S3E7 Questioning Everything with Jaron Lanier, Prime Unifying Scientist at Microsoft

As the second wave of AI-led disruption takes shape, we're seeing and hearing a lot more about AI agents. Analogous to the Intelligent Digital Workers (IDWs) described in Age of Invisible Machines, AI Agents are more complex that they appear and many organizations are discovering that they aren't structured to allow these agents to perform meaningful work. Robb Wilson (CEO and co-founder of OneReach.ai) and Josh Tyson explore the real nature of AI agents, what kinds of technology ecosystems they require, and how organizations can give them real agency. This practical episode also imagines what the proliferation of AI agents means for the future of software. The bestselling book that explores AI agents, or intelligent digital workers (IDWs) at far greater length is Age of Invisible Machines: https://onereach.ai/invisiblemachines/ Learn more about how to make AI agents, and play with a playground of AI skills: https://onereach.ai/ #ai #aiagents #hyperautomation #conversationalai #podcast #aipodcast #ux #uxdesign #productmanagement #aiproductmanager #aiproducts #aiproductivity #invisiblemachines #googleai #llm #generativeai

Daniel Lametti and Joanna Kuc join Robb and Josh to share the advanced chatbot they created for a research project in mental health. Dan Lametti is an Associate Professor of Cognitive Psychology at Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada. Dan taught and conducted research in experimental psychology at the University of Oxford, and is also the Director of Academic Fellowships at OneReach.ai. Joanna is a Data Scientist at Compass Pathways as well as a PhD Candidate in Experimental Psychology at University College London, where her work focuses on decoding language biomarkers relating to mental health. Using the OneReach.ai platform, Daniel and Joanna created a conversational app in Telegram that collects journal entries from participants as either written text or voice notes, and generates weekly summaries. Learn more about this unique design process and some of their findings in an engaging and practical episode of Invisible Machines.

As conversational AI continues to change the nature of UX, we're excited to bring you a practical (and thorough) conversation about hiring design talent with Aaron Cooper, Senior Director of Digital Experience at Banner Health. Aaron has lead the creation of multiple products involving conversational AI at companies like Honeywell and Optum Health, and was generous enough to open up about what he's looking for when hiring design talent and how he makes sure key people within his organization are partners in design. We've also got a special guest host for this episode: Elias Parker, the executive producer of our book, Age of Invisible Machines, and of this podcast. An ethnographer by training, Elias has been working with UX practitioners for more than a decade and has hired over 200 researchers and designers across disciplines.

As the former Chief Knowledge Officer at NASA, Roger Forsgren has a unique understanding of maintaining the administration's renowned gold standard of data management in extremely high-pressure environments. Having worked his way up from a mechanical engineering position with the space administration, Roger joins Robb and guest host Mike Lee for a conversation about the unique rhythms of data organization, retrieval, and maintenance. Exploring ideas from his book "Lean Knowledge Management: How NASA Implemented a Practical KM Program" this is an episode for information science enthusiasts everywhere.

Take a deep dive into the creation of an advanced digital assistant with Jeff McMillan and David Wu of Morgan Stanley. As the Head of AD&I, Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and the Head of Knowledge Management & Generative AI respectively, Jeff and David led the creation of an AI assistant for the global investment firm's advisors. Robb and Josh invite them in for a conversation about the technical work and strategic initiatives that enabled Morgan Stanley to create a knowledge base that's given them a massive leap forward with conversational AI.

Well-known researcher, professor, and author Richard Florida joins Robb and Josh for an expansive conversation about the relationship between cities and innovation. His books include "The Rise of the Creative Class" and "The New Urban Decay," which both explore the multi-layered relationship between people and the cities where creativity becomes innovation. Richard is a sought-after speaker and his strategy firm Creative Class Group works with Meta, Microsoft, WeWork, BMW, Cirque do Soliel, and Google.

Payal Arora is a Professor of Inclusive AI Cultures at Utrecht University and Co-Founder of FemLab. She's also the author of the award-winning "The Next Billion Users" from Harvard Press, and her new book "From Pessimism to Promise: Lessons from the Global South on Designing Inclusive Tech" will be released this fall by MIT Press. Payal joins Robb and Josh for a frank and eye-opening exploration of technology and innovation in the Global South.

As the Global CIO of Zoom, Gary Sorrentino spends a lot of time thinking about how technology can amplify human-to-human collaboration. He joins Robb and Josh for a conversation about the challenges of connecting people in hybrid work environments that are always evolving. As Gary points out, humans are in a joint venture with artificial intelligence, and this episode explores many of the inflection points we need to consider.

Author and UX Legend Greg Nudelman was one of the original guests on In Conversation with UX Magazine over eight years ago. He returns for a rich conversation about the frenzied intersection of UX and AI. Greg has honed his craft as a design lead at GE Digital, Cisco, and eBay and has worked with organizations like IBM, Oracle, Associated Press, and Intuit. He's currently a Distinguished Designer at Sumo and has written numerous books including The $1 Prototype and Designing Search. He joins Robb and Josh to discuss ways that we can iterate faster and further in the age of AI.

As a co-author of the often cited (and debated) Stochastic Parrots paper from 2021, Emily M. Bender is a staunch critic of large language models (LLMs). Having worked in computational linguistics for more than 20 years, Emily's deep understanding of LLM mechanics has her questioning many of the emerging use cases we see in the world. Also, Emily hosts Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000, where, alongside sociologist Dr. Alex Hanna, she breaks down the AI hype, separates fact from fiction, and distinguishes science from bloviation. She joins Robb and Josh for a provocative exploration of generative AI on an important episode of Invisible Machines.