DataFramed

Financial institutions are racing to harness the power of AI, but the path to implementation is filled with challenges. From feature engineering to model deployment, the technical complexities of AI adoption in finance require careful navigation of both technological and regulatory landscapes. How do you build AI systems that satisfy strict compliance requirements while still delivering business value? What skills should teams prioritize as AI tools become more accessible through natural language interfaces? With the pressure to reduce model development time from months to days, how can organizations maintain proper governance while still moving at the speed modern business demands?Vijay is a seasoned analytics, product, and technology executive. As EVP of Global Solutions & Analytics at Experian, he runs the department that creates Experian's Ascend financial AI platform. Promoted multiple times in eight years, Vijay now leads a team of more than 70 at Experian. He is one of the youngest execs at Experian, believing strongly in understanding and accepting risk. He has built and run data, engineering, and IT teams, and created market-leading products.In the episode, Richie and Vijay explore the impact of generative AI on the finance industry, the development of Experian's Ascend platform, the challenges of fraud prevention, education and compliance in AI deployment, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:ExperianExperian AscendConnect with VijayCourse: Implementing AI Solutions in BusinessRelated Episode: How Generative AI is Transforming Finance with Andrew Reiskind, CDO at MastercardRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The manufacturing floor is undergoing a technological revolution with industrial AI at its center. From predictive maintenance to quality control, AI is transforming how products are designed, produced, and maintained. But implementing these technologies isn't just about installing sensors and software—it's about empowering your workforce to embrace new tools and processes. How do you overcome AI hesitancy among experienced workers? What skills should your team develop to make the most of these new capabilities? And with limited resources, how do you prioritize which AI applications will deliver the greatest impact for your specific manufacturing challenges? The answers might be simpler than you think.Barbara Humpton is President and CEO of Siemens Corporation, responsible for strategy and engagement in Siemens’ largest market. Under her leadership, Siemens USA operates across all 50 states and Puerto Rico with 45,000 employees and generated $21.1 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2024. She champions the role of technology in expanding what’s humanly possible and is a strong advocate for workforce development, mentorship, and building sustainable work-life integration. Previously, she was President and CEO of Siemens Government Technologies, leading delivery of Siemens’ products and services to U.S. federal agencies. Before joining Siemens in 2011, she held senior roles at Booz Allen Hamilton and Lockheed Martin, where she oversaw programs in national security, biometrics, border protection, and critical infrastructure, including the FBI’s Next Generation Identification and TSA’s Transportation Workers’ Identification Credential.Olympia Brikis is a seasoned technology and business leader with over a decade of experience in AI research. As the Technology and Engineering Director for Siemens' Industrial AI Research in the U.S., she leads AI strategy, technology roadmapping, and R&D for next-gen AI products. Olympia has a strong track record in developing Generative AI products that integrate industrial and digital ecosystems, driving real-world business impact. She is a recognized thought leader with numerous patents and peer-reviewed publications in AI for manufacturing, predictive analytics, and digital twins. Olympia actively engages with executives, policymakers, and AI practitioners on AI's role in enterprise strategy and workforce transformation. With a background in Computer Science from LMU Munich and an MBA from Wharton, she bridges AI research, product strategy, and enterprise adoption, mentoring the next generation of AI leaders.In the episode, Richie, Barbara, and Olympia explore the transformative power of AI in manufacturing, from predictive maintenance to digital twins, the role of industrial AI in enhancing productivity, the importance of empowering workers with new technology, real-world applications, overcoming AI hesitancy, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Siemens Industrial AI SuiteConnect with Barbara and OlympiaCourse: Implementing AI Solutions in BusinessRelated Episode: Master Your Inner Game to Avoid Burnout with Klaus Kleinfeld, Former CEO at Alcoa and SiemensRewatch RADAR AI where...

The line between human work and AI capabilities is blurring in today's business environment. AI agents are now handling autonomous tasks across customer support, data management, and sales prospecting with increasing sophistication. But how do you effectively integrate these agents into your existing workflows? What's the right approach to training and evaluating AI team members? With data quality being the foundation of successful AI implementation, how can you ensure your systems have the unified context they need while maintaining proper governance and privacy controls?Karen Ng is the Head of Product at HubSpot, where she leads product strategy, design, and partnerships with the mission of helping millions of organizations grow better. Since joining in 2022, she has driven innovation across Smart CRM, Operations Hub, Breeze Intelligence, and the developer ecosystem, with a focus on unifying structured and unstructured data to make AI truly useful for businesses. Known for leading with clarity and “AI speed,” she pushes HubSpot to stay ahead of disruption and empower customers to thrive.Previously, Karen held senior product leadership roles at Common Room, Google, and Microsoft. At Common Room, she built the product and data science teams from the ground up, while at Google she directed Android’s product frameworks like Jetpack and Jetpack Compose. During more than a decade at Microsoft, she helped shape the company’s .NET strategy and launched the Roslyn compiler platform. Recognized as a Product 50 Winner and recipient of the PM Award for Technical Strategist, she also advises and invests in high-growth technology companies.In the episode, Richie and Karen explore the evolving role of AI agents in sales, marketing, and support, the distinction between chatbots, co-pilots, and autonomous agents, the importance of data quality and context, the concept of hybrid teams, the future of AI-driven business processes, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Hubspot Breeze AgentsConnect with KarenWebinar: Pricing & Monetizing Your AI Products with Sam Lee, VP of Pricing Strategy & Product Operations at HubSpotRelated Episode: Enterprise AI Agents with Jun Qian, VP of Generative AI Services at OracleRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The modern workplace often glorifies constant productivity and hustle culture, but at what cost? More professionals are burning out earlier in their careers, while elite athletes are extending their peak performance years. What can business leaders learn from high-performance sports about energy management and sustainable success? How do you distinguish between your 'inner game'—managing your energy and purpose—and your 'outer game' of business skills and execution? Could simple techniques like compartmentalization, breathing exercises, and finding deeper purpose transform your professional effectiveness? What if the key to avoiding burnout isn't working less, but working differently?Dr. Klaus Kleinfeld is an international executive, investor, and entrepreneur. He is the Founder and CEO of K2Elevation, which develops and invests in technology and biotech ventures across Germany, Austria, and the U.S. He serves as Chairman of KONUX and FERNRIDE, sits on the supervisory boards of GreyOrange, Fero Labs, and NEOM, and is an Advisory Partner at EMH Partners. Previously, he was the first CEO of NEOM, where he remains on the board and advises the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on economic development. Earlier in his career, Dr. Kleinfeld was Chairman and CEO of Alcoa/Arconic, leading the company through a major transformation and successful split, and spent two decades at Siemens, ultimately becoming CEO of Siemens AG. He has also served on numerous global boards and advisory councils, including the Brookings Institution, Council on Foreign Relations, and World Economic Forum, and advised U.S. Presidents and international leaders. Born in Bremen, Germany, he holds an MBA from the University of Göttingen, a PhD from the University of Würzburg, and dual U.S.-German citizenship.In the episode, Richie and Klaus explore the causes of workplace burnout, the parallels between high-performing workers and athletes, the importance of managing energy and purpose, practical techniques for emotional and mental control, the role of downtime in productivity, and strategies for creating a supportive work culture, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Klaus’ Book - Leading to ThriveConnect with KlausCourse: Understanding Prompt EngineeringRelated Episode: Becoming Remarkable with Guy Kawasaki, Author and Chief Evangelist at CanvaRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Welcome to DataFramed Industry Roundups! In this series of episodes, we sit down to discuss the latest and greatest in data & AI. In this episode, with special guest, DataCamp Editor Alex, we touch upon the launch of GPT-5, scaling limits in AI, Meta’s leaked chatbot guidelines, trust in AI tools from the Stack Overflow survey, why OpenAI and Anthropic are giving models away to the US government, AI safety concerns around reasoning, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:GPT-5 Is an Evolution, Not a RevolutionMeta’s AI rules have let bots hold ‘sensual’ chats with kids, offer false medical infoAI | 2025 Stack Overflow Developer SurveyOpenAI, Anthropic, both giving AI to federal workers for $1/agencyNew to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Every day, knowledge workers face the challenge of managing competing priorities and constant interruptions. When systems are managing us rather than us managing them, productivity suffers and morale plummets. But what if the key to improvement isn't complex reorganization but rather understanding how work actually flows through your team or organization? How can visualizing your workflow and regulating for flow transform productivity? What small, incremental changes might lead to dramatic improvements in both output and job satisfaction?Nelson P. Repenning is the Faculty Director of the MIT Leadership Center and the School of Management Distinguished Professor of System Dynamics and Organization Studies at the MIT Sloan School of Management. His early work focused on understanding the inability of organizations to leverage well-established tools and practices. He has worked extensively with organizations trying to develop new capabilities in both manufacturing and new product development. Nelson has also studied the failure to use the safety practices that often lead to industrial accidents and has helped investigate several major incidents. This line of research has been recognized with several awards, including best paper recognition from both the California Management Review and the Journal of Product Innovation Management. Building on his earlier work, Nelson now focuses on developing the theory and practice of Dynamic Work Design—a new approach to designing work that is both effective and engaging—and Dynamic Management Systems, a method for ensuring that day-to-day work is tightly linked to the strategic objectives of the firm. His book (co-authored with Don Kieffer) There Has Got to Be a Better Way describing Dynamic Work Design will be published by Public Affairs in 2025. He is also a partner at ShiftGear Work Design and serves as its chief social scientist. In 2003, Nelson received the International System Dynamics Society’s Jay Wright Forrester Award, which recognizes the best work in the field in the previous five years. In 2011 he received the Jamieson Prize for Excellence in Teaching. He was recently recognized by Poets and Quants as one of the country's top instructors in executive education.Donald Kieffer is a Senior Lecturer in Operations Management at MIT Sloan.He is a career operations executive and co-creator of Dynamic Work Design. Kieffer started working running equipment in factories at age 17. He was VP of operational excellence at Harley-Davidson where he worked for 15 years. Since 2007, he has been advising executive teams around the globe in a range of areas including strategy deployment, product development, and operational improvement. Don has worked with industries as diverse as oil/gas, medical, biomedical, and banking. His guidance was instrumental in transforming both the production and technical development areas of a Cambridge-based genomic sequencing organization, now an industry leader, using the techniques of Dynamic Work Design. He is founder of ShiftGear Work Design, LLC and also teaches Operations Management at AVT in Copenhagen.In the episode, Richie, Nelson and Don explore the challenges of daily firefighting at work, the principles of dynamic work design, how to improve productivity by addressing real problems, the role of AI in business, the importance of setting clear priorities, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Nelson & Don’s Book - There's Got to Be a Better Way: How to Deliver Results and Get Rid of the Stuff That Gets in the Way of Real WorkConnect with Nelson & Dona...

Combining LLMs with enterprise knowledge bases is creating powerful new agents that can transform business operations. These systems are dramatically improving on traditional chatbots by understanding context, following conversations naturally, and accessing up-to-date information. But how do you effectively manage the knowledge that powers these agents? What governance structures need to be in place before deployment? And as we look toward a future with physical AI and robotics, what fundamental computing challenges must we solve to ensure these technologies enhance rather than complicate our lives?Jun Qian is an accomplished technology leader with extensive experience in artificial intelligence and machine learning. Currently serving as Vice President of Generative AI Services at Oracle since May 2020, Jun founded and leads the Engineering and Science group, focusing on the creation and enhancement of Generative AI services and AI Agents. Previously held roles include Vice President of AI Science and Development at Oracle, Head of AI and Machine Learning at Sift, and Principal Group Engineering Manager at Microsoft, where Jun co-founded Microsoft Power Virtual Agents. Jun's career also includes significant contributions as the Founding Manager of Amazon Machine Learning at AWS and as a Principal Investigator at Verizon.In the episode, Richie and Jun explore the evolution of AI agents, the unique features of ChatGPT, the challenges and advancements in chatbot technology, the importance of data management and security in AI, and the future of AI in computing and robotics, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:OracleConnect with JunCourse: Introduction to AI AgentsJun at DataCamp RADARRelated Episode: A Framework for GenAI App and Agent Development with Jerry Liu, CEO at LlamaIndexRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The relationship between AI and data professionals is evolving rapidly, creating both opportunities and challenges. As companies embrace AI-first strategies and experiment with AI agents, the skills needed to thrive in data roles are fundamentally changing. Is coding knowledge still essential when AI can generate code for you? How important is domain expertise when automated tools can handle technical tasks? With data engineering and analytics engineering gaining prominence, the focus is shifting toward ensuring data quality and building reliable pipelines. But where does the human fit in this increasingly automated landscape, and how can you position yourself to thrive amid these transformations?Megan Bowers is Senior Content Manager, Digital Customer Success at Alteryx, where she develops resources for the Maveryx Community. She writes technical blogs and hosts the Alter Everything podcast, spotlighting best practices from data professionals across the industry.Before joining Alteryx, Megan worked as a data analyst at Stanley Black & Decker, where she led ETL and dashboarding projects and trained teams on Alteryx and Power BI. Her transition into data began after earning a degree in Industrial Engineering and completing a data science bootcamp. Today, she focuses on creating accessible, high-impact content that helps data practitioners grow. Her favorite topics include switching career paths after college, building a professional brand on LinkedIn, writing technical blogs people actually want to read, and best practices in Alteryx, data visualization, and data storytelling.Presented by Alteryx, Alter Everything serves as a podcast dedicated to the culture of data science and analytics, showcasing insights from industry specialists. Covering a range of subjects from the use of machine learning to various analytics career trajectories, and all that lies between, Alter Everything stands as a celebration of the critical role of data literacy in a data-driven world.In the episode, Richie and Megan explore the impact of AI on job functions, the rise of AI agents in business, and the importance of domain knowledge and process analytics in data roles. They also discuss strategies for staying updated in the fast-paced world of AI and data science, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Alter EverythingConnect with MeganSkill Track: Alteryx FundamentalsRelated Episode: Scaling Enterprise Analytics with Libby Duane Adams, Chief Advocacy Officer and Co-Founder of AlteryxRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Data science continues to evolve in the age of AI, but is it still the 'sexiest job of the 21st century'? While generative AI has transformed the landscape, it hasn't replaced data scientists—instead, it's created more demand for their skills. Data professionals now incorporate AI into their workflows to boost efficiency, analyze data faster, and communicate insights more effectively. But with these technological advances come questions: How should you adapt your skills to stay relevant? What's the right balance between traditional data science techniques and new AI capabilities? And as roles like analytics engineer and machine learning engineer emerge, how do you position yourself for success in this rapidly changing field?Dawn Choo is the Co-Founder of Interview Master, a platform designed to streamline technical interview preparation. With a foundation in data science, financial analysis, and product strategy, she brings a cross-disciplinary lens to building data-driven tools that improve hiring outcomes. Her career spans roles at leading tech firms, including ClassDojo, Patreon, and Instagram, where she delivered insights to support product development and user engagement.Earlier, Dawn held analytical and engineering positions at Amazon and Bank of America, focusing on business intelligence, financial modeling, and risk analysis. She began her career at Facebook as a marketing analyst and continues to be a visible figure in the data science community—offering practical guidance to job seekers navigating technical interviews and career transitions.In the episode, Richie and Dawn explore the evolving role of data scientists in the age of AI, the impact of generative AI on workflows, the importance of foundational skills, and the nuances of the hiring process in data science. They also discuss the integration of AI in products and the future of personalized AI models, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Interview MasterConnect with DawnDawn’s Newsletter: Ask Data DawnGet Certified: AI Engineer for Data Scientists Associate CertificationRelated Episode: How To Get Hired As A Data Or AI Engineer with Deepak Goyal, CEO & Founder at Azurelib AcademyRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The structured data that powers business decisions is more complex than the sequences processed by traditional AI models. Enterprise databases with their interconnected tables of customers, products, and transactions form intricate graphs that contain valuable predictive signals. But how can we effectively extract insights from these complex relationships without extensive manual feature engineering?Graph transformers are revolutionizing this space by treating databases as networks and learning directly from raw data. What if you could build models in hours instead of months while achieving better accuracy? How might this technology change the role of data scientists, allowing them to focus on business impact rather than data preparation? Could this be the missing piece that brings the AI revolution to predictive modeling?Jure Leskovec is a Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University, where he is affiliated with the Stanford AI Lab, the Machine Learning Group, and the Center for Research on Foundation Models.Previously, he served as Chief Scientist at Pinterest and held a research role at the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub. He is also a co-founder of Kumo.AI, a machine learning startup. Leskovec has contributed significantly to the development of Graph Neural Networks and co-authored PyG, a widely-used library in the field. Research from his lab has supported public health efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic and informed product development at companies including Facebook, Pinterest, Uber, YouTube, and Amazon.His work has received several recognitions, including the Microsoft Research Faculty Fellowship (2011), the Okawa Research Award (2012), the Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship (2012), the Lagrange Prize (2015), and the ICDM Research Contributions Award (2019). His research spans social networks, machine learning, data mining, and computational biomedicine, with a focus on drug discovery. He has received 12 best paper awards and five 10-year Test of Time awards at leading academic conferences.In the episode, Richie and Jure explore the need for a foundation model for enterprise data, the limitations of current AI models in predictive tasks, the potential of graph transformers for business data, and the transformative impact of relational foundation models on machine learning workflows, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Jure’s PublicationsKumo AIConnect with JureCourse - Transformer Models with PyTorchRelated Episode: High Performance Generative AI Applications with Ram Sriharsha, CTO at PineconeRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Healthcare AI is rapidly evolving beyond simple diagnostic tools to comprehensive systems that can analyze and predict patient outcomes. With the rise of multimodal AI models that can process everything from medical images to patient records and genetic information, we're entering an era where AI could fundamentally transform how healthcare decisions are made. But how do we ensure these systems maintain patient privacy while still leveraging vast amounts of medical data? What are the technical challenges in building AI that can reason across different types of medical information? And how do we balance the promise of AI-assisted healthcare with the critical role of human medical professionals?Professor Aldo Faisal is Chair in AI & Neuroscience at Imperial College London, with joint appointments in Bioengineering and Computing, and also holds the Chair in Digital Health at the University of Bayreuth. He is the Founding Director of the UKRI Centre for Doctoral Training in AI for Healthcare and leads the Brain & Behaviour Lab and Behaviour Analytics Lab at Imperial’s Data Science Institute. His research integrates machine learning, neuroscience, and human behaviour to develop AI technologies for healthcare. He is among the few engineers globally leading their own clinical trials, with work focused on digital biomarkers and AI-based medical interventions. Aldo serves as Associate Editor for Nature Scientific Data and PLOS Computational Biology, and has chaired major conferences like KDD, NIPS, and IEEE BSN. His work has earned multiple awards, including the $50,000 Toyota Mobility Foundation Prize, and is regularly featured in global media outlets.In the episode, Richie and Aldo explore the advancements in AI for healthcare, including AI's role in diagnostics and operational improvements, the ambitious Nightingale AI project, challenges in handling diverse medical data, privacy concerns, and the future of AI-assisted medical decision-making, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Aldo’s PublicationsConnect with AldoProject: What is Your Heart Rate Telling You?Related Episode: Using Data to Optimize Costs in Healthcare with Travis Dalton and Jocelyn Jiang President/CEO & VP of Data & Decision Science at MultiPlanRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The relationship between humans and AI in the workplace is rapidly evolving beyond simple automation. As companies deploy thousands of AI agents to handle everything from expense approvals to customer success management, a new paradigm is emerging—one where humans become orchestrators rather than operators. But how do you determine which processes should be handled by AI and which require human judgment? What governance structures need to be in place before deploying AI at scale? With the potential to automate up to 80% of business processes, organizations must carefully consider not just the technology, but the human element of AI-driven transformation.Steve Lucas is the Chairman and CEO of Boomi, marking his third tenure as CEO. With nearly 30 years of enterprise software leadership, he has held senior roles at leading cloud organizations including Marketo, iCIMS, Adobe, SAP, Salesforce, and BusinessObjects. He led Marketo through its multi-billion-dollar acquisition by Adobe and drove strategic growth at iCIMS, delivering significant investments and transformation. A proven leader in scaling software companies, Steve is also the author of the national bestseller Digital Impact and holds a business degree from the University of Colorado.In the episode, Richie and Steve explore the importance of choosing the right tech stack for your business, the challenges of managing complex systems, the role of AI in transforming business processes, and the need for effective AI governance. They also discuss the future of AI-driven enterprises and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:BoomiSteve’s Book - Digital Impact: The Human Element of AI-Driven TransformationWhat is the OSI Model?Connect with SteveSkill Track: AI Business FundamentalsRelated Episode: New Models for Digital Transformation with Alison McCauley Chief Advocacy Officer at Think with AI & Founder of Unblocked FutureRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Business intelligence has been transforming organizations for decades, yet many companies still struggle with widespread adoption. With less than 40% of employees in most organizations having access to BI tools, there's a significant 'information underclass' making decisions without data-driven insights. How can businesses bridge this gap and achieve true information democracy? While new technologies like generative AI and semantic layers offer promising solutions, the fundamentals of data quality and governance remain critical. What balance should organizations strike between investing in innovative tools and strengthening their data infrastructure? How can you ensure your business becomes a 'data athlete' capable of making hyper-decisive moves in an uncertain economic landscape?Howard Dresner is founder and Chief Research Officer at Dresner Advisory Services and a leading voice in Business Intelligence (BI), credited with coining the term “Business Intelligence” in 1989. He spent 13 years at Gartner as lead BI analyst, shaping its research agenda and earning recognition as Analyst of the Year, Distinguished Analyst, and Gartner Fellow. He also led Gartner’s BI conferences in Europe and North America. Before founding Dresner Advisory in 2007, Howard was Chief Strategy Officer at Hyperion Solutions, where he drove strategy and thought leadership, helping position Hyperion as a leader in performance management prior to its acquisition by Oracle. Howard has written two books, The Performance Management Revolution – Business Results through Insight and Action, and Profiles in Performance – Business Intelligence Journeys and the Roadmap for Change - both published by John Wiley & Sons.In the episode, Richie and Howard explore the surprising low penetration of business intelligence in organizations, the importance of data governance and infrastructure, the evolving role of AI in BI, and the strategic initiatives driving BI usage, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Dresner Advisory ServicesHoward’s Book - Profiles in Performance: Business Intelligence Journeys and the Roadmap for ChangeConnect with HowardSkill Track: Power BI FundamentalsRelated Episode: The Next Generation of Business Intelligence with Colin Zima, CEO at OmniRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Technology and human consciousness are converging in ways that challenge our fundamental understanding of creativity and connection. As AI systems become increasingly sophisticated at mimicking human thought patterns, we're entering uncharted territory where machines don't just assist creative work—they actively participate in it. But what does this mean for the future of human creativity and our relationship with technology? How do we maintain meaningful human connections in a world where emotional labor is increasingly commoditized? As we navigate this rapidly evolving landscape, the question isn't just whether machines can think, but how their thinking will transform our own.Ken Liu is an American author of speculative fiction. A winner of the Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy awards, he wrote the Dandelion Dynasty, a silkpunk epic fantasy series, as well as short story collections The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories and The Hidden Girl and Other Stories. His latest book is All that We See or Seem, a techno-thriller starring an AI-whispering hacker who saves the world. He also translated Cixin Liu’s seminal book series, the Three-Body Problem. He’s often involved in media adaptations of his work. Recent projects include “The Regular,” under development as a TV series; “Good Hunting,” adapted as an episode in season one of Netflix’s breakout adult animated series Love, Death + Robots; and AMC’s Pantheon, with Craig Silverstein as executive producer, adapted from an interconnected series of Liu’s short stories. Prior to becoming a full-time writer, Liu worked as a software engineer, corporate lawyer, and litigation consultant. Liu frequently speaks on a variety of topics, including futurism, machine-augmented creativity, history of technology, bookmaking, and the mathematics of origami.In the episode, Adel and Ken explore the intersection of technology and storytelling, how sci-fi can inform AI's trajectory, the role of AI in reshaping human relationships and creativity, how AI is changing art, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Ken’s BooksKen on Substack, Ken on XSkill Track: AI FundamentalsRelated Episode: What History Tells Us About the Future of AI with Verity Harding, Author of AI Needs YouRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Welcome to DataFramed Industry Roundups! In this series of episodes, we sit down to discuss the latest and greatest in data & AI. In this episode, with special guest, DataCamp COO Martijn, we touch upon the hype and reality of AI agents in business, the McKinsey vs. Ethan Mollick debate on simple vs. complex agents, Meta's $15B stake in Scale AI and what it means for data and talent, Apple’s rumored $20B bid for Perplexity amid AI struggles, EU’s push to treat AI skills like reading and math, the first fully AI-generated NBA ad and what it means for creative industries, a new benchmark for deep research tools, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Meta bought Scale AIApple rumoured to buy trying to acquire Perplexity for $20BnMcKinsey's Seizing the Agentic AI Advantage reportThe first fully AI-generated NBA AdEU Generative AI Outlook reportMary Meeker's Trend in AI reportDeep research benchmarkRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The enterprise adoption of AI agents is accelerating, but significant challenges remain in making them truly reliable and effective. While coding assistants and customer service agents are already delivering value, more complex document-based workflows require sophisticated architectures and data processing capabilities. How do you design agent systems that can handle the complexity of enterprise documents with their tables, charts, and unstructured information? What's the right balance between general reasoning capabilities and constrained architectures for specific business tasks? Should you centralize your agent infrastructure or purchase vertical solutions for each department? The answers lie in understanding the fundamental trade-offs between flexibility, reliability, and the specific needs of your organization.Jerry Liu is the CEO and Co-founder at LlamaIndex, the AI agents platform for automating document workflows. Previously, he led the ML monitoring team at Robust Intelligence, did self-driving AI research at Uber ATG, and worked on recommendation systems at Quora.In the episode, Richie and Jerry explore the readiness of AI agents for enterprise use, the challenges developers face in building these agents, the importance of document processing and data structuring, the evolving landscape of AI agent frameworks like LlamaIndex, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:LlamaIndexLlamaIndex Production Ready Framework For LLM AgentsTutorial: Model Context Protocol (MCP)Connect with JerryCourse: Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) with LangChainRelated Episode: RAG 2.0 and The New Era of RAG Agents with Douwe Kiela, CEO at Contextual AI & Adjunct Professor at Stanford UniversityRewatch RADAR AI New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

The line between generic AI capabilities and truly transformative business applications often comes down to one thing: your data. While foundation models provide impressive general intelligence, they lack the specialized knowledge needed for domain-specific tasks that drive real business value. But how do you effectively bridge this gap? What's the difference between simply fine-tuning models versus using techniques like retrieval-augmented generation? And with constantly evolving models and technologies, how do you build systems that remain adaptable while still delivering consistent results? Whether you're in retail, healthcare, or transportation, understanding how to properly enrich, annotate, and leverage your proprietary data could be the difference between an AI project that fails and one that fundamentally transforms your business.Wendy Gonzalez is the CEO — and former COO — of Sama, a company leading the way in ethical AI by delivering accurate, human-annotated data while advancing economic opportunity in underserved communities. She joined Sama in 2015 and has been central to scaling both its global operations and its mission-driven business model, which has helped over 65,000 people lift themselves out of poverty through dignified digital work. With over 20 years of experience in the tech and data space, Wendy’s held leadership roles at EY, Capgemini, and Cycle30, where she built and managed high-performing teams across complex, global environments. Her leadership style blends operational excellence with deep purpose — ensuring that innovation doesn’t come at the expense of integrity. Wendy is also a vocal advocate for inclusive AI and sustainable impact, regularly speaking on how companies can balance cutting-edge technology with real-world responsibility.Duncan Curtis is the Senior Vice President of Generative AI at Sama, where he leads the development of AI-powered tools that are shaping the future of data annotation. With a background in product leadership and machine learning, Duncan has spent his career building scalable systems that bridge cutting-edge technology with real-world impact. Before joining Sama, he led teams at companies like Google, where he worked on large-scale personalization systems, and contributed to AI product strategy across multiple sectors. At Sama, he's focused on harnessing the power of generative AI to improve quality, speed, and efficiency — all while keeping human oversight and ethical practices at the core. Duncan brings a unique perspective to the AI space: one that’s grounded in technical expertise, but always oriented toward practical solutions and responsible innovation.In the episode, Richie, Wendy, and Duncan explore the importance of using specialized data with large language models, the role of data enrichment in improving AI accuracy, the balance between automation and human oversight, the significance of responsible AI practices, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:SamaConnect with WendyConnect with DuncanCourse: Generative AI ConceptsRelated Episode: Creating High Quality AI Applications with Theresa Parker & Sudhi Balan, Rocket SoftwareRegister for RADAR AINew to DataCamp?Learn on the go...

The modern data stack has transformed how organizations work with data, but are our BI tools keeping pace with these changes? As data schemas become increasingly fluid and analysis needs range from quick explorations to production-grade reporting, traditional approaches are being challenged. How can we create analytics experiences that accommodate both casual spreadsheet users and technical data modelers? With semantic layers becoming crucial for AI integration and data governance growing in importance, what skills do today's BI professionals need to master? Finding the balance between flexibility and governance is perhaps the greatest challenge facing data teams today.Colin Zima is the Co-Founder and CEO of Omni, a business intelligence platform focused on making data more accessible and useful for teams of all sizes. Prior to Omni, he was Chief Analytics Officer and VP of Product at Looker, where he helped shape the product and data strategy leading up to its acquisition by Google for $2.6 billion. Colin’s background spans roles in data science, analytics, and product leadership, including positions at Google, HotelTonight, and as founder of the restaurant analytics startup PrimaTable. He holds a degree in Operations Research and Financial Engineering from Princeton University and began his career as a Structured Credit Analyst at UBS.In the episode, Richie and Colin explore the evolution of BI tools, the challenges of integrating casual and rigorous data analysis, the role of semantic layers, and the impact of AI on business intelligence. They discuss the importance of understanding business needs, creating user-focused dashboards, and the future of data products, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:OmniConnect with ColinSkill Track: Design in Power BIRelated Episode: Self-Service Business Intelligence with Sameer Al-Sakran, CEO at MetabaseRegister for RADAR AI - June 26New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) continues to be a foundational approach in AI despite claims of its demise. While some marketing narratives suggest RAG is being replaced by fine-tuning or long context windows, these technologies are actually complementary rather than competitive. But how do you build a truly effective RAG system that delivers accurate results in high-stakes environments? What separates a basic RAG implementation from an enterprise-grade solution that can handle complex queries across disparate data sources? And with the rise of AI agents, how will RAG evolve to support more dynamic reasoning capabilities?Douwe Kiela is the CEO and co-founder of Contextual AI, a company at the forefront of next-generation language model development. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor in Symbolic Systems at Stanford University, where he contributes to advancing the theoretical and practical understanding of AI systems.Before founding Contextual AI, Douwe was the Head of Research at Hugging Face, where he led groundbreaking efforts in natural language processing and machine learning. Prior to that, he was a Research Scientist and Research Lead at Meta’s FAIR (Fundamental AI Research) team, where he played a pivotal role in developing Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)—a paradigm-shifting innovation in AI that combines retrieval systems with generative models for more grounded and contextually aware responses.In the episode, Richie and Douwe explore the misconceptions around the death of Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), the evolution to RAG 2.0, its applications in high-stakes industries, the importance of metadata and entitlements in data governance, the potential of agentic systems in enterprise settings, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:Contextual AIConnect with DouweCourse: Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) with LangChainRelated Episode: High Performance Generative AI Applications with Ram Sriharsha, CTO at PineconeRegister for RADAR AI - June 26New to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business

GPU acceleration is transforming how data scientists tackle computationally intensive problems in the AI and materials science fields. When dealing with billions of potential molecular combinations or massive datasets requiring dimensionality reduction, traditional CPU approaches often become prohibitively slow and expensive. How can data professionals determine when GPU acceleration will provide meaningful benefits to their workflows? Understanding the right applications for this technology can mean the difference between waiting hours versus minutes for critical results.Nick Becker is a Group Product Manager at NVIDIA, focused on building RAPIDS and the broader accelerated data science ecosystem. Nick has a professional background in technology and government. Prior to NVIDIA, he worked at Enigma Technologies, a data science startup. Before Enigma, he conducted economics research and forecasting at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, the central bank of the United States.Dan Hannah is an Associate Director at SES AI Corporation. At SES, Dan leads a research program focused on discovering new battery materials using machine learning, chemical informatics, and physics-driven simulations. Prior to joining SES, Dan spent several years as a data scientist in the cybersecurity industry. Dan holds a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from Northwestern University and did a postdoctoral fellowship at Berkeley National Lab, where his focus was the discovery of novel inorganic materials for energy applications.In the episode, Richie, Nick, and Dan explore the quest for new battery technologies, the role of data science and machine learning in material discovery, the integration of NVIDIA's GPU technology, the balance between computational simulations and lab work, and much more.Links Mentioned in the Show:NVIDIA RAPIDSSES AI CorporationConnect with Dan and NickCareer Track: Machine Learning Scientist in PythonRelated Episode: Data Science Trends from 2 Kaggle Grandmasters with Jean-Francois Puget, Distinguished Engineer at NVIDIA & Chris Deotte, Senior Data Scientist at NVIDIARewatch sessions from RADAR: Skills EditionNew to DataCamp?Learn on the go using the DataCamp mobile appEmpower your business with world-class data and AI skills with DataCamp for business