The AI Forecast: Data and AI in the Cloud Era

It’s official. AI has reached the classrooms, but not without pushback and hesitancy. Marlee Strawn, co-founder of Scholar Education, joins The AI Forecast to discuss. Marlee’s years of experience in education—both as a teacher and school administrator—ground her strong perspective that AI won’t replace teachers or make students “dumber.”  Tune in as Marlee and host Paul Muller delve into the sign...

In this episode of The AI Forecast, we’re joined by Jack Kennedy, CTO and co-founder of Whippy. From SMS to email to voice, Whippy helps unify fragmented communication channels—boosting efficiency with real-time AI tools. Jack joins host Paul Muller for a wide-ranging conversation covering the evolution of Whippy from a scrappy consulting operation to a fully productized platform, the surprising a...

Generative AI is entering the enterprise at scale, following patterns set by the rise of cloud computing. As organizations shift from buying tools to building custom solutions, architecture and integration become key to long-term success. In this episode of The AI Forecast, Ryan Ries, Chief AI and Data Scientist at Mission Cloud, joins host Paul Muller to discuss AI infrastructure built for succes...

In this episode of The AI Forecast, host Paul Muller is joined by Kevin Surace—Chair & CEO of Appvance.ai, Chair of Token Ring, and a pioneering force behind the first human-like AI virtual assistant—for a deeply human conversation about what it means to lead through disruption. From building billion-dollar companies to holding 94 worldwide patents in AI, automation, and sustainability, Kevin...

In this episode of The AI Forecast, host Paul Muller welcomes Dr. Ruchir Puri, Chief Scientist at IBM Research, to cut through the noise surrounding Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) and spotlight a more pragmatic path forward: Artificial Useful Intelligence (AUI). Dr. Puri—a globally recognized AI pioneer with over 50 patents, 100+ publications, and academic roles at Stanford, Columbia, and B...

In this episode of The AI Forecast, host Paul Muller sits down with Vineet Jain, CEO and co-founder of Egnyte, for a conversation on one of the biggest enterprise challenges in AI: protecting corporate data while enabling innovation. Vineet shares his perspective on the real risks of generative AI in the workplace—from inadvertent data leaks to the shadow IT resurgence—and outlines why governance...

AI agents are quickly becoming one of the most powerful tools in the enterprise AI toolkit. According to Cloudera’s latest Agentic AI Survey, 96% of enterprises plan to expand their use of AI agents. But what’s driving this surge, and how can organizations turn hype into results? In this episode of The AI Forecast, host Paul Muller sits down with Abhas Ricky, Chief Strategy Officer at Cloudera, to...

In high-stakes environments like professional poker and startup entrepreneurship, precision, timing, and strategy are everything. And nobody knows that better than David Daneshgar. In this episode of The AI Forecast, we’re joined by David Daneshgar, a World Series of Poker champion and now Co-founder and CEO of Whippy, a company using AI to transform how businesses communicate with their customers...

As part of our Women Leaders in Technology (WLIT) series on The AI Forecast, we’re joined by Melissa Dougherty, Global Managing Director of Partner Sales, Financial Services at Amazon Web Services (AWS). Each quarter, we’ll take a break from the regularly scheduled AI programming on The AI Forecast to direct our attention to this important topic in tech.  Melissa shares her unconventional journey...

As AI booms and workloads skyrocket, data centers are being pushed to their physical and operational limits. Meanwhile, massive growth has sparked conversations about the environmental impacts of greater computing requirements.  Data center electricity consumption will grow by an average of 23% annually between 2023 and 2028. Additionally, the same report forecasts that AI-specific data center ene...

In a world where AI is rapidly reshaping everything from how we work to how we live, one truth stands out: education is the cornerstone of both innovation and safety.  In this episode of The AI Forecast, host Paul Muller speaks with Peter Norvig, an education fellow at Stanford and the co-author of Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach, the leading textbook for AI education. Peter explores th...

As AI becomes a regular topic in boardrooms, many executives face critical blind spots around strategy, governance, and implementation. Few are AI-native, and many struggle to connect high-level goals with practical, accountable systems.  In this episode of The AI Forecast, host Paul Muller speaks with Dr. Maya Dillon, an astrophysicist turned AI thought leader and CEO of consultancy XSAIA. Maya e...

In highly regulated industries like healthcare and energy, a lot is at stake if an AI system “fails” – therefore leading to a higher risk of unintended consequences that could mean life or death. These high-risk environments can teach us a lot about responsible AI, practical guardrails, and best practices overall.  One of those lessons? Make AI “boring”. To dive into what that means for highly reg...

Data is more complex than ever before, and the big data market is growing rapidly with advancements in digital technology such as AI and cloud computing. But with this growth also comes opportunity.  The business leaders who can make sense of their data – and transform it into value – will be the winners in today’s data economy. To discuss this, we’re joined by Jan-Willem Middleburg.  Jan-Willem i...

There’s no question that AI is revolutionizing industries, but now, technology and policy experts worldwide are tackling how to ensure that the technology is used safely.  This episode of The AI Forecast welcomes Patrick E. Murphy to discuss a two-fold conversation on AI in America. Patrick is the CEO and founder of Togal. AI, the founder of CodeComply. Ai, and a former U.S. Congressman representi...

Today’s digital environment is noisier than ever. For brands to stand out, they need to be hyper-relevant to their customers. That’s where the power of data comes in.  In this episode of The AI Forecast, we’re joined by marketing expert Zontee Hou. Not only does Zontee have 20 years of experience in the marketing industry, she’s also the author of Data-Driven Personalization, the founder of Media...

The emergence of AI has undeniably changed the business landscape, with leaders across the globe racing to implement the technology for fear of falling behind their peers. But to orchestrate a successful digital transformation and harness the full power of AI, businesses must prioritize cognitive neuroscience and human behavior alongside the technological advancements of AI. Kamales Lardi is our l...

As AI continues to advance, the ethical use of the tool has been widely (and hotly) debated. Often described as a double-edged sword, AI offers both transformative potential while also raising significant ethical questions. When and how should AI be used? Who is accountable if something goes wrong? Will AI actually take over the world? On this episode of The AI Forecast, Olivia Gambelin, AI ethici...

On this episode of The AI Forecast, Mike Walsh talks us through what he calls the fifth and latest industrial revolution – and that’s AI. Mike is a futurist and expert in disruptive technologies. He’s a best-selling author, host of the Between Worlds podcast, and CEO of Tomorrow – a global consultancy helping organizations adapt to the challenges of the digital age. With this fifth industrial revo...

After going legally blind at 21, Chad Foster’s life flipped on its head. He had to re-learn how to be an active participant in society, starting with finishing his university degree. His life-altering experience at 21 had changed the course of Chad’s life, teaching him to crave the uncomfortable experiences because that’s where growth lies. After a successful career as a business executive, and af...

2025 is set to be a year of growth and change, particularly in the AI space. Over the last couple of years, AI has evolved from a niche technology to a driving force behind business strategies, innovation, and efficiency in almost every industry. Its impact is felt far and wide. It is not only shaping how we search for information, but how we digest and react to the world around us.  As a podcast...

Businesses must be prepared to transform their data architecture to keep up with the pace of the industry as long-standing ideas about operational efficiency and the customer experience have changed too. That’s especially true in the travel industry, an industry that generates and consumes tremendous amounts of data: think booking your flight, finding the best price of your hotel stay, etc.  To ta...

Data has so much promise, but organizations struggle to use it effectively, especially with the increasing complexity of managing large projects and the pressure of incorporating AI. On this episode of The AI Forecast, we’re joined by Simon Asplen-Taylor , the founder and CEO of DataTick and author of “Data and Analytics Strategy for Business”. Simon has spent years counseling organizations on get...

For the inaugural episode of Women Leaders in Technology on The AI Forecast, we’re joined by one of the top female leaders in the technology industry, Kari Briski - Vice President AI Software Product Management at NVIDIA. Kari shares the stories and strategies that inform her leadership style–like GSD or “getting stuff done”–what it means to trust your instinct, and the advice she gives to young w...

The AI explosion has led to non-stop hype cycles as the technology continues to develop. But AI is only as good as the data behind it. The threat of lousy data is bad AI. Andrew Brust, Founder and CEO of Blue Badge Insights, joins The AI Forecast to discuss the AI hype–and how to prevent what he calls an “artificial Charlatan” of bad AI. He emphasizes the dependent relationship between data and AI...