3270: AI, Health Data, and the Vision Behind Zoe's New App

What if the food you eat could not only affect how you feel today but also determine how many healthy years you’ll have in the future? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Jonathan Wolf, the co-founder and CEO of Zoe, to explore how advanced science, AI, and data are reshaping our understanding of nutrition and health. Jonathan shares the remarkable journey of building Zoe from an idea into a leading science and nutrition company that has reached hundreds of thousands of users. From a background in physics and ad tech to pioneering personalized nutrition, Jonathan has led Zoe through significant milestones, including publishing more than 70 peer-reviewed papers and developing tools that empower individuals to understand their microbiomes, track real-time health markers, and make lasting changes to their diet. We also dive into the technology powering Zoe's new free app launch in the US, which aims to help consumers see what’s really in their food. Through food photo recognition, AI-driven analysis, and a unique risk scale for processed food, Zoe is offering a tool that could change how people choose what they eat. Jonathan explains why ultra-processed foods are a major public health concern and how empowering individuals with knowledge is the first step toward lasting change. Beyond product features, this conversation also unpacks the tension between rigorous scientific integrity and business growth, the importance of behavior change, and the broader implications for public health. Whether you're interested in the future of AI in healthcare, building a purpose-driven tech company, or simply making smarter food decisions, this episode will leave you thinking differently about what’s on your plate. How can personalized nutrition move from science labs into daily life, and what role should tech leaders play in that shift?

How do you teach financial literacy to a generation that’s grown up swiping on social media, watching crypto rise and fall, and navigating economic uncertainty before they’ve even finished university? That’s the question Aleksandra Medina set out to answer when she co-founded Frich—a social finance app built with Gen Z in mind. In this episode, I sit down with Aleksandra, the CPO and co-founder of Frich, to explore how she and her team are redefining financial wellness for the next generation. Born out of a small New York apartment and their own shared frustrations with managing money, Frich isn’t your typical finance app. It gives users a way to benchmark their spending and saving against their peers, sparking conversations around topics often ignored—like how much support you’re getting from your parents, or whether you’re overpaying on rent compared to people your age. With over 800,000 users and partnerships with banks, credit unions, and fintechs, Frich has become a trusted tool in a space where many young people feel overlooked. Aleksandra explains how her role as Chief Product Officer puts her at the intersection of tech and impact, designing an app that’s as much about psychology and transparency as it is about numbers. We also talk about what it’s like raising funds as a first-time founder during a period of economic headwinds, and why Gen Z’s financial potential is often underestimated. Throughout our conversation, we explore why open dialogue is key to improving financial well-being and how Frich uses gamified, community-driven insights to make those dialogues easier and more fun. From daily polls to data-driven recommendations, the app flips the script on traditional financial advice, replacing lectures with real-world relevance. Is Gen Z as financially lost as some headlines suggest? Or are they simply lacking the right tools and data to guide their decisions? Frich is betting on the latter. Where are you benchmarking your financial reality? And how might a little more transparency change the way you approach money?  

In today’s episode, I had the opportunity to speak with Rafael Carazo Salas, a scientist, entrepreneur, and the CEO and founder of CellVoyant. This is a conversation that goes beyond the hype around AI to reveal how machine learning is reshaping the future of healthcare in ways that are both profound and immediate. CellVoyant, a spinout from the University of Bristol, is using AI and advanced imaging technology to solve one of the most persistent challenges in biotech: the cost, time, and complexity involved in developing cell therapies. Rafael explained how his team is applying real-time microscopy and predictive AI to monitor and guide cell behavior. This approach doesn’t rely on invasive techniques that destroy the very cells being studied. Instead, it enables a clearer path forward in cell therapy development by understanding how cells behave and adapt over time. We explored several impactful examples, from CAR-T therapies for blood cancers to emerging treatments for Parkinson’s disease and type 1 diabetes. Rafael drew comparisons to Google Maps, describing how CellVoyant’s platform builds dynamic roadmaps for cell development, allowing scientists to correct course in real time. It’s a shift in how we think about drug development, one that has the potential to lower costs and increase access to life-saving treatments. Beyond the science, Rafael shared his insights on the UK’s biotech ecosystem, the role of academic spinouts, and why now is a strategic moment for the UK to establish itself as a global leader in AI-powered biotech. As political and economic conditions shift in other parts of the world, he sees a window of opportunity to attract talent, drive innovation, and strengthen commercialisation. So how far can AI go in transforming biotech, and what role will companies like CellVoyant play in making advanced therapies available to all? Tune in to find out.

What happens when marketing, psychology, and emerging tech converge around a single purpose, redefining the relationship between brands and consumers? In today’s episode, I’m joined by Jaime Schwarz, a creative force behind Brand Therapy, The TeamFlow Institute, and MRKD.art, whose work is challenging the very foundations of modern brand strategy. From early days in the advertising trenches to pioneering Web3-native branding frameworks, Jaime brings a fresh take on how brands should evolve in a world dominated by AI, XR, and blockchain. We unpack the philosophy behind Brand Therapy — not as a gimmick, but as a framework that positions the brand as a living voice within the organization, mediating between company intent and customer expectation. Jaime explains how the rise of conversational AI and tokenized digital products shifts the entire focus from knowing your customer to understanding your product, not in terms of features, but as vehicles of legacy, collaboration, and value exchange. Throughout the discussion, Jaime breaks down complex ideas into accessible frameworks, such as the shift from consumerism to “conspicuous prosumerism,” where ownership is just the beginning of the story. Whether it’s a sneaker, a piece of digital art, or an AI-enabled car that remembers your preferences and evolves with you, Jaime shows how technology can enhance brand relationships rather than dilute them. We also dive into the challenges of co-creation in enterprise environments, why marketers need to rethink what product-market fit actually means in the age of real-time AI interaction, and how NFTs, quantum computing, and immersive experiences are not hype but building blocks of a new economic model. Jaime’s insights offer not just theory but a call to action for companies to stop waiting for the future and start prototyping it. If you're curious about how the smartest brands are embracing change without losing their core identity, this episode offers a compelling roadmap. And if you're in New York during NYTechWeek, don’t miss the launch of MRKD.dj’s Infinite Drop Live Album — June 6, only 150 tickets available. https://partiful.com/e/mFEMK9C7GHKoRw73ryVg

How do you measure the real impact of marketing when every campaign unfolds across multiple channels, mixes digital with physical, and generates more data than most teams can handle? That’s exactly what Abby Kearns and the team at Alembic are tackling. As Chief Technology Officer, Abby is helping build a marketing intelligence platform that doesn't stop at high-level trends or guesswork. Instead, it goes deeper to identify what actions actually drive business outcomes. In this episode, Abby joins me to explain how Alembic brings together data science, custom-built neural networks, and lessons from pandemic-era contact tracing to solve one of the longest-standing problems in enterprise marketing. By ingesting data from CRM systems, media buys, social platforms, events, and even foot traffic, Alembic identifies causal relationships between brand activities and revenue. It's an approach that has already earned the trust of companies like Nvidia and Delta Airlines. We also talk about how Alembic uses a combination of deep learning and large language models. While their custom algorithms surface insights and attribute outcomes, the AI layer makes the data digestible for decision-makers. The goal is to help enterprise teams move beyond anecdotal evidence and finally answer the question: what is working, and why? Abby also opens up about the challenges that come with building and scaling a platform at the edge of what's technically possible. From managing massive data pipelines to keeping pace with generative AI innovation, the team at Alembic is pushing forward fast. This episode is packed with insights for business leaders who want to make smarter marketing decisions grounded in real data, not assumptions. Are you confident that your marketing spend is delivering measurable value, or is it time to take a closer look at what the data is really telling you?

What if the solution to screen addiction, online bullying, and tech-driven anxiety lies not in removing devices altogether, but in rethinking how we introduce them? That’s the question at the heart of my conversation with Bill Brady, co-founder and CEO of Troomi. In a world where children are spending up to nine hours a day on screens, and where the dangers of unrestricted device access are no longer hypothetical, Troomi offers an intentional and thoughtful path forward. Bill joins me to share why he believes optimism, not fear, should guide the future of kids and technology. A father of five and a longtime student of digital wellness, Bill created Troomi as a developmental tool. It is a smartphone designed to grow with your child. We explore how Troomi’s Android-based platform allows parents to build a tech environment that is safe, flexible, and adaptable. From contact safe-listing and real-time content filtering to the complete removal of social media, the phone helps kids communicate, learn, and grow without the overwhelming distractions and risks that dominate conventional devices. This episode also addresses the growing mental health challenges children face, from constant social comparison to online predators. With research showing that most teenagers believe social media negatively affects their well-being, Bill explains why a proactive approach is critical. He offers insights into how parents can strike a balance between digital freedom and protection without isolating their kids from the benefits of modern technology. We also discuss how Troomi is integrating AI to create a safer online experience through real-time content vetting and educational tools. Bill highlights new features on the horizon and shares the company's plans to expand beyond the United States, particularly to markets like the United Kingdom where demand for healthier tech options is growing. How can we equip the next generation with technology that supports their growth rather than hinders it?

What if AI could help your content speak every language without losing its heart? In today’s episode, I sat down with Oz Krakowski, Chief Business Development Officer at Deepdub, a company reshaping how stories cross linguistic and cultural borders through AI-powered dubbing. As global demand for diverse entertainment continues to surge, Deepdub is offering studios a new way forward—one that balances scale with emotional fidelity. Oz walked me through how Deepdub’s platform enables post-production teams to dub content into over 130 languages and dialects, with output that respects the tone and intent of the original performance. This isn’t about replacing human creativity—it’s about integrating it into smarter workflows. Through a hybrid approach, Deepdub fuses cutting-edge AI with seasoned voice actors, directors, and editors to maintain authenticity while massively improving efficiency. From monetizing dormant titles trapped in single-language formats to opening up live broadcasts for real-time localization, the implications are wide-ranging. Oz also shared how Deepdub Live is already unlocking access to new global audiences for sports, conferences, and beyond—potentially transforming how we experience real-time events. We also explored the deeper economics of AI dubbing, especially as the cost of localization begins to fall, making it more viable to bring overlooked content into untapped markets. Whether it’s delivering content in regional dialects or enabling personalized voice experiences across industries like eLearning and customer service, the roadmap for AI localization is expanding far beyond the entertainment world. At a time when studios are re-evaluating their content strategies, Deepdub offers a glimpse of what's possible when AI meets cultural intelligence. Could your next global audience already be waiting? Have you considered how AI might help your content reach new viewers without losing its original voice?

How do you uncover misinformation and financial fraud hidden in plain sight across thousands of digital platforms during a global election cycle? In this episode, I spoke with Jim Webber, Chief Scientist at Neo4j, to explore how graph database technology is being used to expose coordinated disinformation campaigns, empower AI systems, and help enterprises manage the complexity of modern data. At the heart of our conversation is the story of the ElectionGraph Project, where Syracuse University used Neo4j's graph technology to investigate political ad spend on Meta platforms. What they discovered was not just political messaging, but sophisticated scams disguised as legitimate campaigns. These efforts, targeting civically engaged users, used merchandise giveaways as a front to harvest credit card details and enroll victims in recurring billing traps. Traditional analytics would have struggled to trace these relationships, but graph databases allowed researchers to map and understand the deeper connections between thousands of entities. We also unpack how graph technology goes far beyond fraud detection. Jim explains why graph databases are now foundational for businesses building AI systems, particularly those using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to reduce hallucinations and improve decision making. Whether it's helping enterprises respond to customer needs or enabling AI agents to take action in real time, graphs provide the structure and context needed for reliable outcomes. Jim also shares the backstory behind Klarna's data transformation, where the company embraced knowledge graphs at the core of its operations and replaced major systems, including parts of Salesforce. It's a striking example of what becomes possible when a business commits to connected data as a strategic asset. From misinformation to intelligent automation, this episode dives into the real-world value of graph technology in 2025. Are you thinking critically about how your data infrastructure supports your AI ambitions?

What does digital sovereignty mean in the age of cloud computing, and is Europe finally prepared to rethink its reliance on foreign infrastructure?  In this episode, I speak with David Michels from Queen Mary University of London about his latest research, which examines the growing demand for sovereign cloud services across Europe. Commissioned by Broadcom but developed independently, the report surfaces at a time when regulators, enterprises, and policymakers are all asking tougher questions about who controls data and how. David explains why the concept of a sovereign cloud is still poorly defined. Depending on who you ask, it might mean autonomy over data, protection from foreign surveillance, or strategic independence from global superpowers. That ambiguity creates confusion for customers and raises compliance risks in regulated industries. My guest also addresses one of the most persistent misconceptions in the market: the difference between data residency and data sovereignty. Just because data is stored in Europe does not mean it is immune from foreign access if the provider falls under another country's jurisdiction. We dig into the practical implications of these issues, including why many organizations are reassessing their risk exposure, particularly in light of extraterritorial legal frameworks like the US CLOUD Act. David outlines a pragmatic approach to improve clarity without waiting for new legislation. His proposed GDPR-aligned code of conduct would allow cloud providers to transparently demonstrate compliance with European data protection expectations, giving customers a stronger basis for trust and accountability. This conversation is not about cloud theory. It is about legal risk, operational impact, and policy direction. Whether you're a CIO navigating compliance, a regulator shaping guidance, or a provider building cross-border services, this episode offers a clear-eyed look at the shifting demands of digital sovereignty. Are European organizations finally ready to take a different path in the cloud?

In today’s episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Jeff Butler, General Manager of Cask Canada, who shares the story of how he led a tech startup to a standout position in the competitive ServiceNow ecosystem in less than a year. Listen in to learn how Cask Canada grew from startup to standout in the ServiceNow ecosystem by focusing on people, trust, and AI-driven transformation. As we explore Jeff’s unique journey from his early days witnessing the birth of Silicon Valley innovation in San Francisco to building a thriving ServiceNow consulting business in Canada, there are lessons here for anyone navigating today’s fast-moving tech landscape. Jeff offers a first-hand look at the unexpected realities of launching a consultancy in Canada's evolving digital market. Rather than focusing solely on technology, he highlights the power of building genuine, long-term relationships with clients and team members. Throughout our conversation, it becomes clear that success in tech services today is shaped as much by trust, patience, and authenticity as it is by technical excellence. We also discuss how AI and automation are reshaping ServiceNow-driven digital transformations. Jeff provides valuable insight into how AI is not just enhancing customer service experiences but also beginning to change the way consulting services are delivered. Yet he makes an important point: human oversight remains vital, especially when high-stakes business decisions are involved. Looking ahead, Jeff reflects on the challenges and opportunities that ServiceNow partners face as AI capabilities mature, integration demands grow, and the implementation partner landscape changes. He also shares how building an elite consulting team required a deliberate focus on culture, communication, and finding people who want to build something bigger than themselves.