Empowered by AI

What if the thing standing between you and your next opportunity isn't your expertise? What if it's your visibility? In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle sits down with therapist, social worker, researcher, AI entrepreneur, and founder Ngozi Cadmus for a powerful conversation about visibility, personal branding, entrepreneurship, and the opportunities artificial intelligence is creating fo...

What if the biggest obstacle to your success isn't strategy? What if it's the way you've been taught to define success in the first place? In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle sits down with nervous system coach, author, and founder Marta Czajkowska for a powerful conversation about entrepreneurship, burnout, identity, and the hidden costs of high achievement. Drawing from her experiences...

What happens when the title you've worked decades to earn no longer feels like the destination? In the premiere episode of Season 7, Michelle sits down with entrepreneur, educator, and founder Lisa Tong to explore the emotional and practical realities of moving from corporate life into entrepreneurship. Together, they unpack identity shifts, imposter syndrome, financial fears, intuition, and the c...

What happens when women stop waiting to be represented in AI and start building it themselves? In this episode, I sit down with Nathania and Stephanie, co-founders of Awedacity, who are creating something most people are still talking about but not actually doing. They are building woman-centered AI tools from the ground up using real conversations, real experiences, and real data from women aroun...

Most leaders think their biggest AI problem is choosing the right tools. It’s not. In this conversation, Jelena M. breaks down what’s actually getting in the way of AI adoption inside organizations and for solo entrepreneurs. From decision fatigue and failed pilots to over-engineered governance, this episode reframes how to approach AI with clarity, confidence, and control. If you’ve felt behind,...

What happens when you stop treating AI like a tool… and start using it as a thinking partner? In this episode, Diane Whiddon breaks down how AI is reshaping brand strategy in real time. Not in a hypey, tech-bro way. In a practical, client-facing, “this is what’s actually working” way. If you’ve been feeling like branding is something that happens for you in fits and spurts, there’s a smarter way t...

What happens when the people building AI don’t reflect the people it impacts? In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Julia Stamm, sociologist, founder of She Shapes AI, and global thought leader working at the intersection of technology, policy, and society. We get into the real conversation most people are still avoiding. Who is building AI. Who is being left out. And why that gap is not just a div...

What happens when education stops being boring and starts being driven by curiosity? In this episode, Michelle sits down with educator, author, and speaker Olivia Odileke to talk about what’s broken in traditional learning and how AI is creating a real opportunity to rebuild it. Olivia shares how she pivoted her business from consulting to building AI-powered tools that help educators and leaders...

What if AI is not the most important shift happening right now? What if the real shift is how you understand yourself? In this episode, Michelle sits down with Charity Youngblood to explore a deeper layer of entrepreneurship. This is not about tools first. It is about identity, energy, and alignment. Charity brings over 15 years of experience helping women protect their time, energy, and peace, an...

What happens when AI moves from being a writing tool to becoming a true thinking partner? In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle Muncy-Silva sits down with transformation strategist Suzel W. Jones to explore how entrepreneurs can use AI to think through ideas, prototype tools, and even build working applications faster than ever before. Suzel brings decades of experience leading transformati...

What happens when AI innovation moves fast… but representation lags behind? In this powerful conversation, Ricquel Harper joins me to unpack the tension so many of us feel but don’t always have language for. From ethical AI and global policy gaps to archetypes, voice, and authentic co-creation, this episode is about more than tools. It’s about power, presence, and making sure women and underrepres...

What if AI isn’t an output machine… but a thinking companion? In this episode of Empowered by AI, I sit down with Kimberly Inez Mays, who helps service-based businesses demystify AI and technology in ways that create real “aha” moments. This is not a conversation about chasing the latest tool. It’s about reframing AI as a thought partner. We talk about what breaks first inside organizations when A...

What happens when learners reach for AI before they reach for understanding? In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle sits down with Devika Toprani, creator of the IP-protected Sonographic Learning framework, to explore what might be missing in today’s AI-integrated education landscape. With a background in psychology and quantitative sciences from the University of Illinois, and global academ...

What if your marketing problem isn’t traffic… but friction? In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle sits down with Heather Robson, UX copywriter and content strategist, to unpack how unintentional friction in your messaging may be quietly costing you trust, clarity, and conversions. Heather specializes in bringing user experience principles into marketing copy. Instead of assuming more visibi...

In this episode of Empowered by AI , Michelle Muncy-Silva is joined by Michelle Singh for a deep, human-centered conversation about disengagement, burnout, belonging, and what it really means to design learning and leadership systems that allow people to stay fully themselves. Drawing from more than 20 years in education and leadership, Michelle Singh introduces her EQUAL Methodology , shares how...

In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle Muncy-Silva talks with Natalie Benamou about how AI is reshaping leadership, portfolio careers, and women’s health. Natalie shares insights from her work supporting women in the second half of their careers, her experience interviewing hundreds of executives and board leaders, and her current work using AI to close communication gaps in women’s healthca...

In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle Muncy-Silva talks with Ilise Benun about breaking the feast-or-famine cycle in small businesses and how AI can support clear positioning, consistent outreach, and relationship-based marketing. Ilise draws on nearly four decades of experience helping creatives and solopreneurs get better clients with bigger budgets. She explains why marketing breaks down...

In this episode of Empowered by AI, Michelle Muncy-Silva talks with Katie Milton Jordan about what real AI adoption looks like when you stop chasing tools and start investing in people, processes, and clarity. Katie shares her work helping economic development leaders operationalize AI responsibly, explains why “not knowing what you don’t know” is the biggest barrier to adoption, and walks through...

What happens when curiosity beats perfection? In this opening episode of Season 6, Michelle sits down with Danielle LaFleur for an honest, grounded conversation about learning AI in public, letting go of “doing it right,” and using these tools without flattening your voice or values. This episode sets the tone for the entire season. Human-first. No tech theater. Just real use, real questions, and...

One year ago, Empowered by AI launched with a single goal: amplify women’s voices shaping the future of artificial intelligence. The very first guest? Anne Murphy — Co-Founder of She Leads AI and the woman behind the CREATE Conference. Now, after 78 episodes, five seasons, and one unforgettable year , Michelle and Anne sit down again to reflect on what’s changed, what’s next, and why this movement...

Host Michelle Muncy-Silva welcomes listeners to Empowered by AI: Women Entrepreneurs Leading the Way , setting the stage for a conversation with AI strategist and founder Lexi Gilbert. After decades in HR and leadership, Lexi has redefined her career in the AI era—helping businesses adopt AI ethically, humanely, and with resilience. [01:00–03:00] From HR Leader to AI Fractional CAIO Lexi shares he...

What happens when a seasoned brand strategist decides to reinvent herself with AI? In this episode of Empowered by AI: Women Entrepreneurs Leading the Way , I sit down with Ellen Craven , founder of Brand Novus. Ellen’s career spans award-winning creative direction, global brand strategy, and now—AI-powered consulting that’s already shaking up the way companies think about relevance, differentiati...

What happens when you finally reach the top of your career ladder and realize the view isn’t what you hoped? In this episode of Empowered by AI , I sit down with Carolina Migliaccio, founder of Soulful Moxie, to talk about the hidden costs of chasing external success, the courage it takes to reclaim your agency, and how women can step into authentic leadership, especially in AI-heavy, male-dominat...

The future of work isn’t about choosing between humans and AI. It’s about designing a workplace where the two strengthen each other. In this episode of Empowered by AI , I sit down with Gena Hoxha , People Operations and AI Transformation leader at Ignitium, to explore how leaders can adopt AI responsibly, keep culture intact during rapid change, and claim space for women in shaping an AI-driven f...

Welcome back to Empowered by AI ! You asked, I delivered: this episode is all about NotebookLM , one of my absolute favorite free AI tools. Think of it as your digital brain — organizing the articles, posts, PDFs, and docs you keep meaning to revisit but never do. Instead of drowning in bookmarks and saved links, you can actually utilize  them by summarizing and turning them into study guides...