, it's the kind of work that keeps bringing me back. I didn't realize just how much I was a, like, impact junkie until I joined USDS, and then it really came to a head. I cannot believe how much work I've gotten to be a part of that has affected and supported those who get benefits and services from the federal government. VICTORIA: [inaudible 33:47] impact junkie. That's funny. But yeah, no, thank you for sharing that. That's really interesting. Let me see if you could go back in time to when you first started in this journey; if you could give yourself any advice, what would you say? ROBBIE: Yeah, I think I spent so much time being nervous about not having my degree that I was worried it was going to hinder me forever. And it's pretty amazing the career I've been able to thread together, right? Like, you know, I've hit on a few of them already. But, like, I started with a small web hosting company, and then New York State in the Department of Social Services, then New York City in the Human Resources Administration, Sony Music, Zagat Survey, Google, Johnson & Johnson, IDT telecommunications, Phase2 technologies, where I got to work on an awful lot of problems in lots of awesome places like NBA.com, and Major League Soccer, and Bassmaster. And then, the United States Digital Service where I got to work on things supporting the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Homeland Security over at ADA.gov in DOJ. I helped them out. And I worked over at USDA helping get Farmers.gov off the ground. So, everything on my left leg, tattoo-wise, is something that changed my life from my perspective. And I have a Drupal tattoo on the back of my leg. I have a DrupalCon. So, anytime somebody said "Drupal" anywhere near a USDS person, I would magically appear because they would just be like, "Oh, Robbie has that Drupal tattoo." So, I got to work on a lot of dot govs that eventually landed or were being built in Drupal. So, I got to support a lot of work. And it meant that I got to, like, float around in government and do a lot of things that others didn't get to do. When CISA stood up, which is the office of security inside of DHS, it's one of the newest sub-communities or subcomponents, they built DHS SchoolSafety.gov, which is a cross-MOU'd site. And I got to sit in and help at the beginning of that because of my Drupal background. But it was really fun to be the person who helped them work with the vendors and make sure that they understood what they were trying to accomplish and be a sort of voice of reason in the room. So, I did all of that work, and then after that, I went and worked at Pluribus Digital, where I got a chance to work side by side with you. And then, that led to other things, like, I was able to apply and become the director of Digital Services and software engineering for my local county. So, I worked for Prince William County, where I bought a house during the pandemic. And then, after that contract ended, I had already started my own business. So, that's led to me having multiple individual contracts with companies and so many people. I've gotten to work on so many different things. And I feel very lucky. If I could go back and tell myself one thing, it's just, take a breath. Everything's going to be okay. And focus on the things that matter. Focus on the things that are going to help you. Focus on community. Focus on delivering value. Everything else will work itself out. You know, I joke all the time that I'm really good at providing impact. If you can measure my life in impact and value, I would be a very rich man. If you can measure it in money, I'm doing all right, but I'm never going to be yacht Robbie, you know, but I'm going to do okay. VICTORIA: Oh my god, yacht Robbie. That's great. So, just to recap, everything's going to be okay. You never know where it's going to take you. And don't be limited by the things that you think, you know, make you not enough. Like, there's a lot of things that you can do out there. I really like that advice. ROBBIE: And I think one last piece is, like, community matters, if you are a part of communities and you do it genuinely, how much that will impact your career. I gave a talk from Drupal NYC to the White House and beyond. And I talked through my entire resume and how everything changed when I started doing community engagement. When I went to the Drupal community in New York City and how that led to Sony, and that led to Zagat, which led to me getting acquired by Google, like, these things all cascaded. And then, when I moved to the DMV, I was able to join here and continue supporting communities, which allowed me to bring people into the local civic tech community from the local DC tech community. So, so many of the best USDS engineers, and designers, and product people I was able to help influence to come to government were people I met in the community or the communities I helped support. You know, I was an early revivalist of Alexandria Code and Coffee. It was a community that was started and then wavered. And then, Sean McBeth reached out to the community and said, "Do we want to help and support getting it off the ground again?" And I immediately said, "Yes." And then, that led to my friends at BLACK CODE COLLECTIVE wanting to create a community where they could feel safe and connected and create a community of their own. And then DC Code & Coffee started. And from there, Baltimore Code & Coffee kicked off. And it's just really nice that, like, it doesn't matter where I've been. All these things keep coming back to be a part of community and help support others. And you will be surprised at how much you get back in return. I wouldn't be the person I am today in my community. I wouldn't have my career if it wasn't for the people who started and helped shepherd me when I was starting out. And I feel like I've been trying to do the same for people for a really long time. VICTORIA: I love that. That's what I say, too, when people ask me for advice on careers and how to grow. And my biggest piece is always to go out and meet people. And go to your community, like, look and see what's happening. Like, find people you like hanging out with and learning from. And just that should be the majority of your time probably if you're trying to figure out where to go with your career or even just, like, expand as a person sometimes [laughs]. Robbie, I was going to ask; you mentioned that you had bought a house in Virginia. One of my other warmup questions was going to be, what's your favorite thing to put on the grill? ROBBIE: My house in Virginia definitely gets a lot of use, especially in the spring and the fall. I'm a big fan of team no extreme when it comes to temperature. But during those time periods, my grill is often fired up. My favorite is probably to make skirt steak on the grill. I'm a huge fan of tacos, especially made out of skirt steak. I'm in all day. That's one of my favorites. I also love to smoke. I have a smoker because I'm a caricature-esque suburban dude. I'm going to live into all of the possible things I could have. But I've had a smoker for a long time, and I love making sort of poor man's burnt ends. It's one of my favorite things to make. But you got to have some time. That's the kind of thing that takes, you know, 14 hours or 16 hours, but it's really fun to take advantage of it. A quick thing I love to make is actually smoked salmon. It takes longer to brine it than it usually does to smoke it. But it is one of the nicest things I've made on my smoker, you know, fresh pesto on a piece of salmon is pretty awesome, or everything bagel. Everything with the bagel seasoning is a pretty fun way to smoke some salmon. VICTORIA: Wow, that sounds so good. I'm going to have to stop in next time I'm in Virginia and get some [laughs] and hang out. Do you have any questions for me? ROBBIE: I'm excited to see where you've gone and how you've gotten here. I think this is such a cool job for you. Knowing who you are as a person and seeing you land in a company like this is really exciting. And I think you getting to be a part of this podcast, which we were joking about earlier, is I've been listening to probably since it started. I've been a big fan for a long time. So, it's cool to be here on this podcast. But it's also cool that my friend is a part of this and gets to be a part of this legacy. I'm really excited to see where you go over time. I know my career has been changing, right? I worked in government. Before that, I did all kinds of other stuff. Nowadays I have my own business where I often joke I have sort of, like, three things I offer, which is, like, consigliere services. Wouldn't it be nice to have a Robbie on your executive team without having to pay them an executive salary? You know, another one is like, you know, strategy and mentoring, but these are all things I know you do also, which I think is cool. But I've been working on contracts where I support companies trying to figure out how they modernize, or how their CTO can be more hands-off keyboard, or how their new director of business development can be more of a technical leader and taking on their first direct reports. So, I just enjoy all those aspects, and I just think it's something that I've watched you do in the company where we worked together. And it's always fun to see what you're working on and getting a chance to catch up with you. I feel like you're one of those people that does a really great job of staying connected. Every once in a while, I'll get a random text message like, "Hey, how you doing?" It always makes me smile. I'm like, Victoria is a really good connector, and I feel like I am, but you're even better at it on the being proactive side. That's how this all came about, right? We caught up, and you were like, "Why don't you come on the podcast?" So, that's really exciting. VICTORIA: Well, thank you, Robbie. Yeah, I think that's one of the great things about community is you meet people. You're like, "Oh, you're really cool. And you're doing cool stuff all the time. Like, how can I support you in your journey [laughs]? Like, what's up?" Yeah, for me, it was hard to actually leave DC. I didn't, you know, really think about the impact of leaving behind my tech community, like, that network of people. It was pretty emotional for me, actually, especially when we finally, like, stopped doing the digital version [laughs]. And I, like, kind of gave up managing it from California, which was kind of funny anyways [laughs]. Yeah, so no, I'm grateful that we stayed in touch and that you made time to be here with us today. Is there anything else that you would like to promote? ROBBIE: You know, just to remind you, you've done a great job of transitioning into where you are today, but anybody can do that, right? Like, before I moved to the DC area, I was in New York, and I was helping to organize JavaScript events. And I started looking at the DC area before I moved down here. And I found the DC Tech Community. And I found the Node School DC GitHub organization and reached out to the person who had ownership of it and said I wanted to help and support. I looked at this the other day. I think I moved on May 8th, and then, like, May 11th, when I walked in the door, somebody was like, "Are you new?" And I was like, "Yeah, I just moved here." And they were like, "Oh, from where?" And I was like, "New York." And they were like, "Are you that guy who's been bugging Josh about running Node school events?" I was like, "Yeah." And like, they were planning an unconference at the end of the month. And they were like, "Would you like to run a Node school at that unconference?" Like, 27 days later. So, it was amazing that, like, I immediately, like, fell from the New York Community where I was super connected, but I went out of my way to try to, like, see what the community looked like before I got there. And I was lucky enough to find the right people, and immediately I joked...I think I wrote a blog post that said like, "I found my new friends. By, like, going from one community to another, gave a person who was in his 40s a chance to meet new people very quickly." And it was pretty amazing, and I felt very lucky. But I did spend a little bit of energy and capital to try to figure it out because I knew it was going to be important to me. So, I think you've done a really good job. You've helped launch and relaunch things that were going on in San Diego and becoming a part of this connection to more people. I think you and I have a very similar spirit, which is like, let's find a way to connect with humans, and we do it pretty effectively. VICTORIA: Well, thank you. That really boosts my confidence, Robbie [laughs]. Sometimes, you show up to an event you've never been to before by yourself, and it's like a deer in headlights kind of moment. Like, oh God, what have I done [laughs]? ROBBIE: Oh, and the last thing I need to mention is I also have a podcast. I have my podcast about film. It's called Geek on Film. I used to record it with my friend, Jon. He's a little busy right now. But I used to pitch it as a conversation show about the current films that were going on. Now, it's one lone geek's ramblings about what he just saw. It's a great podcast for me because it gives me an opportunity to think a little more critically about film, which is one of the things that I probably have almost enough credits to get a minor in. But I absolutely love cinema and film in general. And it's given me an opportunity to connect with a lot more people about this subject and also to scratch the itch of me being able to create something around a community and around a thing I really love. VICTORIA: That's super cool. Yeah. You're top of mind because I also like films. I'm like, what's Robbie up to? Like, what's the recommendations, you know [laughs]? Do you have a top film recommendation from the Oscars? Is that too big of a question? ROBBIE: So, the one I will say that didn't get enough spotlight shined on it was Nimona. So, I'm a huge fan of the Spider-Man movies. I think Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse and Across the Spider-Verse are both masterpieces. But Nimona is an animated film that was picked up by Netflix, and it is amazing. I don't know that I laughed or cried or was more moved by a film last year. And I don't know that it gets enough credit for what it was. But it did get nominated for best-animated film, but I don't know that enough people paid attention to it. Like it may have gotten lost in the algorithm. So, if you get a chance, check out Nimona. It's one of those beautiful, little gems that, if you travel down its story, there's all these twists and turns. It was based on a webcomic that became a graphic novel. One of the production companies picked it up, and it wasn't going to see the light of day. And then, Netflix bought its distribution rights. There's going to be a great documentary someday about, like, Inside Nimona. But I think the movie itself is really charming and moving, and I was really impressed with it. So, that was the one that got me, like, just before the Oscars this year, where I was like, this is the little animated movie that could, in my opinion. It's so charming. VICTORIA: I will definitely have to check that out. Thank you for giving us that recommendation. ROBBIE: Totally. VICTORIA: Final question. I just wanted to see if you had anything to share about being an advisory board member for Gray and for Hutch Studio. Could you tell us a little bit more about that? ROBBIE: Yeah. So, Gray Digital was founded by a friend of mine. We met through United States Digital Service. And his organization...I had been supporting him for a while and just being behind the scenes, talking to him and talking through business-related issues. And it was really nice. He offered to make me an official advisory board member. It was a great acknowledgment, and I really felt moved. There's some great people that are supporting him and have supported him. They've done really great work. Gray is out there delivering digital services in this space. And I think I was really lucky to be a part of it and to support my friend, Randall. Hutch is different. Hutch is an organization that's kind of like if you think about it, it almost is a way to support entrepreneurs of color who are trying to make their way into the digital service delivery space. Being an advisory board member there has been really interesting because it's shaping how Hutch provides services and what their approach is to how to support these companies. But over the last year, I've convinced the person who's running it, Stephanie, with a couple of other people, to open the door up or crack the door so we could talk directly and support the individual companies. So, it's been really great to be a Hutch advisory member to help shape how Hutch is approaching things. But I've also been a part of, like, many interview processes. I've reviewed a lot of, like, [inaudible 48:01] who want to join the organization. And I've also created personal relationships with many of the people who are part of Hutch. And, you know, like, you know me personally, so you know I run a Day of the Dead party. We'll just party at my house every year. I have a huge amount of affection for Mexican culture and, in general, the approach of how to remember people who are a part of your life. So, this is, like, the perfect way for me to bring people together at my house is to say, like, "Hey, my dad was awesome. What about your family? Who are your people?" What's really nice is that has given me an opportunity to host people at my house. And I've had Hutch company owners at my house the last couple of years and the person who runs Hutch. So, it's a really great community that I look at that is trying to shape the next emergent companies that are helping deliver digital services across the government. And it's really fun to be early on in their career and help them grow. Again, it seems silly, but it's the thing I care a lot about. How do I connect with people and provide the most value that I can? And this is a way I can provide that value to companies that may also go off and provide that value. It's a little bit of an amplifier. So, I'm a huge fan of what we've been able to accomplish and being a part of it in any way, shape, or form. VICTORIA: Well, I think that's a really beautiful way to wrap it up. ROBBIE: Really glad to catch up with you and be a part of this amazing podcast. VICTORIA: Yeah, so much fun. Thank you again so much. It was great to be here with you today. You can subscribe to the show and find notes along with a complete transcript for this episode at giantrobots.fm. If you have questions or comments, email us at hosts@giantrobots.fm. You can find me on thoughtbotsocial@vguido. This podcast is brought to you by thoughtbot and produced and edited by Mandy Moore. Thanks for listening. See you next time. AD: Did you know thoughtbot has a referral program? If you introduce us to someone looking for a design or development partner, we will compensate you if they decide to work with us. More info on our website at: tbot.io/referral. Or you can email us at: referrals@thoughtbot.com with any questions.

Eric Daimler, CEO of Conexusdeep dives into the realms of AI, autonomous technologies, and data security. As a former Presidential Innovation Fellow under the Obama administration, Daimler shares his insights on AI's potential, its implications for data protection, and the revolutionary work of Conexus in solving the data deluge challenge. With discussions ranging from the basics of AI and its various applications to the nuances of autonomous driving and the strategic implementation of AI in businesses both large and small, this episode is a rich mixture of technical knowledge, practical advice, and visionary perspectives.

James Villarrubia is a CTO, an Applied AI Expert, and the Presidential Innovation Fellow at NASA. He is a creative technologist and champion of positive social change through engineering.He believes his role as an engineer is to improve the world around him. His 15-year career has been dedicated to solving critical community problems in the private and public sectors.In this episode, we dive into the future impacts of artificial intelligence (AI), its ethical considerations, and its potential to revolutionize both society and education. Sign up for the Some Future Day Newsletter here: https://marcbeckman.substack.com/Episode Links:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/villarrubia/To join the conversation follow Marc here:YoutubeLinkedInTwitterInstagramMarc is a Senior Fellow of Emerging Technologies at NYU, the CEO of DMA United, and is on the New York State Bar Association's Taskforce for Cryptocurrency and Digital Assets.

How can authentic cultural experiences like artisan workshops redefine and enrich travel? Rana Saad is an entrepreneur and innovator connecting cultures through technology. Rana Saad is the founder of Tuzmo – a startup that helps travelers and tourists find authentic, local artisans. He is a former Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House. Prior to that, in his role as the North America Digital Innovation Lead at Accenture, he helped some of the largest corporations and organizations innovate like startups and at startup speed. Previously he founded a global technology services company spanning four countries, that exited with a listing on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange. He advises many early stage companies and has built digital innovation labs and programs at multiple organizations.

Sokwoo Rhee is the EVP at LG Electronics and the Head of LG's North America Innovation Center, LG Nova. From serving as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the Whitehouse to leading groundbreaking IoT and smart city initiatives, Sokwoo brings a wealth of experience driving innovation forward. Today, we discuss why external innovation is important for a $60B+ revenue company, how to justify external innovation to internal stakeholders, and why growth and disruption insurance go hand in hand. We also dive into the LG Nova Commercial Accelerator Program.

You've probably seen any number of stories about how some founder in Silicon Valley says their startup can tackle a big societal problem better and cheaper than the public sector because government just can't do anything right. Or maybe you've heard about a public sector executive immediately dismissing an idea that came from the private sector on how to do things differently because government's unique and this is how it's always been done.These scenarios speak to larger tensions and misconceptions between the private and public sector. But if there's one thing that the pandemic and the resulting sudden need for the deployment of impactful digital tools taught us is that we don't have to accept business as usual as the only way to solve problems and deliver services.This week we're talking about what you can accomplish when you harness tech, talent and modern approaches to digital service delivery in the public sector. Joining us to talk about this is Hillary Hartley, CEO of US Digital Response. USDR was founded in 2020 to pair volunteer tech talent with governments to create critical digital tools needed to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. Today, US Digital Response has grown into a community of over 8000 pro bono digital specialists who have partnered with almost 300 different government and nonprofit organizations across the United States on projects that directly impact communities. Prior to her role at USDR, she was head of the Ontario Digital Service, which she led in conjunction with her deputy minister level position of Chief Digital and Data Officer for the Ontario government. And before that, Hillary was the deputy executive director of 18F, a digital services agency in the US federal government that she helped to create back when she was a Presidential Innovation Fellow in 2013. Hillary is a great example of someone who thought she was headed to a long term career in Silicon Valley, found herself in a public sector role, and then fell in love with the impact that she could make in government.Related LinksUS Digital ResponseCode for CanadaWatch on YouTubehttps://youtube.com/watch?v=o9QD4bfPP64

The best kind of data radical is one who knows how to balance their technical expertise with their fuzzy side. Skills like storytelling, empathy, and ethics are becoming invaluable in the tech space. The ability to balance both enables data folks to recognize patterns where others might miss them. This type of integrative thinking can guide people on their next investment, whether they're investing time, money, or resources. Scott Hartley is a global early-stage investor and author of The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World. His passion lies in emerging markets and big ideas that improve lives, particularly in financial services, health, supply chain, and logistics. Scott has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House and has co-founded two venture capital firms: Everywhere Ventures and Two Culture Capital. Satyen and Scott discuss the techie and fuzzy sides of Silicon Valley, the advancement of tech, and how Scott chooses his next investment.--------“I love this thought around data collection and big data is one thing, it's collecting information. But, then turning that information into knowledge and into wisdom. In one part, can be done through unstructured to structured data, through things like LLMs that are enabling us to move out of the information noise into a bit more knowledge noise, and then maybe into wisdom specificity. I still think that there's a leap there that's going to be human-driven. Whether it's a person sitting there interpreting or it's a team of engineers thinking about the sensitivities, the data tagging. There are human decisions in the mix somewhere along that chain, as we're taking on structured data and turning it into structured knowledge and wisdom. All these things to say, that even these deeply technical infrastructure-level technologies, have elements of humanity in them.” – Scott Hartley--------Time Stamps:*(10:55): The genesis behind The Fuzzy and the Techie*(18:11): Subjectivity, structure, and bias*(20:17): Scott's investment focus*(30:09): The “tables-stakes economy” *(38:11): AI and public policy *(47:43): Satyen's Takeaways--------SponsorThis podcast is presented by Alation.Learn more:* Subscribe to the newsletter: https://www.alation.com/podcast/* Alation's LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/alation/* Satyen's LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssangani/--------LinksRead The Fuzzy and the TechieVisit Scott's websiteConnect with Scott on LinkedIn

How can satellite data and computation fundamentally shift how we understand our place on a changing Earth, and amongst other species? Can we use all that newfound knowledge, transparency, and intelligent data architecture to become better stewards? Allowing the earth to behold itself and its own lifeworld in a whole new way… And what are the ethical implications of having the power of such oversight? In whose hands? Today our guest is Dan Hammer, Managing Partner at Ode, a data and design agency for the environment, and prior chief data scientist at the World Resources Institute, where he co-founded Global Forest Watch, a tool that tracked and monitored global deforestation patterns. He is founder of Spaceknow, a satellite image analytics start-up, and was a senior advisor in the Obama White House, a Presidential Innovation Fellow at NASA, creator of Global Plastic Watch and Amazon Mining Watch. His work has used direct earth observation to locate every wastewater pond in rural Alabama; to watch illegal mining unfold in the Amazon; and to find every plastic waste site along rivers in Vietnam. He created the application Climate TRACE for former Vice President Al Gore, the first facility-level global inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, and much more. In this episode speak about his new endeavour which is attempting to create an open source foundation model for nature – where you can “start to query the landscape like you would Google Maps”. I ask Dan how he manages to strike a balance between high level global information layers, and local relevance, and whether is it really possible that a global model can actually help people on the ground develop a deeper intimacy and action with the lifeworlds of where they reside. Episode Website Link Show Links: Dan HammerClimate TRACECarbon Mapper - methane plumeswatch illegal mining unfold in the Amazonfind every plastic waste site along rivers in VietnamAmazon Mining WatchGlobal Plastic Watch Look out for meditations, poems, readings, and other snippets of inspiration in between episodes. Music: Electric Ethnicity by Igor Dvorkin, Duncan Pittock & Ellie Kidd Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

ADAM RIGGS is the CEO and Found of Frameable, building products to help the digital collaboration experience in MS Teams. Before Frameable, Adam was a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the Treasury Dept. and a subject matter expert at the State Dept. on various open data and knowledge management challenges. Adam shares his best practices and tools for the remote and hybrid workforce in this interview. We cover multiple topics, including the return to office mandates, building a great company culture, and tools for remote and hybrid teams. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

In a thought-provoking episode, I sit down with Dr. Eric Daimler, an eminent authority on artificial intelligence and robotics with over two decades of multifaceted experience. As a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics under the Obama Administration and the CEO of Conexus, Dr. Daimler offers a unique vantage point on the intersection of policy, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the ever-evolving AI landscape. The conversation kicks off with an exploration into Eric's role as the first AI authority in the Obama White House. They delve into the strategic importance of having technology expertise within the governmental structure, examining how such expertise can shape public policy and drive national initiatives. From the macro to the micro, the conversation shifts towards the mounting challenges of data management in AI implementations. With his current venture, Conexus, Dr. Daimler aims to revolutionize data integration and migration through a category-theory-based platform, CQL. The discussion takes a deep dive into the complexities of managing data deluge and the role of category theory in simplifying this monumental task. The discourse then moves into the social and ethical dimensions of AI and robotics. Eric and Neil ponder on the responsibility of communities and citizens in shaping the future of these technologies. They stress the necessity for a collective approach towards understanding the ethical, societal, and economic impacts of AI. As the conversation advances, we discuss the prospects and challenges for AI in automating vocational IT work and synthesizing various tools' actions. They underscore the transformative potential of AI in diverse sectors, including supply chain management, organ donation, and drug discovery. Dr. Daimler brings an unparalleled blend of academic rigor, policy insight, and entrepreneurial spirit to the episode. This is a must-listen for anyone interested in the multifaceted aspects of AI, from data management to ethical considerations and policy implications.

Andrea Ippolito is the CEO and Founder of SimpliFed, a virtual baby-feeding support platform. She previously was a faculty member at Cornell University, a Presidential Innovation Fellow based out of the White House, and Co-founder of Smart Scheduling (acquired by Athenahealth). She is a Shameless Mom to a 5-year-old, a 2-year-old, and a brand new little one born last month. Her journey through motherhood inspired her mission to provide better feeding support to mothers with newborns and infants. You know baby feeding is a topic near and dear to my heart, as I struggled so desperately to feed Vinnie in his first 6 months of life. It had a tremendous impact on my mental health and on his physical health. I was so thrilled to meet Andrea and dig into this really important topic.  Listen in to hear Andrea share: How her struggles around breastfeeding led her to found SimpliFed The ways in which our current baby feeding infrastructure is broken The perfect storm that created our formula shortage How SimpliFed is an inclusive baby feeding company, not just a breastfeeding company The truth about women-led companies: Women-led companies are more profitable, more innovative, and have more impactful missions and outcomes The significance of a mom-founded, mom-led company creating formula and support for moms What needs to be done to create systems that actually support women's health Links mentioned: Get Simplified Resource: www.SimpliFed.com SimpliFed on IG Reach out to SimpliFed Text Support: 888-458-1364 We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsor Interested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric Daimler is the founder and CEO of Conexus, a groundbreaking solution for what is perhaps today's biggest information technology problem: data deluge. Eric is leading the development of CQL, a patent-pending platform founded upon category theory — a revolution in mathematics — to help companies manage the overwhelming and rapidly growing challenge of data integration and migration. In addition, Eric has over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker. He served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of the President. He was the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics.   Advertiser:  https://timezest.com/mspradio/ Do you want the show on your podcast app or the written versions of the stories? Subscribe to the Business of Tech: https://www.businessof.tech/subscribe/ Support the show on Patreon:  https://patreon.com/mspradio/ Want our stuff?  Cool Merch?  Wear “Why Do We Care?” - Visit https://mspradio.myspreadshop.com Follow us on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mspradionews/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/mspradionews/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mspradio/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/28908079/

This and all episodes at: https://aiandyou.net/ .   Feeling inundated with data? If you're running a business, that's no joke, and it's getting worse. Helping people dig through a mountain of data is Eric Daimler, founder and CEO of Conexus. He has over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker where he served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of the President. He was the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI and robotics.  We had a freewheeling, thought-provoking discussion about regulation, business, and state of the art AI. In the conclusion of our conversation, Eric helps us understand how a business should think about and interface with today's AI to leverage it successfully. All this plus our usual look at today's AI headlines. Transcript and URLs referenced at HumanCusp Blog.        

“However you decide to feed your baby, we've got your back,” says Andrea Ippolito, founder of SimpliFed, a virtual baby feeding support platform for new moms which works alongside the Affordable Care Act. Andrea has previously worked as a faculty member at Cornell University, a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House and was the co-founder of Smart Scheduling, an intelligent software used to schedule medical practices, which has been acquired by athenahealth. Come on in and meet Andrea!Entrepreneurship sucks. You have to love what you do.Find a peer mentor that is one step ahead of you to help guide you along your way. You are in the driver's seat to decide what company or organization you want to build.Supporting female entrepreneurs is not philanthropy. It's just damn good business. You are enough. Quotes• “Get mentorship from that near-peer mentor that can walk through the terms so you don't get screwed. That's really important, real deal.” (38:22-38:28 | Andrea) • “Investing in and supporting women entrepreneurs is not philanthropy. It is just damn good business.” (42:46-42:54 | Andrea) • “We want healthy babies and we want healthy moms. And a healthy mom is one that has the freedom to choose how to feed her baby in the way that she wants that protects her physical and mental health.” (9:24-9:34 | Andrea)Connect with Andrea Ippolito:Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/simplifedbabyWebsite | https://www.simplifed.com/Please don't forget to rate, comment, and subscribe to Dear FoundHer on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts!You can now work with Lindsay 1:1 to build and monetize your community through the same method she used to grow and scale her business. Fill out the form here and set up a FREE 30-minute consultation.Make sure you sign up for Lindsay's newsletter and have all of the takeaways from every podcast episode sent straight to your inbox. PLUS, you'll get a tip every week to help you grow and scale your own business.Don't forget to follow Lindsay on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindsaypinchukUse code FoundHer for 50% off your first month with both HiveCast and FiresidePodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This and all episodes at: https://aiandyou.net/ .   Feeling inundated with data? If you're running a business, that's no joke, and it's getting worse. Helping people dig through a mountain of data is Eric Daimler, founder and CEO of Conexus. He has over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker where he served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of the President. He was the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI and robotics.  We had a freewheeling, thought-provoking discussion about regulation, business, and state of the art AI. In this first part of our conversation, we touch on everything from self-driving cars to ChatGPT and China. And category theory as the solution to data deluge. All this plus our usual look at today's AI headlines. Transcript and URLs referenced at HumanCusp Blog.        

Eric Daimler is a six-time entrepreneur and Founder and CEO of Conexus. The company helps organizations exchange data, even under the most complex of circumstances.Eric brings extensive knowledge of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the show. He served as a former Presidential Innovation Fellow for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotics under the Obama administration. Now, as the head of a company that specializes in AI deployment and data usage.In our conversation, Eric takes us through the world of AI, from its development over the past 30 years to the dramatic leaps forward.We discuss Conexus and how they are helping organizations harness overwhelming amounts of data.Eric explains why unassuming and unsexy business ventures that offer the most opportunity for growth and profit.We delve into the technical aspects of ChatGPT, the innovations that made this natural language processing tool possible. We also examine the fears that many have around AI and the impact these tools will have on society.Eric's enthusiasm and his gift for simplifying these complex topics make for an informative episode. You won't need a tin foil hat for this fascinating dive into the world of AI!Check out some of our most popular episodes:Chicken S#!it CEOs w. Mogens SmedLeadership Lessons from Louis Vuitton, Samsonite, and Now, EVCP Growth EquityCanada's Best Venture Partner w. Bruce CroxonStay in the know and follow along:Connect with our host, Cory Cleveland on LinkedInVisit The Insider's Guide to Finance WebsiteFollow us on LinkedInSubscribe to our YouTube channelSubscribe to The Knowledge Bank Letter - a periodic letter of actionable insights, interviews, and quality curations

Dr. Eric Daimler is a leading authority in robotics and artificial intelligence with over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker. Eric served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics. Highlights of the episode: · AI: the tech marvel that senses, plans, acts, and learns. · Will AI's bias shape the way we think and act? · Automation is used for undesirable jobs. · Have we reached a point of no return with AI? · No longer underhyped: AI is finally getting the attention it deserves. · Collaborative AIs are knocking on the door of the future. Additional resources: · Conexus · Welwaze Medical · Petuum · Connect with Eric Daimler ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe to the show: · Apple Podcasts · EricRMueller.com · Spotify --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/ericmuellershow/support

Josh Patterson (@datametrician, Co-Founder & CEO @VoltronData) talks about the concept of composable data analytics and how it benefits our industry. What is it, why should be using it, and how to get started.SHOW: 694CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotwNEW TO CLOUD? CHECK OUT - "CLOUDCAST BASICS"SHOW SPONSORS:Solve your IAM mess with Strata's Identity Orchestration platformHave an identity challenge you thought was too big, too complicated, or too expensive to fix? Let us solve it for you! Visit strata.io/cloudcast to share your toughest IAM challenge and receive a set of AirPods ProHow to Fix the Internet (A new podcast from the EFF)Datadog Kubernetes Solution: Maximum Visibility into Container EnvironmentsStart monitoring the health and performance of your container environment with a free 14 day Datadog trial. Listeners of The Cloudcast will also receive a free Datadog T-shirtSHOW NOTES:Voltron Data (homepage)Apache Arrow (homepage)CRN 10 Hottest Big Data Startups of 2022 (CRN)Voltron grabs 110M Series A (TechCrunch)Topic 1 - Hello Josh and welcome to the show. You have a very diverse and interesting background. Can you give everyone a quick introduction? As a follow up, tell everyone a little bit about your experience as Presidential Innovation Fellow.Topic 2 - Before we dig into Voltron Data, we need to tell everyone about Apache Arrow. Business and organizations tend to be overwhelmed by big data. Everything from the volume, to the tools, to the lack of data scientists and practitioners. Can you give everyone an overview of Arrow, how it came to be, what problem does it solve? Topic 3 - Arrow has companies like Snowflake, NetFlix, Meta, Databricks, Google and Microsoft all adopting it. Our listeners will be more familiar with Snowflake & Databricks and their business models, what makes Voltron Data different? How are you building a company on top of OSS?Topic 4 - Let's talk about communities and standards. I've seen various numbers on Arrow and monthly downloads, always in the tens of millions per month. Your focus appears to be providing services for Arrow and other Apache projects to simplify open source for those that don't have the skills or time, while also working towards the goal of community standards. Is that correct?Topic 5 - How will open source standards for data help the data analytics industry move faster? Is this a process problem? A data set problem? A tools problem?Topic 6 - Data Analytics has a reputation for a high barrier to entry. If our listeners are interested, how can they get started?FEEDBACK?Email: show at the cloudcast dot netTwitter: @thecloudcastnet

I feel that I got an up close and personal invitation into the life of a female pioneer who because of her own accomplishments, worked alongside other fearless women who broke through barriers. So when your mother sets the bar super high, what do you do?  One follows suit apparently.And that's exactly what Andrea Ippolito has done. As I mention in my introduction, she has a very impressive background. Both mother and daughter are engineers and their lives/personalities are very much intertwined or "tangled" as Andrea says.In this episode you'll hear stories of Mary working with female astronauts redesigning the first female space suit so it's anatomically correct for a woman. That's something significant that never crossed my mind until I heard these stories.Andrea says that her mom is still an inspiration to her. "Mom raised us to stick up for ourselves" recalls Ippolito. Andrea says her mother was always there for her, she encouraged her to experience different things and situations. Mary says, "she taught me that we need more women innovators at the table designing the next generation of women's health products with their own lived experience whenever possible."About Andrea:Andrea Ippolito currently serves as the CEO and Founder of SimpliFed. Prior to joining Cornell, Andrea served as the Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Innovators Network within the VA Center for Innovation and served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow based out of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and General Services Administration. She was the Co-Founder of an innovative application that improves access to care called Smart Scheduling (acquired by athenahealth in 2016). She also previously served as the Co-Director of MIT Hacking Medicine, as an Innovation Specialist at the Brigham Innovation Hub and Product Innovation Manager at athenahealth. Ms. Ippolito completed her MS in Engineering & Management at MIT and engineering degrees at Cornell. About SimpliFed:SimpliFed is changing the narrative on infant nutrition and democratizing access to choices parents can feel good about as they feed their babies. SimpliFed's team of IBCLCs (International Board Certified Lactation Consultants) provides breastfeeding support via a telehealth platform, so to meet parents where they are at, from the safety and comfort of their homes. We begin working with parents during pregnancy to establish goals, manage expectations, provide education and preparedness, then continue the trusted relationship postpartum through weaning. IG: @simplifedbaby Or Text SimpliFed At 888-458-1364 for more informationLinkedin: Andrea Ippolito

Show Notes(02:15) Eric reflected on his early interest in computer science and his decision to study at Carnegie Mellon University in the early 90s.(05:40) Eric recalled his academic and overall college experience, emphasizing the importance of the people he was surrounded with.(08:22) Eric talked about his time working as a quant analyst early in his career, the moment he encountered the birth of the Mosaic browser, and his decision to join the tech industry.(13:01) Eric imparted wisdom learned from venture investing during the dot-com boom.(18:02) Eric talked about the next phase of his academic career - earning a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon and dropping out of a Ph.D. program at Stanford.(21:06) Eric discussed his academic research on Computational Economics for corporate malfeasance during his time as a Ph.D. student.(27:39) Eric shared different initiatives he worked on with Carnegie Mellon University - serving as the Assistant Dean and Assistant Professor of Software Engineering, launching CMU's Silicon Valley Campus, and founding CMU's Entrepreneurial Management program.(31:54) Eric described his journey in founding Hg Analytics, a hedge fund focused on statistical arbitrage, alongside other CMU's Computer Science PhDs.(37:36) Eric revisited his passion for AI and robotics, which eventually led to serving as a Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.(42:54) Eric shared his perspective on the role of AI in geopolitics and highlighted the challenges with data integration.(47:29) Eric explained his company Conexus, which develops a technology spin-off from MIT's Mathematics department using a branch of math called Category Theory.(50:55) Eric went over a customer case study that uses Conexus's solution to guarantee the semantics of data integrity during data transformation.(54:20) Eric showed his enthusiasm for the concept of data relationships.(56:59) Eric provided a sneak peek of his forthcoming book, "The Coming Composability: The roadmap for using technology to solve society's biggest problems."(58:38) Closing segment.Eric's Contact InfoTwitterLinkedInConexus' ResourcesWebsite | ResourcesMentioned ContentPeopleKai-Fu LeeAndrew NgEric XingBook"ReCulturing: Design Your Company Culture to Connect with Strategy and Purpose for Lasting Success" (by Melissa Daimler)About the showDatacast features long-form, in-depth conversations with practitioners and researchers in the data community to walk through their professional journeys and unpack the lessons learned along the way. I invite guests coming from a wide range of career paths — from scientists and analysts to founders and investors — to analyze the case for using data in the real world and extract their mental models (“the WHY and the HOW”) behind their pursuits. Hopefully, these conversations can serve as valuable tools for early-stage data professionals as they navigate their own careers in the exciting data universe.Datacast is produced and edited by James Le. Get in touch with feedback or guest suggestions by emailing khanhle.1013@gmail.com.Subscribe by searching for Datacast wherever you get podcasts, or click one of the links below:Listen on SpotifyListen on Apple PodcastsListen on Google PodcastsIf you're new, see the podcast homepage for the most recent episodes to listen to or browse the full guest list.

I am joined in Episode 131 by Adam Bellow. Adam is a dedicated educational technologist, father of two young boys, and is CEO and Co-Founder of Breakout EDU, the immersive gaming platform that enables teachers and students to transform classrooms into places of discovery and inquiry-based learning. Previously, he served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for the White House, created several edtech learning platforms including eduTecher and eduClipper. Adam has written numerous books about educational technology and speaks internationally on the subject of education and technology. You can find out more about Breakout EDU here. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/pixelclassroom/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/pixelclassroom/support

Today's conversation is with Dr Eric Daimler. Eric is an authority in Artificial Intelligence with over 20 years of experience in the field as an entrepreneur, executive, investor, technologist, and policy advisor. Eric served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialisation, and public adoption of AI & Robotics. Expect to understand on a basic level what AI is, how it has been implemented in society and which sectors it is likely to be more prominent in. I ask about Healthcare, transport, and even data. Importantly this leads to ethical discussions on what AI can and should do, what boundaries we should draw, and what frameworks need to be in place. As part of this, we delve into the impact of AI on the job market which is a common criticism of machines taking the jobs of humans. Eric shares his vision for AI in our lives and how he hopes people like you and I engage with the conversation about how it will impact society and our lives. Today's podcast is supported by Crypto Glasgow. Founders Donald and Dec have appeared three time on the podcast sharing the principles behind the best performing investment asset of the last 12 months and the inner workings of the Crypto currency market. The Crypto space is vast and growing. You can get easily lost in the noise. Investing in crypto differs to other assets and the Crypto Glasgow team have 20+ years of investing experience in all asset classes, you can rely on their specific crypto expertise to navigate what can be a confusing market. No matter your investment approach and how much you are looking to invest, whether you're a newbie or experienced investor, Crypto Glasgow have you covered with their wide range of products and services to support you in the fast growing and innovative world of cryptocurrencies. I'm a member of the CG Pro discord for just £29.99 per month/ It combines everything you need from investing, trading and education to go from beginner to PRO. There is also the CG PRO affiliate program where you can earn a side income from simply being a member of CG Pro. You can visit https://www.ccgla.co.uk to learn more today. Today's podcast is sponsored by FitLogic Systems. Owner Joe McNee has worked in the fitness space for a number of years whilst juggling a full time job. He started automating boring repetitive tasks and over time grew the part time hobby into a business and has worked with some of big names in the fitness industry. FitLogic systems can fully implement a custom automation solution to your business. This allows you as coach to do more coaching and less admin work. This can work whether you are a one man band looking to get back more time, a coach looking to reduce their admin load, or you're trying to scale your business to the next level and increase your capacity with more coaches and more clients. Regular podcast guest, David Hatt uses FitLogic systems to ensure he can keep the quality of coaching high without getting bogged down in boring admin work. Not sure if its right for you? Take the quick quiz below and find out https://readinesstoscale.scoreapp.com/ Or find him on Instagram www.instagram.com/joe_fitlogic_systems Connect with Eric: Website - https://conexus.com/ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericdaimler/

In this episode, Richard interviews Andrea Ippolito, CEO and Founder of SimplyFed. SimplyFed is an organization supporting families in feeding their babies. Andrea was a part of and led many teams, including as the Director of the Department of Veteran's Affairs Innovators Network and as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House. She tells us how the sense of shared vision and friendship among team members brings the ability to communicate freely, even disagreements, and push the team forward faster and better. When you finish listening to the episode, connect with Andrea on Twitter and visit SimplyFed's website.

Today's episode features Dr. Eric Daimler, who is an authority in the Artificial Intelligence community with over 20 years of experience in the field. He currently leads MIT's first-ever spinout from its Math department and has co-founded six technology companies that have pioneered work in fields ranging from software systems to statistical arbitrage. As a Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration, Eric helped drive the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI. Eric is a passionate technologist, and we dove deep into conversations about AI - the potential, algorithm regulation and much more. It was great speaking with Dr. Daimler on compositionality, his work at Conexus and I loved his points on having “circuit breakers” for AI, and his philosophy around lifesaving AI innovations should be quickly adopted and embraced, while emphasizing that it is important to be bringing more people into the conversation around AI so more people are comfortable with it - particularly with regard to bias and ethics in AI. Links of interest: Dr. Eric DaimlerAbout Conexus - Adaptable Data Consolidation

A 10/10 guest. Dr. Eric Daimler is a leading authority in robotics and artificial intelligence with over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker. Eric served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics. In this episode, expect to learn: - The layman's definition of Artificial Intelligence and how it dates back - An expert's opinion on why we should be scared of technology and if it REALLY does looks like the Terminator films - What working for the Executive Office of the White House and being the authority for AI for Obama looks like - Dr. Eric's concerns of the Metaverse and how Augmented Reality can improve our life - What it is like to interview with Jeff Bezo's before Amazon became what it is today - Dr Eric's hope for the future as a technologist and how A.I can save and change lives. ---- If you love this podcast you can buy me a coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Dbyd ---- Extra Stuff: Follow Eric on Instagram **Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ericdaimler/** Follow Eric on Twitter **Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/ead/** ME:Reach out to me on: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/developmentbydavid/ LinkedIn: https://www.instagram.com/developmentbydavid/ The Development by David Podcast on: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6DV9tUfz5nGCmH0bfZUFrM **Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-development-by-david-podcast/id1542740010**

Harry's guest Eric Daimler, a serial software entrepreneur and a former Presidential Innovation Fellow in the Obama Administration, has an interesting argument about math. If you're a young person today trying to decide which math course you're going to take—or maybe an old person who just wants to brush up—he says you shouldn't bother with trigonometry or calculus. Instead he says you should study category theory. An increasingly important in computer science, category theory is about the relationships between sets or structures. It can be used to prove that different structures are consistent or compatible with one another, and to prove that the relationships in a dataset are still intact even after the data has been transformed in some way. Together with two former MIT mathematicians, Daimler co-founded a company called Conexus that uses category theory to tackle the problem of data interoperability. Longtime listeners know that data interoperability in healthcare, or more often the lack of interoperability, is a repeating theme of the show. In fields from drug development to frontline medical care, we've got petabytes of data to work with, in the form of electronic medical records, genomic and proteomic data, and clinical trial data. That data could be the fuel for machine learning and other kinds of computation that could help us make develop drugs faster and make smarter decisions about care. The problem is, it's all stored in different databases and formats that can't be safely merged without a nightmarish amount of work. So when someone like Daimler says they have a way to use math to bring heterogeneous data together without compromising that data's integrity – well, it's time to pay attention. That's why on today's show, we're all going back to school for an introductory class in category theory.Please rate and review The Harry Glorikian Show on Apple Podcasts! Here's how to do that from an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch:1. Open the Podcasts app on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac. 2. Navigate to The Harry Glorikian Show podcast. You can find it by searching for it or selecting it from your library. Just note that you'll have to go to the series page which shows all the episodes, not just the page for a single episode.3. Scroll down to find the subhead titled "Ratings & Reviews."4. Under one of the highlighted reviews, select "Write a Review."5. Next, select a star rating at the top — you have the option of choosing between one and five stars. 6. Using the text box at the top, write a title for your review. Then, in the lower text box, write your review. Your review can be up to 300 words long.7. Once you've finished, select "Send" or "Save" in the top-right corner. 8. If you've never left a podcast review before, enter a nickname. Your nickname will be displayed next to any reviews you leave from here on out. 9. After selecting a nickname, tap OK. Your review may not be immediately visible.That's it! Thanks so much.TranscriptHarry Glorikian: Hello. I'm Harry Glorikian, and this is The Harry Glorikian Show, where we explore how technology is changing everything we know about healthcare.My guest today is Eric Daimler, a serial software entrepreneur and a former Presidential Innovation Fellow in the Obama Administration.And he has an interesting argument about math. Daimler says if you're a young person today trying to decide which math course you're going to take, or maybe an old person who just wants to brush up, you shouldn't bother with trigonometry or calculus.Instead he says you should study category theory.That's a field that isn't even part of the curriculum at most high schools. But it's increasingly important in computer science.Category theory is about the relationships between sets or structures. It can be used to prove that different structures are consistent or compatible with one another, and to prove that the relationships in a dataset are still intact even after you've transformed that data in some way.Together with two former MIT mathematicians, Daimler co-founded a company called Conexus that uses category theory to tackle the problem of data interoperability.Now…longtime listeners of the show know that data interoperability in healthcare, or more often the lack of interoperability, is one of my biggest hobby horses. In fields from drug development to frontline medical care, we've got petabytes of data to work with, in the form of electronic medical records, genomic and proteomic data, and clinical trial data.That data could be the fuel for machine learning and other kinds of computation that could help us make develop drugs faster and make smarter decisions about care. The problem is, it's all stored in different databases and formats that can't be safely merged without a nightmarish amount of work.So when someone like Daimler says they have a way to use math to bring heterogeneous data together without compromising that data's integrity – well, I pay attention.So on today's show, we're all going back to school for an introductory class in category theory from Conexus CEO Eric Daimler.Harry Glorikian: Eric, welcome to the show.Eric Daimler: It's great to be here.Harry Glorikian: So I was reading your varied background. I mean, you've worked in so many different kinds of organizations. I'm not sure that there is a compact way or even an accurate way to describe you. So can you describe yourself? You know, what do you do and what are your main interest areas?Eric Daimler: Yeah, I mean, the easiest way to describe me might come from my mother. Well, where, you know, somebody asked her, is that the doctor? And she says, Well, yes, but he's not the type that helps people. So I you know, I've been doing research around artificial intelligence and I from a lot of different perspectives around my research in graph theory and machine learning and computational linguistics. I've been a venture capitalist on Sand Hill Road. I've done entrepreneurship, done entrepreneurship, and I started a couple of businesses which I'm doing now. And most notably I was doing policy in Washington, D.C. is part of the Obama administration for a time. So I am often known for that last part. But my background really is rare, if not unique, for having the exposure to AI from all of those angles, from business, academia and policy.Harry Glorikian: Yeah. I mean, I was looking at the obviously the like you said, the one thing that jumped out to me was the you were a Presidential Innovation Fellow in the Obama administration in 2016. Can you can you give listeners an idea of what is what is the Presidential Innovation Fellowship Program? You know, who are the types of people that are fellows and what kind of things do they do?Eric Daimler: Sure, it was I guess with that sort of question, it's helpful then to give a broader picture, even how it started. There was a a program started during the Nixon administration that's colloquially known as the Science Advisers to the President, you know, a bipartisan group to give science advice to the president that that's called the OSTP, Office of Science and Technology Policy. There are experts within that group that know know everything from space to cancer, to be super specific to, in my domain, computer security. And I was the authority that was the sole authority during my time in artificial intelligence. So there are other people with other expertise there. There are people in different capacities. You know, I had the particular capacity, I had the particular title that I had that was a one year term. The staffing for these things goes up and down, depending on the administration in ways that you might be able to predict and guess. The people with those titles also also find themselves in different parts of the the executive branch. So they will do a variety of things that are not predicted by the the title of the fellow. My particular role that I happened to be doing was in helping to coordinate on behalf of the President, humbly, on behalf of the President, their research agenda across the executive branch. There are some very able people with whom I had the good fortune of working during my time during my time there, some of which are now in the in the Biden administration. And again, it's to be a nonpartisan effort around artificial intelligence. Both sides should really be advocates for having our research agenda in government be most effective. But my role was coordinating such things as, really this is helpful, the definition of robotics, which you might be surprised by as a reflex but but quickly find to be useful when you're thinking that the Defense Department's definition and use, therefore, of robotics is really fundamentally different than that of health and human services use and a definition of robotics and the VA and Department of Energy and State and and so forth.Eric Daimler: So that is we find to be useful, to be coordinated by the Office of the President and experts speaking on behalf. It was started really this additional impulse was started after the effects of, I'll generously call them, of healthcare.gov and the trip-ups there where President Obama, to his great credit, realized that we needed to attract more technologists into government, that we had a lot of lawyers to be sure we had, we had a ton of academics, but we didn't have a lot of business people, practical technologists. So he created a way to get people like me motivated to come into government for short, short periods of time. The the idea was that you could sit around a cabinet, a cabinet meeting, and you could you would never be able to raise your hand saying, oh, I don't know anything about economics or I don't know anything about foreign policy, but you could raise your hand and say, Oh, I don't know anything about technology. That needs to be a thing of the past. President Obama saw that and created a program starting with Todd. Todd Park, the chief technologist, the second chief technology officer of the United States, is fantastic to to start to start some programs to bring in people like me.Harry Glorikian: Oh, yeah. And believe me, in health care, we need we need more technologists, which I always preach. I'm like, don't go to Facebook. Come here. You know, you can get double whammy. You can make money and you can affect people's lives. So I'm always preaching that to everybody. But so if I'm not mistaken, in early 2021, you wrote an open letter to the brand new Biden administration calling for sort of a big federal effort to improve national data infrastructure. Like, can you summarize for everybody the argument in that piece and. Do you see them doing any of the items that you're suggesting?Eric Daimler: Right. The the idea is that despite us making some real good efforts during the Obama administration with solidifying our, I'll say, our view on artificial intelligence across the executive, and this continuing actually into the Trump administration with the establishment of an AI office inside the OSTP. So credit where credit is due. That extended into the the Biden administration, where some very well-meaning people can be focusing on different parts of the the conundrum of AI expressions, having various distortions. You know, the popular one we will read about is this distortion of bias that can express itself in really ugly ways, as you know, as individuals, especially for underrepresented groups. The point of the article was to help others be reminded of of some of the easy, low hanging fruit that we can that we can work on around AI. So, you know, bias comes in a lot of different ways, the same way we all have cognitive distortions, you know, cognitive biases. There are some like 50 of them, right. You know, bias can happen around gender and ethnicity and age, sexual orientation and so forth. You know, it all can also can come from absence of data. There's a type of bias that's present just by being in a developed, rich country in collecting, for example, with Conexus's customers, my company Conexus's customers, where they are trying to report on their good efforts for economic and social good and around clean, renewable energies, they find that there's a bias in being able to collect data in rich countries versus developing countries.Eric Daimler: That's another type of bias. So that was that was the point of me writing that open letter, to prioritize, these letters. It's just to distinguish what the low hanging fruit was versus some of the hard problems. The, some of tthe low hanging fruit, I think is available, I can say, In three easy parts that people can remember. One is circuit breakers. So we we can have circuit breakers in a lot of different parts of these automated systems. You know, automated car rolling down a road is, is the easiest example where, you know, at some point a driver needs to take over control to determine to make a judgment about that shadow being a person or a tumbleweed on the crosswalk, that's a type of circuit breaker. We can have those circuit breakers in a lot of different automated systems. Another one is an audit. And the way I mean is audit is having people like me or just generally people that are experts in the craft being able to distinguish the data or the biases can become possible from the data model algorithms where biases also can become possible. Right. And we get a lot of efficiency from these automated systems, these learning algorithms. I think we can afford a little bit taken off to audit the degree to which these data models are doing what we intend.Eric Daimler: And an example of a data model is that Delta Airlines, you know, they know my age or my height, and I fly to San Francisco, to New York or some such thing. The data model would be their own proprietary algorithm to determine whether or not I am deserving of an upgrade to first class, for example. That's a data model. We can have other data models. A famous one that we all are part of is FICO scores, credit scores, and those don't have to be disclosed. None of us actually know what Experian or any of the credit agencies used to determine our credit scores. But they they use these type of things called zero knowledge proofs, where we just send through enough data, enough times that we can get to a sense of what those data models are. So that's an exposure of a data model. A declarative exposure would be maybe a next best thing, a next step, and that's a type of audit.Eric Daimler: And then the third low hanging fruit, I'd say, around regulation, and I think these are just coming towards eventualities, is demanding lineage or demanding provenance. You know, you'll see a lot of news reports, often on less credible sites, but sometimes on on shockingly credible sites where claims are made that you need to then search yourself and, you know, people in a hurry just won't do it, when these become very large systems and very large systems of information, alert systems of automation, I want to know: How were these conclusions given? So, you know, an example in health care would be if my clinician gave me a diagnosis of, let's say, some sort of cancer. And then to say, you know, here's a drug, by the way, and there's a five chance, 5 percent chance of there being some awful side effects. You know, that's a connection of causation or a connection of of conclusions that I'm really not comfortable with. You know, I want to know, like, every step is like, wait, wait. So, so what type of cancer? So what's the probability of my cancer? You know, where is it? And so what drug, you know, how did you make that decision? You know, I want to know every little step of the way. It's fine that they give me that conclusion, but I want to be able to back that up. You know, a similar example, just in everyday parlance for people would be if I did suddenly to say I want a house, and then houses are presented to me. I don't quite want that. Although that looks like good for a Hollywood narrative. Right? I want to say, oh, wait, what's my income? Or what's my cash? You know, how much? And then what's my credit? Like, how much can I afford? Oh, these are houses you can kind of afford. Like, I want those little steps or at least want to back out how those decisions were made available. That's a lineage. So those three things, circuit breaker, audit, lineage, those are three pieces of low hanging fruit that I think the European Union, the State of New York and other other government entities would be well served to prioritize.Harry Glorikian: I would love all of them, especially, you know, the health care example, although I'm not holding my breath because I might not come back to life by how long I'd have to hold my breath on that one. But we're hoping for the best and we talk about that on the show all the time. But you mentioned Conexus. You're one of three co founders, I believe. If I'm not mistaken, Conexus is the first ever commercial spin out from MIT's math department. The company is in the area of large scale data integration, building on insights that come out of the field of mathematics that's called category algebra, categorical algebra, or something called enterprise category theory. And to be quite honest, I did have to Wikipedia to sort of look that up, was not familiar with it. So can you explain category algebra in terms of a non mathematician and maybe give us an example that someone can wrap their mind around.Eric Daimler: Yeah. Yeah. And it's important to get into because even though what my company does is, Conexus does a software expression of categorical algebra, it's really beginning to permeate our world. You know, the the way I tell my my nieces and nephews is, what do quantum computers, smart contracts and Minecraft all have in common? And the answer is composability. You know, they are actually all composable. And what composable is, is it's kind of related to modularity, but it's modularity without regard to scale. So the the easy analogy is in trains where, yeah, you can swap out a boxcar in a train, but mostly trains can only get to be a couple of miles long. Swap in and out boxcars, but the train is really limited in scale. Whereas the train system, the system of a train can be infinitely large, infinitely complex. At every point in the track you can have another track. That is the difference between modularity and composability. So Minecraft is infinitely self referential where you have a whole 'nother universe that exists in and around Minecraft. In smart contracts is actually not enabled without the ability to prove the efficacy, which is then enabled by categorical algebra or its sister in math, type theory. They're kind of adjacent. And that's similar to quantum computing. So quantum computing is very sexy. It gets in the press quite frequently with forks and all, all that. If it you wouldn't be able to prove the efficacy of a quantum compiler, you wouldn't actually. Humans can't actually say whether it's true or not without type theory or categorical algebra.Eric Daimler: How you think of kind categorical algebra you can think of as a little bit related to graph theory. Graph theory is those things that you see, they look like spider webs. If you see the visualizations of graph theories are graphs. Category theory is a little bit related, you might say, to graph theory, but with more structure or more semantics or richness. So in each point, each node and each edge, in the vernacular, you can you can put an infinite amount of information. That's really what a categorical algebra allows. This, the discovery, this was invented to be translating math between different domains of math. The discovery in 2011 from one of my co-founders, who was faculty at MIT's Math Department, was that we could apply that to databases. And it's in that the whole world opens up. This solves the problem that that bedeviled the good folks trying to work on healthcare.gov. It allows for a good explanation of how we can prevent the next 737 Max disaster, where individual systems certainly can be formally verified. But the whole plane doesn't have a mechanism of being formally verified with classic approaches. And it also has application in drug discovery, where we have a way of bringing together hundreds of thousands of databases in a formal way without risk of data being misinterpreted, which is a big deal when you have a 10-year time horizon for FDA trials and you have multiple teams coming in and out of data sets and and human instinct to hoard data and a concern about it ever becoming corrupted. This math and the software expression built upon it opens up just a fantastically rich new world of opportunity for for drug discovery and for clinicians and for health care delivery. And the list is quite, quite deep.Harry Glorikian: So. What does Conexus provide its clients? Is it a service? Is it a technology? Is it both? Can you give us an example of it?Eric Daimler: Yeah. So Conexus is software. Conexus is enterprise software. It's an enterprise software platform that works generally with very large organizations that have generally very large complex data data infrastructures. You know the example, I can start in health care and then I can I can move to an even bigger one, was with a hospital group that we work with in New York City. I didn't even know health care groups could really have this problem. But it's endemic to really the world's data, where one group within the same hospital had a particular way that they represented diabetes. Now to a layman, layman in a health care sense, I would think, well, there's a definition of diabetes. I can just look it up in the Oxford English Dictionary. But this particular domain found diabetes to just be easily represented as yes, no. Do they have it? Do they not? Another group within the same hospital group thought that they would represent it as diabetes, ow are we treating it? A third group would be representing it as diabetes, how long ago. And then a fourth group had some well-meaning clinicians that would characterize it as, they had it and they have less now or, you know, type one, type two, you know, with a more more nuanced view.Eric Daimler: The traditional way of capturing that data, whether it's for drug discovery or whether it's for delivery, is to normalize it, which would then squash the fidelity of the data collected within those groups. Or they most likely to actually just wouldn't do it. They wouldn't collect the data, they wouldn't bring the data together because it's just too hard, it's too expensive. They would use these processes called ETL, extract, transform, load, that have been around for 30 years but are often slow, expensive, fragile. They could take six months to year, cost $1,000,000, deploy 50 to 100 people generally from Accenture or Deloitte or Tata or Wipro. You know, that's a burden. It's a burden, you know, so the data wasn't available and that would then impair the researchers and their ability to to share data. And it would impair clinicians in their view of patient care. And it also impaired the people in operations where they would work on billing. So we work with one company right now that that works on 1.4 trillion records a year. And they just have trouble with that volume and the number of databases and the heterogeneous data infrastructure, bringing together that data to give them one view that then can facilitate health care delivery. Eric Daimler: The big example is, we work with Uber where they they have a very smart team, as smart as one might think. They also have an effectively infinite balance sheet with which they could fund an ideal IT infrastructure. But despite that, you know, Uber grew up like every other organization optimizing for the delivery of their service or product and, and that doesn't entail optimizing for that infrastructure. So what they found, just like this hospital group with different definitions of diabetes, they found they happen to have grown up around service areas. So in this case cities, more or less. So when then the time came to do analysis -- we're just passing Super Bowl weekend, how will the Super Bowl affect the the supply of drivers or the demand from riders? They had to do it for the city of San Francisco, separate than the city of San Jose or the city of Oakland. They couldn't do the whole San Francisco Bay Area region, let alone the whole of the state or the whole of the country or what have you. And that repeated itself for every business question, every organizational question that they would want to have. This is the same in drug discovery. This is the same in patient care delivery or in billing. These operational questions are hard, shockingly hard.Eric Daimler: We had another one in logistics where we had a logistics company that had 100,000 employees. I didn't even know some of these companies could be so big, and they actually had a client with 100,000 employees. That client had 1000 ships, each one of which had 10,000 containers. And I didn't even know like how big these systems were really. I hadn't thought about it. But I mean, they're enormous. And the question was, hey, where's our personal protective equipment? Where is the PPE? And that's actually a hard question to ask. You know, we are thinking about maybe our FedEx tracking numbers from an Amazon order. But if you're looking at the PPE and where it is on a container or inside of a ship, you know, inside this large company, it's actually a hard question to ask. That's this question that all of these organizations have. Eric Daimler: In our case, Uber, where they they they had a friction in time and in money and in accuracy, asking every one of these business questions. They went then to find, how do I solve this problem? Do I use these old tools of ETL from the '80s? Do I use these more modern tools from the 2000s? They're called RDF or OWL? Or is there something else? They discovered that they needed a more foundational system, this categorical algebra that that's now expressing itself in smart contracts and quantum computers and other places. And they just then they found, oh, who are the leaders in the enterprise software expression of that math? And it's us. We happen to be 40 miles north of them. Which is fortunate. We worked with Uber to to solve that problem in bringing together their heterogeneous data infrastructure to solve their problems. And to have them tell it they save $10 million plus a year in in the efficiency and speed gains from the solution we helped provide for them.[musical interlude]Harry Glorikian: Let's pause the conversation for a minute to talk about one small but important thing you can do, to help keep the podcast going. And that's leave a rating and a review for the show on Apple Podcasts.All you have to do is open the Apple Podcasts app on your smartphone, search for The Harry Glorikian Show, and scroll down to the Ratings & Reviews section. Tap the stars to rate the show, and then tap the link that says Write a Review to leave your comments. It'll only take a minute, but you'll be doing a lot to help other listeners discover the show.And one more thing. If you like the interviews we do here on the show I know you'll like my new book, The Future You: How Artificial Intelligence Can Help You Get Healthier, Stress Less, and Live Longer.It's a friendly and accessible tour of all the ways today's information technologies are helping us diagnose diseases faster, treat them more precisely, and create personalized diet and exercise programs to prevent them in the first place.The book is now available in print and ebook formats. Just go to Amazon or Barnes & Noble and search for The Future You by Harry Glorikian.And now, back to the show.[musical interlude]Harry Glorikian: So your website says that your software can map data sources to each other so that the perfect data model is discovered, not designed. And so what does that mean? I mean, does that imply that there's some machine learning or other form of artificial intelligence involved, sort of saying here are the right pieces to put together as opposed to let me design this just for you. I'm trying to piece it together.Eric Daimler: Yeah. You know, the way we might come at this is just reminding ourselves about the structure of artificial intelligence. You know, in the public discourse, we will often find news, I'm sure you can find it today, on deep learning. You know, whatever's going on in deep learning because it's sexy, it's fun. You know, DeepMind really made a name for themselves and got them acquired at a pretty valuation because of their their Hollywood-esque challenge to Go, and solving of that game. But that particular domain of AI, deep learning, deep neural nets is a itself just a subset of machine learning. I say just not not not to minimize it. It's a fantastically powerful algorithm. But but just to place it, it is a subset of machine learning. And then machine learning itself is a subset of artificial intelligence. That's a probabilistic subset. So we all know probabilities are, those are good and bad. Fine when the context is digital advertising, less fine when it's the safety of a commercial jet. There is another part of artificial intelligence called deterministic artificial intelligence. They often get expressed as expert systems. Those generally got a bad name with the the flops of the early '80s. Right. They flopped because of scale, by the way. And then the flops in the early 2000s and 2010s from IBM's ill fated Watson experiment, the promise did not meet the the reality.Eric Daimler: It's in that deterministic A.I. that that magic is to be found, especially when deployed in conjunction with the probabilistic AI. That's that's where really the future is. There's some people have a religious view of, oh, it's only going to be a probabilistic world but there's many people like myself and not to bring up fancy names, but Andrew Ng, who's a brilliant AI researcher and investor, who also also shares this view, that it's a mix of probabilistic and deterministic AI. What deterministic AI does is, to put it simply, it searches the landscape of all possible connections. Actually it's difference between bottoms up and tops down. So the traditional way of, well, say, integrating things is looking at, for example, that hospital network and saying, oh, wow, we have four definitions of diabetes. Let me go solve this problem and create the one that works for our hospital network. Well, then pretty soon you have five standards, right? That's the traditional way that that goes. That's what a top down looks that looks like.Eric Daimler: It's called a Golden Record often, and it rarely works because pretty soon what happens is the organizations will find again their own need for their own definition of diabetes. In most all cases, that's top down approach rarely works. The bottoms up approach says, Let's discover the connections between these and we'll discover the relationships. We don't discover it organically like we depend on people because it's deterministic. I, we, we discover it through a massive, you know, non intuitive in some cases, it's just kind of infeasible for us to explore a trillion connections. But what the AI does is it explores a factorial number actually is a technical, the technical equation for it, a factorial number of of possible paths that then determine the map of relationships between between entities. So imagine just discovering the US highway system. If you did that as a person, it's going to take a bit. If you had some infinitely fast crawlers that robot's discovering the highway system infinitely fast, remember, then that's a much more effective way of doing it that gives you some degree of power. That's the difference between bottoms up and tops down. That's the difference between deterministic, really, we might say, and probabilistic in some simple way.Harry Glorikian: Yeah, I'm a firm believer of the two coming together and again, I just look at them as like a box. I always tell people like, it's a box of tools. I need to know the problem, and then we can sort of reach in and pick out which set of tools that are going to come together to solve this issue, as opposed to this damn word called AI that everybody thinks is one thing that they're sort of throwing at the wall to solve a problem.Harry Glorikian: But you're trying to solve, I'm going to say, data interoperability. And on this show I've had a lot of people talk about interoperability in health care, which I actually believe is, you could break the system because things aren't working right or I can't see what I need to see across the two hospitals that I need information from. But you published an essay on Medium about Haven, the health care collaboration between Amazon, JPMorgan, Berkshire Hathaway. Their goal was to use big data to guide patients to the best performing clinicians and the most affordable medicines. They originally were going to serve these first three founding companies. I think knowing the people that started it, their vision was bigger than that. There was a huge, you know, to-do when it came out. Fireworks and everything. Launched in 2018. They hired Atul Gawande, famous author, surgeon. But then Gawande left in 2020. And, you know, the company was sort of quietly, you know, pushed off into the sunset. Your essay argued that Haven likely failed due to data interoperability challenges. I mean. How so? What what specific challenges do you imagine Haven ran into?Eric Daimler: You know, it's funny, I say in the article very gently that I imagine this is what happened. And it's because I hedge it that that the Harvard Business Review said, "Oh, well, you're just guessing." Actually, I wasn't guessing. No, I know. I know the people that were doing it. I know the challenges there. But but I'm not going to quote them and get them in trouble. And, you know, they're not authorized to speak on it. So I perhaps was a little too modest in my framing of the conclusion. So this actually is what happened. What happens is in the same way that we had the difficulty with healthcare.gov, in the same way that I described these banks having difficulty. Heterogeneous databases don't like to talk to one another. In a variety of different ways. You know, the diabetes example is true, but it's just one of many, many, many, many, many, many cases of data just being collected differently for their own use. It can be as prosaic as first name, last name or "F.last name." Right? It's just that simple, you know? And how do I bring those together? Well, those are those are called entity resolutions. Those are somewhat straightforward, but not often 100 percent solvable. You know, this is just a pain. It's a pain. And, you know, so what what Haven gets into is they're saying, well, we're massive. We got like Uber, we got an effectively infinite balance sheet. We got some very smart people. We'll solve this problem. And, you know, this is some of the problem with getting ahead of yourself. You know, I won't call it arrogance, but getting ahead of yourself, is that, you think, oh, I'll just be able to solve that problem.Eric Daimler: You know, credit where credit is due to Uber, you know, they looked both deeper saying, oh, this can't be solved at the level of computer science. And they looked outside, which is often a really hard organizational exercise. That just didn't happen at Haven. They thought they thought they could they could solve it themselves and they just didn't. The databases, not only could they have had, did have, their own structure, but they also were stored in different formats or by different vendors. So you have an SAP database, you have an Oracle database. That's another layer of complication. And when I say that these these take $1,000,000 to connect, that's not $1,000,000 one way. It's actually $2 million if you want to connect it both ways. Right. And then when you start adding five, let alone 50, you take 50 factorial. That's a very big number already. You multiply that times a million and 6 to 12 months for each and a hundred or two hundred people each. And you just pretty soon it's an infeasible budget. It doesn't work. You know, the budget for us solving solving Uber's problem in the traditional way was something on the order of $2 trillion. You know, you do that. You know, we had a bank in the U.S. and the budget for their vision was was a couple of billion. Like, it doesn't work. Right. That's that's what happened Haven. They'll get around to it, but but they're slow, like all organizations, big organizations are. They'll get around to solving this at a deeper level. We hope that we will remain leaders in database integration when they finally realize that the solution is at a deeper level than their than the existing tools.Harry Glorikian: So I mean, this is not I mean, there's a lot of people trying to solve this problem. It's one of those areas where if we don't solve it, I don't think we're going to get health care to the next level, to sort of manage the information and manage people and get them what they need more efficiently and drive down costs.Eric Daimler: Yeah.Harry Glorikian: And I do believe that EMRs are. I don't want to call them junk. Maybe I'm going too far, but I really think that they you know, if you had decided that you were going to design something to manage patients, that is not the software you would have written to start. Hands down. Which I worry about because these places won't, they spent so much putting them in that trying to get them to rip them out and put something in that actually works is challenging. You guys were actually doing something in COVID-19, too, if I'm not mistaken. Well, how is that project going? I don't know if it's over, but what are you learning about COVID-19 and the capabilities of your software, let's say?Eric Daimler: Yeah. You know, this is an important point that for anybody that's ever used Excel, we know what it means to get frustrated enough to secretly hard code a cell, you know, not keeping a formula in a cell. Yeah, that's what happened in a lot of these systems. So we will continue with electronic medical records to to bring these together, but they will end up being fragile, besides slow and expensive to construct. They will end up being fragile, because they were at some point hardcoded. And how that gets expressed is that the next time some other database standard appears inside of that organization's ecosystem from an acquisition or a divestiture or a different technical standard, even emerging, and then the whole process starts all over again. You know, we just experience this with a large company that that spent $100 million in about five years. And then they came to us and like, yeah, we know it works now, but we know like a year from now we're going to have to say we're going to go through it again. And, it's not like, oh, we'll just have a marginal difference. No, it's again, that factorial issue, that one database connected to the other 50 that already exist, creates this same problem all over again at a couple of orders of magnitude. So what we discover is these systems, these systems in the organization, they will continue to exist.Eric Daimler: These fragile systems will continue to exist. They'll continue to scale. They'll continue to grow in different parts of the life sciences domain, whether it's for clinicians, whether it's for operations, whether it's for drug discovery. Those will continue to exist. They'll continue to expand, and they will begin to approach the type of compositional systems that I'm describing from quantum computers or Minecraft or smart contracts, where you then need the the discovery and math that Conexus expresses in software for databases. When you need that is when you then need to prove the efficacy or otherwise demonstrate the lack of fragility or the integrity of the semantics. Conexus can with, it's a law of nature and it's in math, with 100 percent accuracy, prove the integrity of a database integration. And that matters in high consequence context when you're doing something as critical as drug side effects for different populations. We don't want your data to be misinterpreted. You can't afford lives to be lost or you can't, in regulation, you can't afford data to be leaking. That's where you'll ultimately need the categorical algebra. You'll need a provable compositional system. You can continue to construct these ones that will begin to approach compositionality, but when you need the math is when you need to prove it for either the high consequence context of lives, of money or related to that, of regulation.Harry Glorikian: Yeah, well, I keep telling my kids, make sure you're proficient in math because you're going to be using it for the rest of your life and finance. I always remind them about finance because I think both go together. But you've got a new book coming out. It's called "The Future is Formal" and not tuxedo like formal, but like you're, using the word formal. And I think you have a very specific meaning in mind. And I do want you to talk about, but I think what you're referring to is how we want automated systems to behave, meaning everything from advertising algorithms to self-driving trucks. And you can tell me if that my assumption is correct or not.Eric Daimler: Though it's a great segue, actually, from the math. You know, what I'm trying to do is bring in people that are not programmers or research technology, information technology researchers day to day into the conversation around automated digital systems. That's my motivation. And my motivation is, powered by the belief that we will bring out the best of the technology with more people engaged. And with more people engaged, we have a chance to embrace it and not resist it. You know, my greatest fear, I will say, selfishly, is that we come up with technology that people just reject, they just veto it because they don't understand it as a citizen. That also presents a danger because I think that companies' commercial expressions naturally will grow towards where their technology is needed. So this is actually to some extent a threat to Western security relative to Chinese competition, that we embrace the technology in the way that we want it to be expressed in our society. So trying to bring people into this conversation, even if they're not programmers, the connection to math is that there are 18 million computer programmers in the world. We don't need 18 million and one, you know. But what we do need is we do need people to be thinking, I say in a formal way, but also just be thinking about the values that are going to be represented in these digital infrastructures.Eric Daimler: You know, somewhere as a society, we will have to have a conversation with ourselves to determine the car driving to the crosswalk, braking or rolling or slowing or stopping completely. And then who's liable if it doesn't? Is it the driver or is it the manufacturer? Is it the the programmer that somehow put a bug in their code? You know, we're entering an age where we're going to start experiencing what some person calls double bugs. There's the bug in maybe one's expression in code. This often could be the semantics. Or in English. Like your English doesn't make sense. Right? Right. Or or was it actually an error in your thinking? You know, did you leave a gap in your thinking? This is often where where some of the bugs in Ethereum and smart contracts have been expressed where, you know, there's an old programming rule where you don't want to say something equals true. You always want to be saying true equals something. If you get if you do the former, not the latter, you can have to actually create bugs that can create security breaches.Eric Daimler: Just a small little error in thinking. That's not an error in semantics. That level of thinking, you don't need to know calculus for, or category theory for that matter. You just need to be thinking in a formal way. You know, often, often lawyers, accountants, engineers, you know, anybody with scientific training can, can more quickly get this idea, where those that are educated in liberal arts can contribute is in reminding themselves of the broader context that wants to be expressed, because often engineers can be overly reductionist. So there's really a there's a push and pull or, you know, an interplay between those two sensibilities that then we want to express in rules. Then that's ultimately what I mean by formal, formal rules. Tell me exactly what you mean. Tell me exactly how that is going to work. You know, physicians would understand this when they think about drug effects and drug side effects. They know exactly what it's going to be supposed to be doing, you know, with some degree of probability. But they can be very clear, very clear about it. It's that clear thinking that all of us will need to exercise as we think about the development and deployment of modern automated digital systems.Harry Glorikian: Yeah, you know, it's funny because that's the other thing I tell people, like when they say, What should my kid take? I'm like, have him take a, you know, basic programming, not because they're going to do it for a living, but they'll understand how this thing is structured and they can get wrap their mind around how it is. And, you know, I see how my nephew thinks who's from the computer science world and how I think, and sometimes, you know, it's funny watching him think. Or one of the CTOs of one of our companies how he looks at the world. And I'm like you. You got to back up a little bit and look at the bigger picture. Right. And so it's the two of us coming together that make more magic than one or the other by themselves.Harry Glorikian: So, you know, I want to jump back sort of to the different roles you've had in your career. Like like you said, you've been a technology investor, a serial startup founder, a university professor, an academic administrator, an entrepreneur, a management instructor, Presidential Innovation Fellow. I don't think I've missed anything, but I may have. You're also a speaker, a commentator, an author. Which one of those is most rewarding?Eric Daimler: Oh, that's an interesting question. Which one of those is most rewarding? I'm not sure. I find it to be rewarding with my friends and family. So it's rewarding to be with people. I find that to be rewarding in those particular expressions. My motivation is to be, you know, just bringing people in to have a conversation about what we want our world to look like, to the degree to which the technologies that I work with every day are closer to the dystopia of Hollywood narratives or closer to our hopes around the utopia that's possible, that where this is in that spectrum is up to us in our conversation around what these things want to look like. We have some glimpses of both extremes, but I'd like people, and I find it to be rewarding, to just be helping facilitate the helping catalyze that conversation. So the catalyst of that conversation and whatever form it takes is where I enjoy being.Harry Glorikian: Yeah, because I was thinking about like, you know, what can, what can you do as an individual that shapes the future. Does any of these roles stand out as more impactful than others, let's say?Eric Daimler: I think the future is in this notion of composability. I feel strongly about that and I want to enroll people into this paradigm as a framework from which to see many of the activities going around us. Why have NFTs come on the public, in the public media, so quickly? Why does crypto, cryptocurrency capture our imagination? Those And TikTok and the metaverse. And those are all expressions of this quick reconfiguration of patterns in different contexts that themselves are going to become easier and easier to express. The future is going to be owned by people that that take the special knowledge that they've acquired and then put it into short business expressions. I'm going to call them rules that then can be recontextualized and redeployed. This is my version of, or my abstraction of what people call the the future being just all TikTok. It's not literally that we're all going to be doing short dance videos. It's that TikTok is is an expression of people creating short bits of content and then having those be reconfigured and redistributed. That can be in medicine or clinical practice or in drugs, but it can be in any range of expertise, expertise or knowledge. And what's changed? What's changed and what is changing is the different technologies that are being brought to bear to capture that knowledge so that it can be scalable, so it can be compositional. Yeah, that's what's changing. That's what's going to be changing over the next 10 to 20 years. The more you study that, I think the better off we will be. And I'd say, you know, for my way of thinking about math, you might say the more math, the better. But if I were to choose for my children, I would say I would replace trig and geometry and even calculus, some people would be happy to know, with categorical algebra, category theory and with probability and statistics. So I would replace calculus, which I think is really the math of the 20th century, with something more appropriate to our digital age, which is categorical algebra.Harry Glorikian: I will tell my son because I'm sure he'll be very excited to to if I told him that not calculus, but he's not going to be happy when I say go to this other area, because I think he'd like to get out of it altogether.Eric Daimler: It's easier than calculus. Yeah.Harry Glorikian: So, you know, it was great having you on the show. I feel like we could talk for another hour on all these different aspects. You know, I'm hoping that your company is truly successful and that you help us solve this interoperability problem, which is, I've been I've been talking about it forever. It seems like I feel like, you know, the last 15 or 20 years. And I still worry if we're any closer to solving that problem, but I'm hopeful, and I wish you great success on the launch of your new book. It sounds exciting. I'm going to have to get myself a copy.Eric Daimler: Thank you very much. It's been fun. It's good to be with you.Harry Glorikian: Thank you.Harry Glorikian: That's it for this week's episode. You can find a full transcript of this episode as well as the full archive of episodes of The Harry Glorikian Show and MoneyBall Medicine at our website. Just go to glorikian.com and click on the tab Podcasts.I'd like to thank our listeners for boosting The Harry Glorikian Show into the top three percent of global podcasts.If you want to be sure to get every new episode of the show automatically, be sure to open Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast player and hit follow or subscribe. Don't forget to leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. And we always love to hear from listeners on Twitter, where you can find me at hglorikian.Thanks for listening, stay healthy, and be sure to tune in two weeks from now for our next interview.

This week we feature our interview with Eric Daimler, PhD. Eric and I discussed how AI can unlock the potential of humanity.   Dr. Eric Daimler is an authority in Artificial Intelligence with over 20 years of experience in the field as an entrepreneur, executive, investor, technologist, and policy advisor. Daimler has co-founded six technology companies that have done pioneering work in fields ranging from software systems to statistical arbitrage. Daimler is the author of the forthcoming book "The Coming Composability: The roadmap for using technology to solve society's biggest problems." A frequent speaker, lecturer, and commentator, he works to empower communities and citizens to leverage AI for a more sustainable, secure, and prosperous future. As a Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration, Daimler helped drive the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI. He has also served as Assistant Dean and Assistant Professor of Software Engineering in Carnegie Mellon's School of Computer Science. His academic research focuses on the intersection of Machine Learning, Computational Linguistics, and Network Science (Graph Theory). He has a specialization in public policy and economics, helped launch Carnegie Mellon's Silicon Valley Campus, and founded its Entrepreneurial Management program. A frequent keynote speaker, he has presented at venues including the engineering schools of MIT, Stanford, and Harvard. Daimler studied at Stanford University, the University of Washington-Seattle, and Carnegie Mellon University, where he earned his PhD in its School of Computer Science. Contact Information Twitter: @ead LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ericdaimler Website: http://www.conexus.com/  Re-read Saturday  News Multitasking is the first or second greatest LIE in the modern business world. The best description of multitasking would include thrash, waste, and hubris. The problem is that EVERYONE thinks they are special and can multitask their way to the effective delivery of value. Chapter 3 of Why Limit WIP: We Are Drowning In Work blasts away at multitasking (another take on the topic from 2015: Multitasking Yourself Away From Efficiency | Software Process and Measurement https://bit.ly/37XmrSY). Multitasking is bad, don't do it.   Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:  https://amzn.to/36Rq3p5  Previous Entries Week 1: Preface, Foreword, Introduction, and Logistics – https://bit.ly/3iDezbp Week 2: Processing and Memory – https://bit.ly/3qYR4yg  Week 3: Completion - https://bit.ly/3usMiLm Week 4: Multitasking - https://bit.ly/37hUh5z    Upcoming Events: Final Call!  Free Webinar When Prioritization Goes Bad https://www.greatpro.org/Webinar-Live-Register?id=1954  April 19, 2022 11 AM EDT to 1230 EDT   Next SPaMCAST  Next week for SPaMCAST 700 we will feature our interview with Slater Victoroff. Slater presents an alternate definition for AI.  Compare and contrast to Dr. Daimler's definition?    

Today on the podcast, I have the pleasure of speaking with Andrea Ippolito. Andrea is the CEO and Founder of SimpliFed, a virtual lactation and breastfeeding support service. Their mission to make this type of support more accessible in every way, from affordability to connecting with an expert quickly in the comfort of your own home. There are so many questions that can come up when breastfeeding and pumping, so SimpliFed is making it so much easier to get the answers you need when you need them. Andrea Ippolito currently serves as the CEO and Founder of SimpliFed. Prior to joining SimpliFed, Andrea served as the Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Innovators Network within the VA Center for Innovation. In this capacity, she designed and oversaw the creation of a $10.5M program that provides the tools and resources to VA employees to develop innovations that improve the experience of Veterans and their families. Prior to that role, Andrea served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow based out of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and General Services Administration. In this episode we talk about why instant, private, expert lactation support is so important, the scope of practice of lactation consultants, and the ideal schedule to begin working with one. We also discuss how lactation consultants are now covered by insurance so more people will hopefully begin to take advantage of that benefit when they need it most. I hope you enjoy this conversation with Andrea! SimpliFed https://simplifed.us SimpliFed Instagram https://www.instagram.com/simplifedbaby/ First droplets https://firstdroplets.com --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/notamamayet/support

Part 1: This week on Making Data Simple, we have Eric Diamler.  Eric is an authority in the Artificial Intelligence community with over 20 years of experience in the field. He currently leads MIT's first ever spinout from its Math department and has cofounded six technology companies that have pioneered work in fields ranging from software systems to statistical arbitrage. Show Notes 2:24 –Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration4:30 -Be careful about confusing a vision with a short-term time horizon12:56 - Don't be a technology laggard, know what the "data" inhibitors are20:12 - Mr. President.  Here is the situation27:49 - How does the US compare to other countries?Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [almartintalksdata@gmail.com] and tell us why you should be next. Abstract Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Account Technical Leader IBM Technology Sales, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun. 

Part 1: This week on Making Data Simple, we have Eric Diamler.  Eric is an authority in the Artificial Intelligence community with over 20 years of experience in the field. He currently leads MIT's first ever spinout from its Math department and has cofounded six technology companies that have pioneered work in fields ranging from software systems to statistical arbitrage. Show Notes 2:24 –Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration4:30 -Be careful about confusing a vision with a short-term time horizon12:56 - Don't be a technology laggard, know what the "data" inhibitors are20:12 - Mr. President.  Here is the situation27:49 - How does the US compare to other countries?Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at [almartintalksdata@gmail.com] and tell us why you should be next. Abstract Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Account Technical Leader IBM Technology Sales, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun. 

This week, The Periphery talks to Dr. Eric Daimler, who formerly served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow in the Obama Administration and as Professor at Carnegie Mellon University. We talk regulatory trends, policy frustrations, the political and social conditions that drive innovation, and what the rapid proliferation of AI means for the future of work, wealth distribution, society, and culture. We also discuss Pixar's Wall-E.Leave us an honest review, subscribe, and send us any ideas or feedback that you'd like to share at theperipherypodcast@gmail.com. And be sure to become a Conversationalist on our Patreon if you are eager to support our efforts to diversify tech. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, host Michael Marchuk talks with Dr. Eric Daimler, CEO of Conexus AI and an expert with over 20 years in artificial intelligence and a Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration. Eric shares his thoughts on automation and AI as it relates to the context of our knowledge and processing and provides insights on business automation as every company becomes an "AI business". . Here's what we talked with Eric about: * How implicit knowledge can be encapsulated using AI to create explicit, sharable knowledge across the organization * Why data in context is critical to the application of AI * Where RPA and AI will leverage category theory to extend the useful lifespan of existing systems as new systems are introduced in an organization . To ensure that you never miss an episode of Transform NOW, be sure to subscribe!

This week we welcome West Point graduate and U.S. Army veteran George Chewning, who served five years as a U.S. Army Infantry Officer including a deployment to Afghanistan. In conversation with FourBlock Founder Mike Abrams, George shares details of his time in the Army and his service in Afghanistan; his military transition and what made him realize he needed support with the transition; and his post-military career as a non-technical veteran who transitioned into a civilian career in technology. He shares insights from his transition journey and what he's learned from making multiple transitions throughout his career. George also discusses how he found his way back to a career serving his community and shares his advice for fellow veterans in transition now. After his transition out of the military, George earned his MBA from the George Washington University. He served as a Legislative Director for the Global War on Terror Memorial Foundation and then transitioned to a Program Manager role at Facebook before being selected as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the Department of Veteran Affairs. He just recently began a new role as Deputy Director for the Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation. George is an alumnus of FourBlock's Veteran Career Readiness Program and also serves as a volunteer member on our National Leadership Council.   ABOUT US Welcome to the FourBlock Podcast, a show that examines veteran career transition and the military-civilian divide in the workplace. General Charles Krulak coined the term "Three Block War" to describe the nature of 21st-century military service defined by peace-keeping, humanitarian aid, and full combat. But what happens next? Veterans are often unprepared to return home and begin new careers. We call this the Fourth Block.  FourBlock is a national non-profit that has supported thousands of transitioning service members across the nation in beginning new and meaningful careers.  Mike Abrams (@fourblock) is an Afghanistan veteran, founder of FourBlock, and author of two military transition books. He represents the military transition perspective. Lindsey Pollak (@lindsaypollak) is a career and workplace expert and New York Times bestselling author of three career advice books. Lindsey represents the civilian perspective of this issue.  Veterans, explore new industries and make the right connections. Find a career that fits your calling. Join us at fourblock.org/ Sponsor our program or host a class to equip more of our veterans at fourblock.org/donate. Follow FourBlock on Social Media  LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter Podcast episodes are produced and edited by the Columbia University Center for Veteran Transition and Integration.  

In this episode of “Technically Human,” I sit down with Dr. Eric Daimler. We talk about one of the biggest technology problems facing us today—data deluge—and how new computational models and theories can help solve it and, Dr. Daimler weighs in on the gaps, differences, and possibilities for collaboration between policy, industry, and academia. And we talk about what a vision of “AI for Good” might look like in a world of increasingly infinite data. Dr. Eric Daimler is a leading authority in robotics and artificial intelligence with over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker. He served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics. Dr. Daimler has incubated, built and led several technology companies recognized as pioneers in their fields ranging from software systems to statistical arbitrage. His newest venture, Conexus, is a groundbreaking solution for what is perhaps today's biggest information technology problem — data deluge. As founder and CEO of Conexus, Dr. Daimler  is leading the development of CQL, a patent-pending platform founded upon category theory — a revolution in mathematics — to help companies manage the overwhelming and rapidly growing challenge of data integration and migration. His academic research has been at the intersection of AI, Computational Linguistics, and Network Science (Graph Theory). His work has expanding to include economics and public policy. He served as Assistant Professor and Assistant Dean at Carnegie Mellon's School of Computer Science where he founded the university's Entrepreneurial Management program and helped to launch Carnegie Mellon's Silicon Valley Campus. He has studied at the University of Washington-Seattle, Stanford University, and Carnegie Mellon University, where he earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science. Dr. Daimler's extensive career spanning business, academics and policy give him a rare perspective on the next generation of AI. Dr. Daimler sees clearly how information technology can dramatically improve our world. However, it demands our engagement. Neither a utopia nor dystopia is inevitable. What matters is how we shape and react to, its development. This episode was produced by Matt Perry. Our head of reseaarch is Sakina Nuruddin. Art by Desi Aleman.

Kettle COO, Nathaniel Manning, talks about balancing risk in a changing climate, structure without bureaucracy, evolution by design, good decision making, the social contract of insurance, and sitting on a monastery cushion for 3 months. He also talks about old guard vs new guard, building the plane while it's flying, making the implicit explicit, and evolution by design.Nathaniel has a long career of founding and leading companies including Fellow Robots, BRCK, the largest provider of public wifi in Africa, and Ushahidi the world's largest open-source platform for crisis response. Along the way, he worked on furthering clean energy as part of the Clinton Climate Initiative at the Clinton Foundation, and Nathaniel was part of the Obama Administration's first class of Presidential Innovation Fellow where he was special advisor on open data at USAID, the world's premier international development agency, where he went on to become the Chief Data Officer.With that kind of track record, it's safe to say that Nathaniel puts his money where his mouth is when it comes to creating technological solutions to some of the world's biggest problems. Nathaniel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanielmanning/Kettle: https://ourkettle.com/Episode Website: https://betweentwocoos.com/kettle-coo-nathaniel-manningMichael Koenig on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/mkoenig514 

On this episode, Dara sits down with Dr. Eric Daimler, founder of Connexus and Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama administration, to discuss the biggest dangers lurking in AI, the first ever spin-out from MIT's math department and how its addressing today's AI challenges, and Eric's views on how the heck we go about trying to regulate an algorithm. 

Join KP Reddy, General Partner of Shadow Ventures, and Martin Ringlein for a compelling conversation on DAOs, NFTs, and Web3. Martin Ringlein, “Marty,” is a serial entrepreneur and active investor; he is General Partner at the Adventure Fund and Venture Partner at NextGen Venture Partners where he invests in early and late-stage startups, such as Chime, Plaid, Uber, PayTM, Hyperloop One, and SpaceX. Most recently Marty was the Chief Product Officer for a #FinTech startup that was acquired by Brex where he was brought on to help lead product innovation. Prior, Marty was Global Head of R&D at Eventbrite, where Martin joined pre-IPO through the acquisition of his previous start-up. Marty also had the honor of being a Presidential Innovation Fellow at The White House working directly within the Executive Office of the President for the Obama administration. Marty's first company was acquired by Twitter pre-IPO where he went on to become their first Design Manager, helping build and lead the Research & Design team. Marty currently lives in Los Gatos, California with his wife and newborn baby boy, Jack! Follow us! https://www.linkedin.com/company/shadowvc https://twitter.com/shadowventures https://www.facebook.com/shadowventures https://www.instagram.com/shadow.ventures/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/innovationsv/support

In this episode of “The CX Tipping Point Podcast,” Martha Dorris speaks with Scott Weiss, formerly a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow and IDEO alum with an expertise in human centered design and organizational strategy.  As a PIF, Scott worked with federal agencies to strengthen their human centered design, customer experience and innovation capacity and capabilities. Scott begins by describing the purpose of the PIF program and its codification in law to create a more modern and innovative government. Scott leveraged his passion for design and the intersection of social impact to work with many federal agencies and efforts to create measurable outcomes to underserved communities. Learn about how the PIF program supports the improvement of government services.    Scott was able to use his expertise with the Department of Veterans Affairs, support the development of a framework to mature the CX capabilities of the High Impact Service Providers (HISPs), to work with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Domestic Policy Council to help operationalize the Executive Order on “Advancing Racial Equity and Supporting Underserved Communities,”  helping to mature the service capabilities within GSA's Technology Transformation Services, and with the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency (CISA).Learn from Scott's experience in government implementing innovation and improving trust in government. As well as his insights based on his expertise, experience in the private sector and ability to influence government at the highest levels.  

Vivian Lee is a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow detailed to the Federal Trade Commission where she serves as an adviser on litigation, regulation, and education related to digital advertising/marketing, adtech, and privacy. Prior to this fellowship, Vivian spent more than six years at Microsoft where she held marketing roles across teams working on everything from Xbox to State and Local Government partnerships. Follow Ryan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryankmacinnis/  Follow Ryan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rkmac Follow Vivian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivianejlee/ Medieval Fantasy by MaxKoMusic | https://maxkomusic.com/ Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en_US

In this episode, we sat down with Adam Bellow, co-founder, and CEO of Breakout EDU, and an EdTech entrepreneur and technologist. Adam gives his best advice for educators who are considering transitioning into EdTech, provides insight on how EdTech brands can successfully communicate with their educator audience, and discusses some of his philosophies on how to create genuine solutions for classroom problems. About Breakout EDUBreakout EDU: we unlock the love of learning through games.  Breakout Edu is a box with padlocks on it, each lock with a different academic purpose. Students work together in small groups to collaboratively unlock the box. Inside of the box, there are discussion cards based on the 4 C's. About 2 years ago, Breakout also launched a digital platform with games, a game design school and a series of course materials that allows the students to become creators. Adam expressed a huge value for student creation and student ownership as a higher level proof of learning, using what they learned in class to do something that's actually fun. Note: This interview was originally recorded on August 27, 2021  as part of the All Things Education and Marketing podcast hosted by Elana Leoni. About Adam:Adam is a dedicated educational technologist, father of two young boys. He is the CEO and Co-Founder of Breakout EDU, the immersive gaming platform that enables teachers and students to transform classrooms into places of discovery and inquiry-based learning. Previously, he served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for the Obama White House, created several edtech learning platforms including eduTecher and eduClipper. Adam has written numerous books about educational technology and speaks internationally on the subject of education and technology. If you enjoyed this week's podcast, click here to rate us and let us know your favorite part of this episode. To make sure you don't miss future content, make sure you're subscribed to our Adam said there is one central question to every good edtech product: “what do students need most?” Instead of building out of need, Adam said some edtech brands “build for flashiness, like a lot of pitches I'm sure you've heard from an EdTech space. It's like, oh it's like this for the classroom without ever thinking did we need that in the classroom? So for Adam, the key to a good edtech founder is “being able to critically look at it and be like, will this actually matter to those kids? Will it make the product better? Will it make the experience better? Or is it just something that we've done for the sake of doing it?” With their experience in the classroom, Adam said teachers are uniquely equipped to ask those questions and use that critical eye. Adam said that, in order to have a successful marketing product, “The advice I would have is value first. Like we were talking about earlier. But just help as much as possible. And sometimes your product may not solve all of their problems. And the world of education is full of amazing voices. On your end, your job should be to elevate voices as well. And you can elevate voices that are related to the things you're passionate about.”  In reflection, Adam said “I think Chris Lehmann had the quote from years ago, “It needs to be ubiquitous, necessary, and invisible.” And like oxygen, right. That was his quote, like oxygen. And it's true. I mean that's still exactly true today. It is not about the technology. Every kid has, most of the students have access to devices, some multiple devices. And as the devices get more and more impressive, and the kids are doing more things with the device on their own, it' not about the flashy toy and it's more about what we can get these students to do with that. focusing on the product, not on the how to or the technical side of it.”

EPISODE 32, SEASON 2: Dr. Eric Daimler is a leading authority in data science. A serial entrepreneur and academic, he served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama administration driving US leadership in AI and robotics. He's currently the CEO at Conexus, working to solve the massive problem of data deluge and deliver practical applications for business and governments alike.ABOUT THE SERIES: Future of XYZ is a weekly interview series dedicated to fostering forward-thinking discussions about where we are as a world and where we're going.FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit future-of.xyz and follow on social media... LinkedIn: @lisagralnek, @lvg-co-strategy | Twitter: @lgralnek | IG: @futureofxyz

Sarah Brooks is a design leader and intrapreneur who uses strategic design and mixed-methods research to help teams and organizations reach better outcomes. She has worked in enterprise, federal, non-profit, start-up, and hybrid organizations. If you're one of millions of US military veterans, her work at the Veterans Administration has touched your life. We are pleased to welcome Sarah as a member of the Civic Design conference (https://rosenfeldmedia.com/civic-design-2021/) and community curation team! In this Rosenfeld Review episode, she shares her experience at the VA, digging into specific challenges when working within a large org, learning what ‘patriotism' means from people who are in the service, and how soft-skills (people skills, really) are needed at the systems level. Sarah recommends: Emergent Strategy by Adrienne Maree Brown https://www.amazon.com/Emergent-Strategy-Shaping-Change-Changing/dp/1849352607 Tickets to Civic Design 2021 are now available; register now! https://rosenfeldmedia.com/civic-design-2021/ More about Sarah: Sarah Brooks is a design leader and intrapreneur working at the intersection of foresight, service design, and mixed-methods research approaches to help teams and organizations reach better outcomes. She has worked across the enterprise, federal, non-profit, start-up, and hybrid organizations. Currently, Sarah is the Executive design leader responsible for the development and diffusion of standards and practices that create experience excellence across IBM's product and service teams. She is an active mentor, author, educator, and speaker on the art & craft of seamless experiences and living systems approached to complex challenges. Sarah is the author of System Shifting, in the book Strategic Design Thinking: Innovation in Products, Services and Beyond, and the essay Collective Strength and Greater Understanding Through Co-Design in the book Leap Dialogues: Career Pathways in Design for Social Innovation. Sarah served as a 2014-2015 U.S. Presidential Innovation Fellow at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs continuing on as a political appointee until the end of the Obama-Biden Administration, working as Chief Design Officer leading a team that worked on strategic transformation priorities. Prior to government service, Sarah lived in San Francisco and worked in the social impact ecosystem and currently lives in Montauk, New York.

In this episode of the IoT For All Podcast, Conexus CEO and Co-Founder Eric Daimler joins us to talk AI systems. Eric shares some of the most important components of AI systems, what new use cases they enable, and what the market looks like for AI technology and applications. Eric also shares the story of Conexus including how it came to be and some of the challenges of bringing an AI-powered data integration solution to market.Dr. Eric Daimler is a leading authority in robotics and artificial intelligence with over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, technologist, and policymaker. Eric served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of the President, as the sole authority driving the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI & Robotics.As a successful entrepreneur, Eric is looking towards the next generation of AI as a system that creates a multi-tiered platform for fueling the development and adoption of emerging technology for industries that have traditionally been slow to adapt. As founder and CEO of Conexus, Eric is leading CQL, a patent-pending platform founded upon category theory — a revolution in mathematics — to help companies manage the overwhelming challenge of data integration and migration.Interested in connecting with Eric Daimler? Reach out to him on Linkedin!About Conexus: Conexus was founded to deal with one of the biggest problems plaguing the majority of businesses today — data deluge. Every business is now a data-driven business but they are few means to manage data efficiently with minimal time and cost.The Conexus solution uses new math developed at MIT to create new algorithms that establish relationships among large, disparate sets of data resulting in seamless data integration and interoperability which is accomplished in a short time period at a mere fraction of the cost of today's cumbersome, manual integration projects that can take years and waste billions of dollars.Key Questions and Topics from this Episode:(00:54) Intro to Eric Daimler(04:47) Intro to Conexus(06:16) What types of use cases have Conexus been involved in?(10:14) What is an AI system?(14:13) What are the components of an AI system(18:57) What is the industry and customer focus at Conexus(21:11) What challenges did you experience going to market?(23:30) What market trends have you seen in AI?(27:09) What are data lakes?(30:12) What's the best first step for companies to utilize their existing data?(33:42) How will AI affect the workforce?

Pia Zaragoza is a creative technologist, researcher, and educator exploring the current use cases and future possibilities of emerging technologies. She is the former Vice President of Accessibility Research and Insights at JP Morgan Chase and is currently a Presidential Innovation Fellow. Pia’s Google Home once told her that the meaning of life is all about finding a way. In this episode, we talk about how Pia found her way into inclusive design and research, finding your voice as a designer, contributing to civic tech, designing for accessibility and inclusion, and so much more.

Pia Zaragoza is a creative technologist, researcher, and educator exploring the current use cases and future possibilities of emerging technologies. She is the former Vice President of Accessibility Research and Insights at JP Morgan Chase and is currently a Presidential Innovation Fellow. Pia’s Google Home once told her that the meaning of life is all about finding a way. In this episode, we talk about how Pia found her way into inclusive design and research, finding your voice as a designer, contributing to civic tech, designing for accessibility and inclusion, and so much more.

2020 brought change to every industry, and fintech is no exception. Thanks in large part to the pandemic, which forced at-home banking, tech adoption skyrocketed. Features that were once thought of as nice to have, or even too difficult to use — QR codes, mobile check cashing, touchless transactions — became expected and mainstream in a matter of weeks. On the coattails of a tech-heavy year, what could possibly be next? Listen as host J Cornelius and guests Mike Dick and Martin Ringlein talk insider perspectives on all things fintech in 2021 and beyond. This hour-long roundtable is packed with bold predictions. We won’t give it all away here, but these experts’ forecasts include:The ability to bring your bank account number with you from provider to provider, nearly eradicating bank switching costs for customers. That financial technology will embed itself in other industries. Think document signing coupled with transactions. An opportunity for niche banks for pet lovers, sports fanatics, nature buffs — you name it.More adaptable UIs for powerful customer-specific experiences. Their take on the future of fintech is not to be missed. Additional Topics IncludeNext steps for challenger banks and neobanks as they look to differentiate themselves in a saturated marketThe impending UI/UX revolution for legacy banks, and what happens to challenger banks when the big-wigs level-up their lookWho’s really behind the apps we love — like PayPal and Chime — and what that says about the value of brand vs. service About Mike DickMike Dick is the Co-Founder of Gather, a collaborative finance tool for modern couples. At heart, he’s a designer and coder building out his own ideas and helping others with theirs. In addition to his work with Gather, Mike runs a product studio that has an established, repeatable method for creating successful products. He also co-founded two prior startups, nvite and Cage, both acquired by large-scale companies. About Martin Ringlein Martin is the Director of Product at Brex, a startup that’s reimagining financial systems for growing companies so they can realize their full potential. He’s known for his role in designing, building, and growing creative teams, products, and companies for some of the industries’ biggest brands. His impressive credentials also include Presidential Innovation Fellow and Twitter Design Manager. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eric Daimler is a leading authority in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. Eric served under the Obama Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for AI and Robotics in the Executive Office of the President, with the sole authority for driving the agenda for United States leadership in research, commercialization and public adoption of AI & Robotics. “Don't confuse a clear vision with a short time horizon.” Take the Jetsons, for example. We had a clear vision of a robot who would do all these things. Nowadays, we have a Roomba. AI will be most successful when deployed in very structured environments. On AI and consciousness, “this will certainly not happen in the next 10-20 years, if ever. We don't even understand our own consciousness.” ————————————————————————— To learn more about this episode, including podcast transcripts and show notes, visit *salt.org/talks* ( http://salt.org/talks ) Moderated by Anthony Scaramucci.

This week on the ATARC DevSecOps Coffee Chat, we have the pleasure of speaking with Ken Kato. Kato shares his experience and insights with us as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow.

SFG12 - Nat Manning, CEO of KettleNathaniel is the co-founder and COO of Kettle, a machine-learning-powered reinsurer that protects people from increasing climate change crises. Nathaniel previously led Ushahidi, the world's largest open source data platform for crisis response. There he helped scale the Ushahidi platform to over 200 countries gathering over 10M first hand reports. Previous to that he was a Presidential Innovation Fellow for Open Data, and then the first Chief Data Officer of the US Agency for International Development, where he helped open up and analyze large data sets for humanitarian response. He has been part of the founding teams of technology startups like BRCK and FellowAI and is on the board of Project Wayfinder.Nathaniel joins me today to discuss his path from Ushahidi to forming his own company, Kettle. We learn more about crowdsourcing information and why Ushahidi's timing was fruitful. Nathaniel shares with us the types of funding that Usahidi looked into and the benefits and pitfalls of each. I ask him for his input on how would he change the funding system for tech nonprofits. Nathaniel speaks to how his time with the government at USAID prepared him for the CEO role at Ushahidi. We also learn about Nathaniel's passion for insurance and the beauty of insurance in its purest form.“That's the impact you're really making is that sort of financial safety net there to let people who get hurt from these, acts of God, whether it's a hurricane or a fire, which, like I said, sadly, or there's only more and more of that they're protected, and that our communities are protected.” - Nathaniel ManningToday on Startups for Good we cover:How Ushahidi fostered creativity amongst the employeesThe challenges of running a big tech non-profit Building business development teamsDealing with misconduct in leadership as a CEOConnect with Nathaniel on Twitter or Kettle's website and his own personal website Subscribe, Rate & Share Your Favorite Episodes!Thanks for tuning into today's episode of Startups For Good with your host, Miles Lasater. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast listening app.Don't forget to visit our website, connect with Miles on Twitter or LinkedIn, and share your favorite episodes across social media. For more information about The Giving Circle

After careful consideration on whether she was living her “best product market fit,” Clarice Chan transitioned from a successful career at Microsoft to working as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the Department of Veterans Affairs where she made an incredible impact to how Veterans communicate with the department.

Today, I talk with Denice Ross and Allison Plyer. Denice Ross is a Director at the National Conference on Citizenship and a Fellow at Georgetown’s Beeck Center. Her recent focus is on data quality and the 2020 Census and she also provides strategic support for the State Chief Data Officer Network. Denice comes to this work from New America, where she studied the power of networks to advance progress on big challenges. As a Presidential Innovation Fellow (2014-5), she co-founded the White House Police Data Initiative to increase transparency and accountability and worked with the Department of Energy to improve community resilience in disaster-impacted areas. Earlier, she served as Director of Enterprise Information for the City of New Orleans, establishing their open data initiative, now recognized as one of the most successful in the country. Prior to government, Denice co-directed The Data Center of Southeast Louisiana, a non-profit data intermediary. She brought a data-driven approach to numerous post-Katrina community planning initiatives and co-founded the first new childcare center after the storm. Allison Plyer is the Chief Demographer for The Data Center of Southeast Louisiana. Dr. Plyer is co-author of The New Orleans Prosperity Index which examines the extent to which economic outcomes have improved for black New Orleanians since the end of the Civil Rights era. She is also author of The New Orleans Index series, developed in collaboration with Brookings to analyze the state of the recovery post-Katrina and later to track the region’s progress toward prosperity. She served as an editor for the Brookings Institution Press volume entitled “Resilience and Opportunity: Lessons from the U.S. Gulf Coast after Katrina and Rita.” Allison is an international expert in post–Katrina demographics and disaster recovery trends and frequently provides commentary on recovery and development to media such as NPR, the Associated Press, the New York Times, and USA Today. Allison received her Doctorate in Science from Tulane University and has an MBA in marketing and organizational behavior from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. 

Today we're speaking with Puja Balachander, Founder & CEO of Devie. We speak with Puja about her time working as a Presidential Innovation Fellow, how she got into user research, and where her inspiration for Devie originated.

Michelle Holko had made it a lifelong passion to explore innovations in health data analytics and bioinformatics. Currently detailed as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the National Institutes of Health’s All Of Us Research Program, Holko is working to better engage research participants and researchers. She discusses her background at DARPA plus emerging technologies, wearable devices, vaccine research and more — all incredibly important during pandemics like COVID-19's that government faces.

For generations, a liberal arts education was the gold standard of preparation for career and a well-rounded-life.  For much of the last decade, however, voices—including those of prominent technology leaders—have warned that the jobs of today and tomorrow require education in so-called STEM fields: science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.  Not surprisingly, enrollments in liberal arts fields have declined.  Scott Hartley argues that far more than a luxury—the skills and perspective cultivated by a liberal arts education are precisely the skills needed for the modern information economy.  Scott Hartley is a venture capitalist and the author of “The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World,” a Financial Times business book of the month. It was also a finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey & Company’s Bracken Bower Prize an author under 35. He has been a Partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures (MDV), and a Venture Partner at Compound. Prior to venture capital, Hartley worked at Google, Facebook, Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society, and at the White House as a Presidential Innovation Fellow.

Artificial Intelligence or AI has the ability to change everything about how the world works. In fact PWC estimates that AI will contribute $15.6 trillion to the global economy by 2030. But what is AI exactly? On this week's show, we have the pleasure of having on Dr. Eric Daimler, CEO and Founder of Conexus, Presidential Innovation Fellow and one of the leading experts on AI. Dr. Daimler's passion and vision for AI allows us to gain a better definition of what AI is and how it is changing industries. He also lays out some of the risks that AI might create and how we can manage them. But AI is beyond just investing. Dr. Daimler also discusses how AI can help change wealth building opportunities in economically challenged places. What we find is that all of us should embrace learning about AI and the changes it will bring to our world in the coming years. Please join for the next episode of The Wealth Intersection.

In this episode no. 16 I interview Miguel Willis, a 2017 graduate from Seattle University School of Law and currently the inaugural Presidential Innovation Fellow at Law School Admission Council, where he oversees the Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program which is a program that pairs law students with legal services organizations to develop projects that support the use of technology, data, and design-thinking to bridge the justice gap in America. Miguel is committed to leveraging his law degree in a non-traditional way to solve seemingly intractable problems and in this episode you will hear examples of how he does just that. Miguel shares with me the personal reasons that led him to set up this innovative program, and how he is aiming to fill a gap in traditional legal education. We cover how he went about doing so, the types of organisations involved and the interesting projects they work on and how it leads to opportunities for students. We also cover how, funnily enough, Miguel ended up being a fellow in his own program. In this episode you will hear how one person turned a good idea into action, the benefits and challenges of hackathons, the key to partnerships that have real impact, and actions we can take to improve diversity in the profession. You will especially enjoy this episode if you are interested in the entrepreneurs’ journey including how to overcome issues of program sustainability; and creative models for new legal education and justice solutions. Links:  ATJ Tech Fellows Justice Innovation Challenge Legal Services National Technology Assitance Project Internet bar organisation Innovation in Legal Practice Summit Andrea Perry-Petersen – LinkedIn - Twitter @winkiepp – andreaperrypetersen.com.au Twitter - @ReimaginingJ Facebook – Reimagining Justice group

Dr. Eric Daimler, Co-Founder of Conexus, Partner at Spinglass, Board Member of Petuum, Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration based in the United States participates in Risk Roundup to discuss How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Business. How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Business From the revolution in personal computers to the information, communication and digitization technologies that […] The post How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Business appeared first on Risk Group.

Does AI need more fuzzy thinkers? How can we increase interdisciplinary perspectives in emerging tech? Can an interdisciplinary lens help us better foresee unintended consequences? In this episode of thinkPod, we are joined by Scott Hartley (author of The Fuzzy and The Techie: Why Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World) and interdisciplinary artist Carla Gannis. We talk to Scott and Carla about the disciplines missing in the AI conversation, how we can bring greater ethical thinking into AI, and the dramatic influence of sci-fi writers on emerging tech. We also tackle whether a four-year degree is an antiquated idea, how the mundane uses of AI can often be more important, and the borderless nature of data. Connect with us & the guests: thinkLeaders @IBMthinkLeaders Scott Hartley @scottehartley Carla Gannis @carlagannis HartleyGlobal.com CarlaGannis.com Scott Hartley is a venture capitalist and best-selling author of THE FUZZY AND THE TECHIE (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017), a Financial Times business book of the month, and finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey & Company's Bracken Bower Prize for an author under 35. He is a global keynote speaker on future of work, and human skills in our technology age. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a Partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures (MDV), and a Venture Partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Scott worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He has been a contributing author at MIT Press, and has written for publications such as Quartz, The Financial Times, and Foreign Policy, and been featured in USA Today, Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal. He holds three degrees from Stanford and Columbia, has finished six marathon and Ironman 70.3 triathlons. He is a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations, and has visited over 70 countries. Carla Gannis is an interdisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn, New York. She produces virtual and physical works that are darkly comical in their contemplation of human, earthly and cosmological conditions. Fascinated by digital semiotics and the lineage of hybrid identity, Gannis takes a horror vacui approach to her artistic practice, culling inspiration from networked communication, art and literary history, emerging technologies and speculative fiction. Gannis’s work has appeared in exhibitions, screenings and internet projects across the globe. Recent projects include “Portraits in Landscape,” Midnight Moment, Times Square Arts, NY and “Sunrise/Sunset,” Whitney Museum of American Art, Artport. A regular lecturer on art, innovation and society, in March 2019 Gannis was a speaker at the SXSW Interactive Festival on the panel “Human Presence and Humor Make Us Better Storytellers.” Publications who have featured Gannis’s work include The Creators Project, Wired, FastCo, Hyperallergic, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, El PaÍs and The LA Times, among others. In 2015 her speculative fiction was included in DEVOURING THE GREEN:: fear of a human planet: a cyborg / eco poetry anthology, published by Jaded Ibis Press. Gannis received an MFA in painting from Boston University in the twentieth century. In the twenty-first century she is faculty and assistant chair of the Department of Digital Arts at Pratt Institute.

With all the buzz around the word innovation these days it’s easy to overlook the fact innovation is just good ole R&D. Today we talk about how real innovation starts with real customers and a little bit of good ole intuition.Martin Ringlein is the Global Head of R&D at Eventbrite, one of the largest ticketing platforms in the world. Martin joined Eventbrite pre-IPO through the acquisition of his previous start-up, nvite, in late 2016 where he served as CEO and Chairman of the Board. Prior, Martin was a Presidential Innovation Fellow at The White House working directly within the Executive Office of the President for the Obama administration. Martin’s first company, nclud, a research and design consultancy, was acquired by Twitter pre-IPO where he went on to become their first Design Manager, helping build and lead the R&D team. Martin is also a Venture Partner at NextGen Venture Partners where he invests in early and late stage startups, such as Hyperloop One and Chime. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is part two of a two-part interview with Martin Ringlein. He's the Global Head of R&D at Eventbrite, where he joined pre-IPO through the acquisition of his startup, nvite. Prior, Marty was a Presidential Innovation Fellow at The White House working directly within the Executive Office of the President for the Obama administration. Marty's first company, nclud, a research and design consultancy, was acquired by Twitter pre-IPO where he went on to become their first Design Manager, helping build and lead the R&D team. Martin is also a Venture Partner at NextGen Venture Partners where he invests in early and late-stage startups, such as Hyperloop One. Marty talks selling his first startup, launching his second and his advice to see everything as a stepping stone. After listening to Marty, start researching companies, especially smaller companies that you haven't heard of before. This is where you'll get to flex your skillset and leap into your career journey like never before. After you're inspired by Marty's story, please leave a review: http://bit.ly/AmandaNachmanPodcast

Welcome to the first episode of Find Your Passion Career! This is part one of a two-part interview with Martin Ringlein. He's the Global Head of R&D at Eventbrite, where he joined pre-IPO through the acquisition of his startup, nvite. Prior, Marty was a Presidential Innovation Fellow at The White House working directly within the Executive Office of the President for the Obama administration. Marty's first company, nclud, a research and design consultancy, was acquired by Twitter pre-IPO where he went on to become their first Design Manager, helping build and lead the R&D team. Martin is also a Venture Partner at NextGen Venture Partners where he invests in early and late-stage startups, such as Hyperloop One. Marty talks future-proofing innovations and transforming his college side hustle into his first startup. After listening to Marty, find out how you can join an organization or find a project you can work on like Marty did with the Greek Yearbook. After you're inspired by Marty's story, please leave a review: http://bit.ly/AmandaNachmanPodcast

Dan Hammer is an environmental economist and winner of the 2017 Pritzker Prize for the Environment. Currently he serves as a National Geographic Fellow and the co-founder of Earthrise Media, and throughout 2016, he was the Senior Policy Advisor to the U.S. Chief Technology Officer, Megan Smith, as part of the Obama Administration.   Before arriving at the White House, Dan was the Presidential Innovation Fellow that released the first API listing for NASA. Prior to NASA, Hammer was the Chief Data Scientist at the World Resources Institute, where he helped re-launch Global Forest Watch, an open-source project to monitor deforestation.   After graduating from Swarthmore College in 2007 with high honors in mathematics and economics, and before receiving his PhD in environmental economics from the University of California, Berkeley, Dan was a Thomas J. Watson Fellow and traveled to Polynesia to build and race outrigger canoes. Today, among many other amazing mentors, he continues to works with Steve McCormick (former CEO of The Nature Conservancy) on web service infrastructure for environmental information.   played in the academic/private/public sectors // has stayed so true to a single mission across 17+ positions over 10 years // we took a while to get to the prize & White House   Some topics we covered include: How the strong sense of safety he experienced in his childhood has supported all the risk-taking he now takes on in his career. The lasting impact that mentors like Megan Smith, Steve McCormick, David Wheeler, and Arvind Subramanian have had on his career Where he sees the job of a data scientist (who knows what), ending, and a subject matter expert (who knows why), beginning. The most meaningful moments of his experienced at the White House, from working with a brilliant mentor to being in the situation room during the Flint Water Crisis. How teaching math to inmates at San Quentin State Prison for 2 years catalyzed his path to the World Resources Institute and NASA. Why -- across 17+ positions over the past 10 years -- democratizing scientific data and making it more accessible to the public has been THE consistent focus of his work.   Enjoy the show!   Show Notes: https://ajgoldstein.com/podcast/ep18/ Dan’s Website: https://www.danham.me/r/about.html AJ’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/ajgoldstein393/

We speak with Scott Hartley about The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House and is a venture capitalist and start-up advisor. He is a contributing author to the MIT Press book Shopping for Good. He has also written for publications such as Inc., Foreign Policy, Forbes, and Boston Review. We also chat with poet and essayist Heidi Czerwiec about her recently-released poetry collection Conjoining. She is also the author of the forthcoming lyric essay collection Fluid States, winner of Pleiades Press’ 2018 Robert C. Jones Prize for Short Prose, and is the editor of North Dakota Is Everywhere: An Anthology of Contemporary North Dakota Poets. She lives in Minneapolis, where she is Senior Poetry Editor with Poetry City, USA and mentors with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop. You can visit her at http://heidiczerwiec.com

In 2017, the Province of Ontario appointed its first Chief Digital Officer, Hillary Hartley. Hartley is something of a trailblazer. She came to Ontario from Washington, where she was the Deputy Executive Director and Co-founder of 18F, the US Federal Government's digital services corps. Prior to founding 18F, Hartley first arrived in Washington in 2013 as a Presidential Innovation Fellow. Before that, she spent several years in integrated marketing and social media management. Hartley's arrival in Ontario has coincided with a burst of digital initiatives. The province declared a set of digital service priorities, established a digital lab in Communitech in Waterloo, established a set of digital service strategies and, most recently, published these on github. Hillary Hartley made some time to talk with me about the position of Chief Digital Officer and the perspective and approach she is bringing to it. We had a wide-ranging conversation, one that made me even more optimistic about the direction Ontario has set in this area. It’s your turn Inside P2 is produced by Joseph Thornley. I’d love to know what you think about the topics in this podcast, topics you’d like me to cover in future podcasts and people you’d like to hear from. You can contact me in several ways Leave a comment at the bottom of this blog post Join the Inside P2 Facebook Group Tweet to @InsideP2Podcast Email InsideP2Podcast@Gmail.com Keep listening. Keep considering what you hear. Keep responding. Subscribe Subscribe in Apple Podcasts Subscribe in Google Play Music Reviews on iTunes help others to find this podcast. If you like this podcast, please review Inside P2 on Apple Podcasts. Inside P2 by Joseph Thornley is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Scott Hartley is a venture capitalist and best-selling author of THE FUZZY AND THE TECHIE (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017), a Financial Times business book of the month, and finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey & Company's Bracken Bower Prize for an author under 35. He is a Fortune 100 keynote speaker on the Liberal Arts in the age of the Algorithm. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a Partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures (MDV), and a Venture Partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Scott worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He has been a contributing author at MIT Press, and has written for publications such as Quartz, The Financial Times, and Foreign Policy, and been featured in USA Today, Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal. He holds three degrees from Stanford and Columbia, has finished six marathon and Ironman 70.3 triathlons. He is a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations, and has visited over 70 countries. https://bookly.co/ http://www.blipbillboards.com/

Scott Hartley is a venture capitalist and global startup adviser. A former Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, he has worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. He has written for Forbes and Inc., and has contributed to the Financial Times, the Boston Review, Foreign Policy, and others. Scott's new book is The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World. Info at fuzzytechie.com

SCOTT HARTLEY is a venture capitalist and startup advisor. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures, and a venture partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Hartley worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. Hartley first heard the term "fuzzy" at Stanford, to refer to any liberal arts major at Stanford. In this interview, we discuss his observations that many of the most innovative "techie" firms need liberal arts minds as well.

My guest today is Scott Hartley, a venture capitalist and startup advisor. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures, and a venture partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Hartley worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He is a contributing author to the MIT Press book Shopping for Good, and has written for publications such as the Financial Times, Inc., Foreign Policy, Forbes, and the Boston Review. Hartley speaks on global entrepreneurship with MIT, the World Bank, Google, and the U.S. State Department. He holds an MBA and an MA from Columbia University, and a BA from Stanford University. He is a term member at the Council on Foreign Relations. The topic is his book The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World. In this episode of Trend Following Radio we discuss: Ethical side of technology Addictions on top of addiction Artificial intelligence Curiosity and skepticism Frontier markets Liberal arts in the technical world Myth busting the standard path to a tech career Jump in! --- I'm MICHAEL COVEL, the host of TREND FOLLOWING RADIO, and I'm proud to have delivered 10+ million podcast listens since 2012. Investments, economics, psychology, politics, decision-making, human behavior, entrepreneurship and trend following are all passionately explored and debated on my show. To start? I'd like to give you a great piece of advice you can use in your life and trading journey… cut your losses! You will find much more about that philosophy here: https://www.trendfollowing.com/trend/ You can watch a free video here: https://www.trendfollowing.com/video/ Can't get enough of this episode? You can choose from my thousand plus episodes here: https://www.trendfollowing.com/podcast My social media platforms: Twitter: @covel Facebook: @trendfollowing LinkedIn: @covel Instagram: @mikecovel Hope you enjoy my never-ending podcast conversation!

Scott Hartley is a venture capitalist and startup advisor. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures, and a venture partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Hartley worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He is a contributing author to the MIT Press book Shopping for Good, and has written for publications such as the Financial Times, Inc., Foreign Policy, Forbes, and the Boston Review. Hartley speaks on global entrepreneurship with MIT, the World Bank, Google, and the U.S. State Department. He holds an MBA and an MA from Columbia University, and a BA from Stanford University. He is a term member at the Council on Foreign Relations. Hartley is the author of “The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World.” Scott brings a wealth of knowledge from across Silicon Valley and beyond to the subject. He gives a perspective: What kind of background do most techie’s start with? The term “fuzzy” relates to liberal arts and “techie” to computer science and electrical engineering. Michael and Scott also discuss Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg is a curious skeptic. He challenges norms, is deeply curious about science fiction, and has many interests outside of the technical world. How do we know where this curiosity came from? Where did Zuckerberg and other successful techies cultivate their curiosity? Michael and Scott give insight into these questions and finish up the podcast discussing the ethical and moral implications of technology. In this episode of Trend Following Radio: Ethical side of technology Addictions on top of addiction Artificial intelligence Curiosity and skepticism Frontier markets Liberal arts in the technical world Myth busting the standard path to a tech career

Scott Hartley is venture capitalist and author. In 2016 he was a finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey & Company's Bracken Bower Prize for the best business book proposal by an author under 35. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a Partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures (MDV), and a Venture Partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Scott worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He has been a contributing author at MIT Press, and has written for the Financial Times, Forbes, Inc., Foreign Policy, and the Boston Review. He holds three degrees from Stanford and Columbia, has finished six marathon and Ironman 70.3 triathlons. He is a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations, and has visited over 70 countries. You can learn more about Scott's work at fuzzytechie.com and hartleyglobal.com. (from hartleyglobal.com) In our conversation we touch on Scott’s interest in Stoicism, how many leaders of the tech world have backgrounds in philosophy, how the liberal arts prepares one for the many ethical questions facing innovation today and how his father in his late 60s designed an app for the iPhone without any prior technical training. I’m going to do a giveaway for a copy of Scott’s book, The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why The Liberal Arts will Rule the Digital World. If you want to enter the giveaway for a chance to get Scott’s book, all you have to do is rate and review Contemplify on iTunes and then email me at hello@contemplify.com with your biggest takeaway from this conversation. As always, thanks for listening!

Classroom 2.0 LIVE webinar, "Breakout EDU" with special guest presenter, Adam Bellow. April 8, 2017. Teachers, librarians and educators everywhere are buzzing about the exciting learning possibilities with Breakout EDU. We are thrilled to have Adam Bellow, co-founder of Breakout EDU, with us to share his insights and passion for this amazing learning experience. The webinar will take a look at everything Breakout EDU. From the pedagogy behind the immersive learning games platform to how you get up and running with it in your classroom - you will get access to everything you need to learn the basics and get started with Breakout EDU. Breakout EDU creates ultra-engaging learning games for people of all ages. The games teach teamwork, problem-solving, critical thinking and troubleshooting by presenting participants with challenges that ignite their natural drive to problem-solve. All games are designed to operate on the Breakout EDU platform, allowing teachers worldwide bring immersive gaming into their schools. Adam Bellow is a dedicated educational technologist and father of two young boys. Adam is the Co-Founder of Breakout EDU, the immersive gaming platform that enables teachers and students to turn their classrooms into a place of discovery and inquiry-based learning. Before that he served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow for the White House. Over the past decade, Adam has created several popular edtech learning platforms including eduTecher, eduClipper, and WeLearnedIt. He has written several books about educational technology and he is also serving as a board member for the EdCamp Foundation in addition to speaking internationally about education and the power of technology to enhance learning. http://www.breakoutedu.com/ https://twitter.com/BreakoutEDU

Andrea Ippolito started off in the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as a Presidential Innovation Fellow, Andrea now leads the VA Innovators Network. She has three engineering degrees from MIT and Cornell University. Andrea talks about the importance of role models in STEM, tech and government, design thinking and going to adult space camp! Reach out to Andrea on Twitter. Stay up to date with Witty through our website, LinkedIn or email us at podcastwitty@gmail.com.Support the show (http://wittypod.com)

Jason is a product manager at Etsy and a partner of a online side project bootcamp called Ship Your Side Project. He is the creator of the Asian American Man Study, which has been cited by NBC's Asian America and The Atlantic. He served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow under President Obama and co-founded a Y Combinator startup called Ridejoy, which built a nationwide city-to-city ridesharing network.  

Kelly Croy interview Adam Bellow. Adam is a dedicated educational technologist and father. Starting as a classroom teacher, Bellow went on to create popular edtech tools eduTecher, eduClipper, WeLearnedIt, and Circuits. Adam currently is serving as a Presidential Innovation Fellow. He also serves as a board member for the EdCamp Foundation and speaks internationally about education and the power of technology to enhance learning. Mentioned in this podcast: Get one year free of www.Planbook.com with the promotional code mentioned in the Pre-roll. www.AdamBellow.com One of Adam's most inspirational reads: Free: The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson Adam loves using Post-It-Notes.  Adam created the following educational tech tools: EduTecher EduClipper WeLearnedIt Adam created this phone fun game: Circuits Adam is a board member of EdCamp Adam is a Presidential Innovation Fellow Adam's productivity tip is using Trello to stay organized. 

We met with Dean Shareski at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure in Florida. He’s a community manager at Discovery Education, and former classroom teacher and district technology specialist. His mission is to spread joy in education, in the classroom, and in our lives. He shares with us about how we can be intentional to identify joy already happening in our classrooms. After our main content, you’ll be connected with our Travel Agents and find out What’s in Our Suitcase. Contact UsTwitter: @EduRoadTripEmail: EduRoadTrip@gmail.com Website: EduRoadTrip.blogspot.com Subscribe on iTunes and StitcherGreg Bagby: @gregbagbyJustin Birckbichler: @mr_b_teacherMari Venturino: @msventurinoMain SegmentWe met with Dean Shareski at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure in Florida. He’s a community manager at Discovery Education, and former classroom teacher and district technology specialist. His mission is to spread joy in education, in the classroom, and in our lives. He shares with us about how we can be intentional to identify joy already happening in our classrooms. Twitter: @shareski Website: www.shareski.ca    Travel AgentOur Travel Agent this week is Adam Bellow. Adam is the Presidential Innovation Fellow, and founder of EduClipper, a social media to help teachers curate and share their resources. Twitter: @adambellowWhat’s in Our Suitcase?This week we feature OverDrive, an app that links public libraries’ ebook and audiobook collections to your device so you can borrow ebooks and audiobooks for free from your local library! Download the app for free from the App Store or Google Play store. Twitter: @overdrivelibs

With millennials making up just 7 percent of the federal workforce in 2013 — an eight-year low — federal managers acknowledge that in order to make their agencies representative of the American public, they need to hire quite a few more twenty and thirty- somethings.Understanding "Generation Y," a generation that is often characterized as lazy, entitled and far too dependent on technology, is a challenge for government leaders, too.Sean Herron, 25, and Annalee Flower Horne, 29, both started working for GSA's 18-F innovation lab about six months ago. Their outlook on government and the work they do is anything but lazy or entitled."I like being of service," said Flower Horne, an innovation specialist at 18F. "I like that I'm writing open-source tools that are helping the American people. And I probably could go to the private sector, but I would rather do work that matters than have stock-options."Flower-Horne spent two years working for Congress before she joined an open government startup and learned to code.Herron, a product lead and developer at 18F, taught himself to code as a way to make extra money during college to pay off his student loans. He started off as an intern for NASA when he was 19 and worked on open data projects for the Food and Drug Administration as a Presidential Innovation Fellow before coming to 18-F. Now at 25, he said it was the moment when he took an oath office at 18-F, that he realized he had the opportunity to do important work for a large group of people."We're driven by more than just having a steady career that pays the bills," he said. "Everyone is looking to have meaning in the work that they're doing and really have a meaningful experience in their job."The 18F team generally skews younger than other government agencies and offices. But Herron and Flower-Horne said they don't think about their age very often."Across the board, we really try to have a diverse workplace with a lot of differing ideas [and] approaches to how to problem-solve," he said. "For the agencies when we work with them, that instantly kind of clicks and they see the value. To some extent, none of us ever felt our age has been a detriment. If anything it helps because we can bring a different perspective to the table."Flower Horne said millennials can bring energy and passion to their work."I liked it better when we were called Generation Y because that made me think that we were asking why all the time and were doing a lot of science and innovating," she said. " But I guess I just think of myself as a federal employee.Trends show the average time millennials stay in government is less than four years. And both Herron and Flower Horne are unsure how long they plan to stay, too. They were hired to 18-F under a special two-year authority, with an option to stay for another two years. Though they're unsure how long they plan to stay in government, they both said they hope public service remains a part of their futures."I can't make the decision if I want to have toast or cereal for breakfast tomorrow, so it's probably a little early to say what I want to do in the future of my career," Herron said. "But it's definitely true that the government offers a really unique opportunity to solve problems at a stage and a platform much bigger than any other place than I've ever seen .... And as long as there are problems to be solved, I would like to be one of the people helping to solve them."

It’s that time of year again, where flowers are budding, the grass is growing greener, people are shedding their winter layers, and taxes are due—sorry for the reminder. Have you ever wondered why there’s so much burdensome paperwork associated with taxes? In fact, Americans spend more than two billion collective hours filling out income tax forms. To provide some clarity, we’ve gone back to the DecodeDC archives to re-present our episode on The Paperwork Reduction Act. This episode from August 2013 features Clay Johnson, a tech CEO and former Presidential Innovation Fellow. He explains how the implications of the PRA go beyond tax time, playing a fundamental role in how we interact with government. So if you feel like the government isn’t listening to you, Johnson says you have to take a look at the PRA. Another reminder: We are getting ready to relaunch DecodeDC. In addition to the podcasts, which will be weekly, we are building a daily, multimedia DecodeDC blog for all Scripps properties—and for a national audience. So over the coming weeks, we’ll be reposting some of our favorite and smartest podcasts while we build the team and our new online space.

I would once again like to welcome from Buyers Meeting Point to share information of this week's events and news from the world of purchasing Kelly Barner. NOTE: In this week's guest soundbite, Clay Johnson, co-founder of Blue State Digital, former Presidential Innovation Fellow and the CEO of Department of Better Technology, describe the need for federal procurement reform so that government IT failures such as Healthcare.gov are avoided in the future. The full interview can be viewed on YouTube:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sC3HOxnfZm4 Be sure to visit the Buyers Meeting Point website @ http://buyersmeetingpoint.com NOTE: Here is the link to Andy Akrouche's new book Relationships First: The New Relationship Paradigm in Contracting

Now for something a little different. Meet Adam Dole- a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow currently studying the various ways technology can improve our healthcare system.Adam leverages an expertise in human behavior and sociology to help technology improve lives. A rare and specific skill set that landed him a coveted gig at NASA problem solving Mars mission human transport issues and subsequently led to various entrepreneurial stints at Silicon Valley start ups. A developing interest in health and wellness then found Adam spearheading technology innovation for the Mayo Clinic, more specifically a project he conceptualized called Blue Button — a healthcare software application empowering consumer access to healthcare and medical record information.The White House took notice. And before he knew it, Adam found himself in Washington as part of the prestigious Presidential Innovation Fellow program. Under the direction of White House CTO Todd Park, Adam spends his days (at least before the government shutdown!) studying the intersection of technology and our health care system with the purpose of identifying opportunities for cooperative collaboration between healthcare executives, government bureaucrats and technology entrepreneurs to identify and execute systemic, functional healthcare improvements for the benefit of the consumer.Adam is an energetic and fun guy. His enthusiasm and passion for his work is infectious. Work that is and will improve lives – no question. Adam gives me hope and optimism that we can conquer the challenges faced by healthcare. I truly enjoyed our conversation and think you will too.For a really nice feel for where Adam is coming from, check out this piece he co-authored for Fast Company Magazine: “Empathize Like A Doctor, Design Like An Entrepreneur”Now, put your earbuds in and enjoy the episode!SHOW NOTES* Millions of Americans can get easy, secure online access to their health records at “ Blue Button ”: http://www.healthit.gov/bluebutton* The Presidential Innovation Fellows – White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov/innovationfellows* Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/* Better: http://getbetter.com/* Method: http://www.method.com* Jump: http://jumpassociates.com* “Empathize Like A Doctor, Design Like An Entrepreneur” by James Olver Sr. & Adam Dole for Fast Company Magazine* http://www.fastcoexist.com/1679576/empathize-like-a-doctor-design-like-an-entreprene... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.