Engineer In the Looop

What does it really take to turn bold ideas into real impact inside one of the world’s largest technology companies? In this episode of Engineering in the Loop , Alec Harrison sits down with Taylor Black , Director of AI & Venture Ecosystems in the Office of the CTO at Microsoft , to unpack how internal incubators actually work — and why most innovation efforts fail before they ever ship. Tayl...

In this episode Alec and Brian talk about AI, turkey, and AI turkey?

Alec welcomes Sakari Nahi, CEO of Zure, for a fun and thoughtful discussion that spans 25 years of tech evolution. Sakari shares how a single C# book jump-started his career, why he left a job he didn’t love to found a cloud-native consultancy, and what it’s like building a people-first engineering culture across multiple countries. The two dig into real AI use cases that actually work today—vecto...

Cory House (Pluralsight/DomeTrain author and principal at ReactJS Consulting) shares the story of going “all-in” on JavaScript/React and how that focus grew into a successful independent consulting and training career. We dig into the tradeoffs of deep specialization vs breadth, how to spot real opportunities, and the “two-way door” idea for tech career moves. Cory also walks through his current p...

Alec Harrison and Brian Gorman return from a short break to talk all things certifications, Copilot, and the curious evolution of learning with AI. Alec shares his experience taking Microsoft’s new Applied Skills exams for Copilot Studio, while Brian gives some veteran insight into two decades of Microsoft certifications and how the new role-based system compares. They debate whether AI tools are...

Founder of .NET Conf and 20-year Microsoft MVP Javier Lozano joins Engineer in the Loop to talk about what’s changed—and what hasn’t—in web development. We riff on MVP categories, why demos are easy and production is hard, and how AI is a force multiplier that still demands human judgment. Javier shares “SIMON” (Simplified Minutia and Operational Nonsense), his vision for agents that run conferenc...

Tech news for Oct 3rd, 2025https://github.com/github/copilot-clihttps://devblogs.microsoft.com/azure-sdk/azure-sdk-release-september-2025/https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/securitycopilotblog/from-idea-to-security-copilot-agent-create-customize-and-deploy/4458516

From Exchange 2003 to Azure landing zones, Elliott shares 15 years of lessons on moving beyond VMs, building platform ops that devs actually love, and keeping cloud costs sane. Key Takeaways Platform engineering > “just cloud” : Guardrails, vending, and templates win hearts (and roadmaps). FinOps framing : Translate infra to “cost per sale/visit” and budgets to anomaly alerts. PaaS by default :...

AI News For October 2nd Sora 2 is out! Perplexity Acquires AI Video Company Microsoft Agent Framework

Here's a little life update and AI/Tech news for October 1st 2025 [Anthropic Joins Microsoft 365 Copilot]( https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/09/24/expanding-model-choice-in-microsoft-365-copilot/ ) [Claude Sonnet 4.5 Is Out!]( https://www.techradar.com/ai-platforms-assistants/claude/anthropics-claude-sonnet-4-5-is-available-now-the-best-ai-model-in-the-world-for-real-worl...

“GPT-5 is going to kill OpenAI.” That’s the headline making the rounds—but it’s wrong. In this episode, Alec Harrison breaks down why the panic is overblown, why those infamous GPT-5 launch graphs don’t tell the real story, and how OpenAI is shifting from hype to stability. We’ll zoom out on the bigger picture: OpenAI’s rapid rise, the reality of innovation cycles, and why competition from Anthrop...

Ready for a master-class in mentoring, managing, and staying sane in the age of AI? In this no-filter chat, Alec Harrison and Brian Gorman welcome returning guest Cameron Presley —engineer, functional-programming fan, and self-proclaimed “hot-take factory.” Together we cover: From Junior to Jedi: practical ways leaders can help devs find their lane—and how to nudge the rock-stars and shooting star...

Ready for a master-class in mentoring, managing, and staying sane in the age of AI? In this no-filter chat, Alec Harrison and Brian Gorman welcome returning guest Cameron Presley —engineer, functional-programming fan, and self-proclaimed “hot-take factory.” Together we cover: From Junior to Jedi: practical ways leaders can help devs find their lane—and how to nudge the rock-stars and shooting star...

📄 Episode Description: In this episode, we welcome back Cameron Presley, now the owner of Small Batch Solutions, to dive deep into the real work of building better engineers—not just better apps. We talk about how to create environments where interns and junior developers can thrive, why mentorship is a long game, and how AI might be reshaping the way we learn (for better or worse). From Pokémon...

In this thought-provoking episode, Alec Harrison sits down with Peter Swimm—founder of Toyleville and a veteran in conversational AI—to unpack the real value of AI in today’s business world. From the early days of teaching internet literacy in Chicago libraries to advising enterprises on AI adoption, Peter brings a rare blend of empathy, technical depth, and straight talk. They discuss why most bu...

Nebraska. Code 2025 is right around the corner, but before you pack for Lincoln, join Alec and Brian as they tackle the hottest developer question of 2025: How do I harness AI agents without handing the keys to my codebase—or my laptop—over to Big Tech? In this candid therapy-session-meets-tech-deep-dive, we unpack everything from Model Context Protocol (the “USB-C of AI apps”) to rolling your own...

For a while now, AI and tech headlines have been dominated by layoffs and market shifts. But what if a crucial, yet often overlooked, factor was at play? I'm experimenting with a new narrative style in this video to break down Section 174 of the US tax code. Discover how changes to this R&D deduction policy, from its inception in 1954 to the impactful 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, quietly im...

🚀 Description: In this packed episode of Engineering the Loop , we break down everything you need to know from Microsoft Build 2025 —and trust us, it’s not just incremental upgrades. From the rise of AI agents and the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to the total transformation of search, software development, and even how you cool a data center, this year’s Build proves Microsoft is all in on an AI-...

In this episode of Engineer in the Loop , Alec and Brian sit down with Dwayne Natwick—renowned Microsoft Certified Trainer, security expert, and mentor to countless professionals navigating the certification landscape. Dwayne demystifies the path to becoming an MCT, from the instructional skills training and role-based certifications you’ll need, to the hidden benefits (and the upcoming return of...

Heads-up, hallway-track fans! In this episode of Engineer in the Loop, Alec and Brian sit down with Nebraska. Code() co-founder Ken Versaw and “community & culture steward” Arthur Doler for an unfiltered look at: The 10-year rise of Nebraska. Code() and why the Cornhusker Marriott becomes the Midwest’s dev playground every July 23-25, 2025. whova.com Ken’s origin story — from writing customer-serv...

This week Alec Harrison and Brian Gorman skip the rose-tinted dev chat and head straight for some therapeutic tech-venting. Fresh off an under-whelming WWDC, Alec wonders why Apple is flexing 3-D lock-screen clocks instead of, you know, actual Apple Intelligence—while a $3 k Vision Pro still can’t replace his decade-old Mac. Brian fires back with a blistering take on Google Gemini (“the passion of...

In this wide-ranging Engineering the Loop chat, Alec Harrison and Brian Gorman welcome Peter Vasillion—CEO & AI Partner at Facet Interactive —to dissect how “models in the loop” are changing the way businesses ship software and automate everyday work. Peter traces his journey from rebuilding Pentium-2 towers in his parents’ Southern California warehouse to guiding Fortune-level AI roll-outs. T...

What happens when the driverless revolution leaves the road? In our latest Engineer in the Loop episode, I sat down with Renard Henry, Head of IT at Toyota Connected, to talk about the future of autonomous systems—not just in cars, but in planes, ships, combines, and beyond.🚜 Imagine your farm equipment working while you sleep. 🛩️ Or a fully autonomous aircraft carrier. 🛳️ Or cargo ships crossing...

From jiu-jitsu to jumpstarting innovation at Toyota Connected, Renard Henry brings the heat in this episode of Engineer in the Loop. We talk AI in vehicles, life-saving tech, and the growing need for AI governance. Renard shares how Toyota stays lean while experimenting fast, why autonomous cars still need human oversight, and what the future holds for AI in healthcare and transportation. Whether...

Show sponsor: https://www.fromcodetoclarity.com/ Join Alec Harrison as he’s joined by special guest Clark Sell—veteran conference organizer turned AI coach behind Code to Clarity—in a Brian-less edition of Azure Cloud Talk. Clark walks us through his pivot from running THAT Conference and boutique engineering work to helping organizations modernize with AI-driven agents and low-code automations. A...