The AI Effect

Canada is a world leader in Artificial Intelligence research, and development. Produced by Antica Productions this five part series, hosted by Amanda Lang, and Jodie Wallis from Accenture, explores the Canadian AI ecosystem in academia, business and the policy surrounding it. This podcast launches on February 20th, 2018.

Canada is a world leader in artificial intelligence research and development -- but what is AI? In this first episode, hosts Amanda Lang and Jodie Wallis introduce us to Canada’s AI ecosystem and examine the history of AI in Canada. Featuring interviews with Richard Zemel, co-founder and director of research at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and Rebecca Finlay, ‎VP of engagement and public policy at the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR).

How will Canada’s leading AI research impact our economy? Amanda Lang and Jodie Wallis explore this question with guests Hon. Navdeep Bains, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and Joshua Gans, who holds the Jeffrey S. Skoll Chair in Technical Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Rotman School of Business at the University of Toronto. They’re also joined by Rebecca Finlay, VP of engagement and public policy at the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR).

What do Canadian AI startups need in order to compete on a global scale? Are we doing enough to support their lead in AI development? Amanda Lang and Jodie Wallis speak with Mohamed Musbah, head of product at Maluuba, a startup he founded that was acquired by Microsoft in 2017. They also speak with Peter Misek, partner at BDC’s IT Venture Fund, and John Ruffolo, CEO of OMERS Ventures.

How do we protect ourselves in the new era of AI? In this episode, hosts Amanda Lang and Jodie Wallis speak with Ann Cavoukian about the privacy of personal data. Cavoukian is the distinguished expert-in-residence leading the Privacy by Design Centre for Excellence at Ryerson University. They also speak with Dr. Foteini Agrafioti, the chief science officer at RBC, and head of Borealis AI, as well as Deb Santiago, co-lead of the Responsible AI practice at Accenture. The conversation continues with Richard Zemel, co-founder and director of research at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence.

In this final episode of The AI Effect we explore what artificial intelligence will do for people. Amanda Lang and Jodie Wallis explore how AI will affect the job market and examine the human side of AI. They are joined by Hon. Navdeep Bains, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, Peter Misek, partner at BDC’s IT Venture Fund, Accenture’s Deb Santiago, co-lead of the Responsible AI practice at Accenture, and Lana Novikova, CEO of the startup Heartbeat AI, a company where artificial intelligence examines how we feel by analyzing the words we say.

We're back for Season 2! The AI Effect officially launches on October 23rd with hosts Jodie Wallis and Amber MacArthur. This season we talk with individuals such as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Sidewalk Labs’ Craig Nevill-Manning to learn more about the adoption of artificial intelligence in Canada. We ask who are the innovators, and what innovations are being made in AI? How are our industry leaders leveraging AI into their workspaces? What does this mean for the future of AI in Canada? We explore these issues by taking a detailed look at key industries ranging all the way from agriculture to insurance. Last season on the AI Effect, we asked how we can get the most out of Canada’s leadership position in the AI industry, and how do we maximize our AI technology potential. This season, we dig deeper. We look at the individuals harnessing AI’s potential to make changes in their respective industries. This raises important questions about where the AI industry is headed and how it affects the lives of everyday Canadians. It also raises questions regarding the adoption of artificial intelligence, its cost-saving and efficiency-inducing potential, as well as ethical implications. We ask how is AI being used to make society better, and how can it be used to make our lives easier? Subscribe to the AI Effect on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

In the first episode of season two, our hosts Amber Mac and Jodie Wallis speak with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about Canada's role as an AI leader and what's needed to accelerate the pace of adoption of AI solutions so that all Canadians benefit from our investments. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.

AI is all around us but will early adopters gain a competitive edge in their business practices? Our featured experts demystify the barriers to AI adoption at the enterprise level and discuss how to scale your company’s AI potential. Guests include the Republic of Estonia’s Chief Information Officer Siim Sikkut, integrate.ai’s Kathryn Hume, Facebook’s AI Research Lead Joelle Pineau, MILA’s Valérie Pisano and the Vector Institute’s Cameron Schuler. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.

Factors like climate change, population growth and resource scarcity are driving the agricultural industry to innovate its approach to food production and sustainability. How can AI help overcome the biggest challenges in agriculture? Jodie and Amber examine the solutions with SomaDetect’s Bharath Sudarsan, Lauren Rathmell of Lufa Farms Greenhouse, and Intuitive’s Hassan Murad. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.

Advancements in robot-assisted surgery, mental health diagnoses and workflow optimization are fuelling explosive growth for AI in healthcare. Unlike technologies that merely complement human functionality, AI today can truly augment human potential in healthcare. Featuring interviews with Anna Goldenberg from Goldenberg Labs at SickKids' Research Institute, Kenton White from Advanced Symbolics, and Bryan Smith from ThinkData Works. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.

Customer and employee safety, risk assessments and policy recommendations - machine learning is fast becoming a fundamental part of the financial services ecosystem. Hosts Jodie Wallis and Amber Mac examine AI's evolving role in financial services, particularly within insurance - featuring interviews with John Heveran of Liberty Mutual, Tomi Poutanen from TD’s Layer 6 AI, and former CEO of Kanetix Ltd. Andrew Lo. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.

How is AI being integrated into industries that rely heavily providing good customer service? Companies are increasingly turning to AI-driven chatbots, virtual assistants and self-service options to augment their human agents and improve customer experience. Hosts Jodie and Amber discuss the future of AI in customer service with Shopify's former SVP Data Science and Engineering David Lennie, and HeyDay.ai's Étienne Mérineau. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.

What makes a city smart? Toronto's proposed Quayside development, a high-tech neighbourhood built by Alphabet's Sidewalk Labs, will feature driverless cars, automated city services and sustainable infrastructure aimed at improving quality of life. Our final episode of season two features Craig Nevill-Manning from Sidewalk Labs and Mayor of Toronto John Tory on what we can expect from the cities of the future. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and subscribe to The AI Effect on your preferred podcast app. To learn more about the topics covered in this episode, go to our website, theeffect.ai or accenture.com.  Follow us on Twitter @AIEffect.