TechFirst with John Koetsier

What is it like to go to space? Today we have a special privilege: we’re talking to an astronaut who has spent 136 days in the International Space Station and completed 2 space walks. He’s also the mission director for the recent Intuitive Machines lunar lander, the first US mission to the moon in more than 50 years. His name is Jack Fischer In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier intervi...

Have we already achieved AGI? OpenAI just released GPT-4o. It’s impressive, and the implications are huge for so many different professions ... not least of which is education and tutoring. It’s also showing us the beginning of AI that is truly present in our lives ... AI that sees what we see, doesn’t exist just in a box with text input, hears what we hear, and hallucinates less. What does that —...

If our planet turns to Dune, how will you survive? We're already experiencing water crises in thousands of global cities, places like Flint Michigan, or even native reserves in Canada. How can you ensure you'll get good, healthy, clean drinking water? In this episode of TechFirst, we explore the critical global challenge of securing clean water, a resource essential yet scarce for over 2 b...

In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier explores the future of robotics and agricultural technology (agtech) with Kevin Dowling, managing director at Robotics Factory in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They discuss the evolution of robotics in farming, from traditional methods to the modern use of drones, autonomous tractors, and AI-driven systems. Kevin highlights the diversity of robotic form...

In January of this year, Peregrine Mission One launched with at least 22 payloads. One was intended to be the first American made rover to land on the moon since the Apollo days: 1972. It was called Iris, and it was also the first lunar rover constructed with carbon fiber. It was designed and built by students at Carnegie Mellon University. Today, we’re going to chat with them ... Despite a missio...

What happens after AGI? AGI is artificial general intelligence: it’s when AI achieves human-level intelligence nd likely quickly thereafter super-human abilities, maybe even ushering in the Singularity. I was recently at the Beneficial AGI conference in Panama. One of the speakers was the founder of Emerj Artificial Intelligence Research. He’s interviewed nearly 1,000 AI leaders, his name is Dan F...

If you have an iPhone, you've got a notch. Now there's tech that can get rid of that notch ... and the same tech can bring secure Face ID to Android: at a fraction of the cost. In this TechFirst, I chat with Metalenz CEO Rob Devlin about his meta surfaces product. Not only can they produce about 10,000 lenses on a single 30-centimeter wafer, just like computer chips, they can now decode po...

Billions of robots within a decade? A similar growth curve to smartphones? We currently have about 30 million robots on the planet, not counting Roombas and similar small bots. RobotLab CEO Elad Inbar says that will hit BILLIONS with a B within 10 years. We discuss the exponential increase in commercial robots globally and predict billions of robots integrating into daily activities, from service...

Is the Apple Vision Pro the future of surgical training? In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier discusses the transformative impact of virtual reality (VR) on surgical training, highlighting the cost-efficiency and effectiveness of VR in reducing the learning curve for surgeons. The conversation features Richard Vincent, CEO of Fundamental VR, who elaborates on how VR technology, particu...

When will AI match and surpass human capability? In short, when will we have AGI, or artificial general intelligence ... the kind of intelligence that should teach itself and grow itself to vastly larger intellect than an individual human? According to Ben Goertzel, CEO of SingularityNet, that time is very close: only 3 to 8 years away. In this TechFirst, I chat with Ben as we approach the Benefic...

Can you use sentinel oysters and other mollusks to track water quality near your cities, beaches, or the Great Barrier Reef? Actually ... yes. In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier chats with the CEO of Moloscan, a company focused on bio-monitoring and protection of marine environments using live shellfish. The company uses aquatic bivalves, such as oysters, mussels, or clams to monitor...

Do you need ChatGPT integrated into your new bike? How about an all-wheel drive bike? (OK: a 2-wheel drive ... but yeah, that's all-wheel drive!) In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier chats the CEO of Urtopia about their new AI-integrated 'smart bike with a mind'. The e-bike market is predicted to grow to about $26 billion by 2028, but Dr. Owen Chang explains how Urtopia is...

Can you deliver medical treatment by changing brainwaves instead of injecting drugs? Elon Musk has recently implanted his first Neuralink into a human patient. But can we get neurotech medical treatment without drilling holes in our skulls? Maybe ... According to Element, a startup with roots in MIT, we can. And they say they can read your brainwaves, manipulate them, and fix issues like sleep dis...

Can someone hack your reality if you're wearing an Apple Vision Pro? In this episode of TechFirst, John Koetsier discusses the arrival of Apple's Vision Pro, a groundbreaking VR headset, and its associated privacy and security concerns with Synopsys principal security consultant Jamie Boote. They chat about how the device's advanced sensor systems can map out user environments, posing...

In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier talks to Dan Hollenkamp, the CEO of Toggled, about the future of smart buildings in 2024. They discuss the difference between devices that are smart and just remote controllable, the continuous improvement in building systems, and emphasize on the usage of data for smart devices. Dan sheds light on how buildings should assist in facilitating our tas...

In this end-of-year podcast of TechFirst for 2023, host John Koetsier explores the future trajectory of Virtual Reality (VR) technology, especially its potential in 2024. The podcast features Rolf Illenberger, founder & CEO of VR Direct, who believes that 2024 will be a critical inflection point for VR with wide-scale adoption, particularly in enterprises. There is notable discussion on differ...

You’ve probably heard of Bhutan, and you may have heard of Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness measurement, which is about measuring how happy a country is as well as how wealthy a country is. Now the royal family in Bhutan is establishing an AI center to teach AI to locals ... and maybe bring Bhutan happiness -- and ethics -- to AI. To bring, as the princess puts it, "Ancient Wisdom & Ethi...

Are you ready to dive into the emerging world of robot coworkers? In this video, originally recorded at Web Summit in Lisbon, I chat with special guest David Reger, CEO of Neura Robotics. We chat about what it will be like to work with robots, how we can ensure robots don't kill us (as is happening now, occasionally), and what will change about work and us in the process. We talk about: Workin...

In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier explores the global transition from traditional coil and magnet speakers to solid-state semiconductor alternatives with Mike Householder, a VP at XMEMS. The discussion includes the history of the speaker, the advantages of using solid-state semiconductors, and the future vision for sound technology. Mike also makes a big product announcement and pro...

In this episode of TechFirst, host Jon Koetsier welcomes Emmy award-winning XR director Michaela Ternasky-Holland to delve into the world of immersive storytelling through technologies such as virtual reality (VR). Using her VR documentary project, On the Morning You Wake, as a case study, Michaela explains how the deeply immersive nature of VR can change the audience's perception of a global...

It all started with a stolen car. In 1983 Chicago resident David Meilahn's car was stolen. He bought a new one, a Mercedes Benz 280SL 2-seater. But then he needed to replace his old radio-phone ... and the sales rep told him there was something new: a cellular phone. He was one of the first few to be selected, then won a race to place the very first commercial cell phone call, which ended up b...

Generative AI won't be building Falcon 9s or new space shuttles just yet. But can it help with all the work that goes into running an organization that builds the future? According to Kendall Clark, CEO of Stardog, yes. Generative AI that democratizes access to data and insight and knowledge speeds up organizations can help with launching space ships, or anything else. For NASA, a generative A...

How will generative AI impact work? And why are smaller companies adopting generative AI more than enterprises? Generative AI is almost literally exploding: there are so many possibilities. But how is it changing work and business? Recently GBK Collective, a consultancy founded by top academics at Wharton, studied 672 businesses in the US with annual sales over $50 million In this TechFirst we&#39...

Is equity, inclusion, and diversity in AI a solved problem? I’ve written a lot of stories lately about AI. AI is critical to our future of automation ... robots ... relf-driving cars ... drones ... and … everything: smart homes, smart factories, safety & security, environmental protection and restoration. A few years ago we heard constantly how various AI models weren’t trained on diverse popu...

Who will win the race to have the world’s first usable general purpose humanoid robot? I thought I knew all the companies making general purpose robots: - Tesla - Sanctuary AI - Figure AI - Fourier Intelligence - Agility Robotics - Boston Dynamics I was wrong ... there’s probably a bunch I don’t know. But one that popped up as interesting is Apptronik. They’re based in Austin TX, they're partn...