AI in Chicago, a Podcast

When Illinois decided to regulate AI in hiring, it skipped the standard playbook. It passed no standalone AI statute and mandated no bias audit. Instead, it amended the sixty-year-old Illinois Human Rights Act, making algorithmic discrimination a civil rights matter and enforced by the same agency that handles housing, credit, and employment complaints. House Bill 3773 took effect January 1, 2026....

Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza inherited a $16.7 billion bill backlog, a credit rating one notch above junk, and a rainy day fund with $48,000. Nine years later: ten credit upgrades, a $2.4 billion rainy day fund, and a payment cycle cut from 210 days to 13. Now, as she eyes a 2027 Chicago mayoral bid, she sits down with AI in Chicago to talk about what fiscal crisis management teaches us abo...

In this episode of  AI in Chicago , I sit down with Brandon Ragle, Illinois State Chief Information Officer and Secretary of the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology, to talk about what it really takes to scale AI responsibly in a large public-sector organization. Brandon leads more than 1,800 technologists, manages a technology portfolio of over 11 billion dollars, and supports 3636 e...

In this episode we talk to Harley Johnson, CEO of the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park. Most business leaders have quantum computing filed away in the "maybe in 10–15 years" folder. After sitting down with Harley Johnson, the CEO of the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park (IQMP),  for the latest episode of the AI in Chicago Podcast, I'm convinced that timeline needs...

Why do Republicans and Democrats live in different factual universes? The answer traces back to 1973 and three conservative staffers who transformed how America makes policy. Professor E.J. Fagan, author of "The Thinkers," explains how partisan think tanks replaced neutral expertise with competing knowledge regimes—and why smart, educated people are actually easier to fool than everyone...

Michael Edwards has spent 35 years leading downtown organizations across America. In his final months as CEO of the Chicago Loop Alliance, he joins the podcast to discuss downtown narratives in the age of AI with Khullani Abdullahi. He challenges the dominant narrative about urban decline. The data tells a different story: 1.2 million people visited the Loop for arts and culture in Q4 2025, spendi...

In an era where artificial intelligence is reshaping industries, labor markets, and communities at an unprecedented pace, the question of who benefits—and who gets left behind—has never been more urgent. At the forefront of this challenge stands  Karen Freeman-Wilson , President and CEO of the Chicago Urban League, who brings a unique combination of legal expertise, executive experience, and deep...

On the latest episode of the AI in Chicago Podcast, I had the privilege of speaking with Elena Vekilov, Chief Privacy Officer and Global General Counsel for Data Security, Product, and AI at NielsenIQ. With responsibility for privacy governance across more than 90 markets, Elena sits at an intersection few executives occupy: where data protection, product innovation, and AI governance collide at a...

Illinois just made history. In August 2025, Governor Pritzker signed the Wellness and Oversight for Psychological Resources Act, and the first law in the nation (possibly the world) to regulate AI in mental healthcare. In this episode, we sit down with State Representative Bob Morgan, Assistant Majority Leader and Floor Whip' within the IL House Chamber, the architect of the Wellness and Overs...

Join AI in Chicago host Khullani Abdullahi for this eye-opening conversation with Bobby Reddy Jr., CEO and co-founder of Prenosis, as he shares the remarkable 10-year journey of developing the first FDA-authorized AI tool for sepsis diagnosis. In this episode, Bobby reveals why acute care has remained an "innovation desert" for 30 years, the critical shift from product-first to problem-f...

AI in Chicago: Transforming Legal Practice with Richard Robbins of Reed Smith Join host Khullani Abdullahi as she sits down with Richard Robbins, Director of Applied AI at Reed Smith, for an illuminating conversation about how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the legal profession at unprecedented speed. With over 40 years at the intersection of law and technology, Richard brings a unique...

In this episode, host Khullani Abdullahi sits down with Gianne James, Senior Vice President at First Insurance Funding, for a deep dive into the complex world of AI governance in financial services. As AI technologies rapidly transform the industry, financial institutions face a critical challenge: how do you harness innovation while maintaining rigorous compliance and risk management standards? G...

In this episode of the AI in Chicago podcast, host Khullani Abdullahi speaks with Cait Moran, Senior Director at Oracle's AI Office Center of Excellence. They discuss Cait's journey in AI, the evolution of Oracle's AI initiatives, and the establishment of a Center of Excellence to drive enterprise-wide AI strategies. Cait shares insights on managing workloads, fostering collaboration, and the impo...

In this episode of "AI in Chicago," host Khullani Abdullahi sits down with Dr. Heather McCombs-Chait, a clinician turned enterprise AI leader. Dr. McCombs-Chait shares her unique career journey from managing her own successful private medical practice to leading strategic AI initiatives at major healthcare and medical device corporations like Philips and GE Healthcare. Tune in to hear Dr. McCombs-...

In this episode of  AI in Chicago , host Khullani Abdullahi sits down with Dr. William Benjamin, a Principal Generative AI/ML Expert at a Fortune 100 insurance company, for a deep dive into the strategic application of artificial intelligence in the enterprise. With over 20 years of experience, Dr. Benjamin shares his journey from mechanical engineering to the forefront of the AI revolution and di...

In this episode of AI in Chicago, host Khullani Abdullahi interviews Sergio Gutiérrez-Montero, the Director of AI for HR at AbbVie. They discuss Sergio's background in consulting, the evolution of AI in business, and the challenges organizations face in implementing AI strategies. Key themes include the importance of focusing on specific business problems, the need for robust data infrastructu...

Tim Turner, MBA, VP of Insights and Analytics at Thresholds, joins us this week to discuss how healthcare leaders think about responsible AI, from patient access to clinical care.