Disruption / Interruption

Brian Kolbusz, founder of BKAI, joins host KJ to unpack why so many AI initiatives fall apart long before the technology becomes the issue. Drawing on years as an IT executive at large corporations, he explains decision architecture and why every AI initiative should map back to a corporate objective, and every objective back to the company’s mission. The conversation covers why nearly 80% of AI initiatives miss their ROI, how pilots built for best-case conditions break at scale, and why AI has to be treated as a people initiative led by the frontline employees who know the work. Kolbusz also shares the 60/40 split he uses to balance customer-facing and internal goals, and how a behavioral health clinic kept patient satisfaction high by giving its AI the voice of a retiring receptionist.   Key Takeaways: 6:33 — What does skipping the mission cost a business when it buys AI? 10:16 — How can an AI pilot look beautiful and still fail at scale? 14:27 — Who knows where AI should be applied first? 22:29 — When does a failed AI initiative still count as a win?   Quote of the Show (13:47): “AI is not an IT initiative. AI is a people initiative.” — Brian Kolbusz   Join our Anti-PR newsletter where we’re keeping a watchful and clever eye on PR trends, PR fails, and interesting news in tech so you don't have to. You're welcome.   Want PR that actually matters? Get 30 minutes of expert advice in a fast-paced, zero-nonsense session from Karla Jo Helms, a veteran Crisis PR and Anti-PR Strategist who knows how to tell your story in the best possible light and get the exposure you need to disrupt your industry. Click here to book your call: https://info.jotopr.com/free-anti-pr-eval   Ways to connect with Brian Kolbusz: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bkolbusz/ Company Website: https://bkai.io   How to get more Disruption/Interruption: Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/eccda84d-4d5b-4c52-ba54-7fd8af3cbe87/disruption-interruption Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disruption-interruption/id1581985755 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6yGSwcSp8J354awJkCmJlD YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=disruption+%2F+interuuptionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mary Guzman, CEO of Crown Jewel® Insurance, the world's first trade secret insurer, joins host KJ to expose one of the most overlooked assets inside a business. She explains how trade secrets differ from patents, trademarks, and copyrights, and why they now hold an estimated five times the value of patents in the US. The conversation covers why the cyber insurance market has steered clear of intellectual property, how Crown Jewel pre-agrees on what qualifies as a trade secret and puts a value on it before a loss happens, and what that means when key engineers walk out the door with a company's innovation. Guzman also makes the case that founders, CFOs, and investors are sitting on off-balance sheet assets that could reshape how companies get valued, insured, and funded. Key Takeaways: 4:23 — When should a company patent an idea, and when should it keep it secret? 8:19 — How did trade secrets come to hold five times the value of patents? 18:15 — What happens when a company suspects its trade secrets walked out the door? 27:30 — Who should care most about an asset that never shows up on the balance sheet? Quote of the Show (28:38): "All of a sudden you have an off-balance sheet asset that was right under your nose the whole time that's worth $60 million." — Mary Guzman Join our Anti-PR newsletter where we’re keeping a watchful and clever eye on PR trends, PR fails, and interesting news in tech so you don't have to. You're welcome. Want PR that actually matters? Get 30 minutes of expert advice in a fast-paced, zero-nonsense session from Karla Jo Helms, a veteran Crisis PR and Anti-PR Strategist who knows how to tell your story in the best possible light and get the exposure you need to disrupt your industry. Click here to book your call: https://info.jotopr.com/free-anti-pr-eval Ways to connect with Mary Guzman: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-guzman-49183b29 Company Website: https://crownjewelinsurance.com How to get more Disruption/Interruption: Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/eccda84d-4d5b-4c52-ba54-7fd8af3cbe87/disruption-interruption Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disruption-interruption/id1581985755 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6yGSwcSp8J354awJkCmJlD YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=disruption+%2F+interuuptionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Schreiber, venture partner at SeventySix Capital and founder of PlayFly Sports, joins host KJ to break down how college athletics is being rewritten from the inside out. He identifies three forces flipping the industry: a massive commercial gap between college and pro sports revenues, rule changes around transfers and athlete compensation through NIL, and a facilities arms race that demands new capital. The conversation covers how early-adopter schools leveraged NIL to punch above their weight, the technology transforming both on-court performance and the business of sports, and why bipartisan legislation is racing to bring guardrails to a chaotic marketplace. Schreiber also shares his perspective on why sports fandom is one of the few things people carry from childhood to the end of life, making sports a forever industry worth investing in.     Key Takeaways: 4:52 — What makes college sports bigger than most people realize? 8:00 — How wide is the commercial gap between college and pro sports? 9:23 — When did the rules around college athlete compensation finally change? 19:17  – Who were the early adopters capitalizing on the new college sports landscape?   Quote of the Show (36:03):"If anybody's looking to get into an industry or looking to invest in an industry, invest in sports. It's forever." — Michael Schreiber   Join our Anti-PR newsletter where we’re keeping a watchful and clever eye on PR trends, PR fails, and interesting news in tech so you don't have to. You're welcome.   Want PR that actually matters? Get 30 minutes of expert advice in a fast-paced, zero-nonsense session from Karla Jo Helms, a veteran Crisis PR and Anti-PR Strategist who knows how to tell your story in the best possible light and get the exposure you need to disrupt your industry. Click here to book your call: https://info.jotopr.com/free-anti-pr-eval   Ways to connect with Michael Schreiber:LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-schreiber-4b262a1 Company Website: https://www.seventysixcapital.com/   How to get more Disruption/Interruption:  Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/eccda84d-4d5b-4c52-ba54-7fd8af3cbe87/disruption-interruption Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disruption-interruption/id1581985755 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6yGSwcSp8J354awJkCmJlD YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=disruption+%2F+interuuptionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Larry Hightower, founder and CEO of VXTRA HEALTH, joins Disruption/Interruption to expose how the corporate health insurance industry transformed into a banking operation that controls the money flowing between self-insured employers, physicians, and patients. He traces his path from witnessing pioneering physicians get blackballed in the 1980s to building a tech-enabled platform that bypasses legacy PPO networks and eliminates co-pays and deductibles. New federal transparency mandates have blown the black box wide open, allowing VXTRA HEALTH to deploy AI to surface price disparities of 30 to 40 percent between what insurance companies pay themselves versus what self-insured employers are charged. Larry's strategy centers on building local healthcare networks in secondary markets where the trust between physicians and patients already exists, giving employers and doctors the agency to reclaim control of their healthcare destiny.     Key Takeaways: 10:28 — What has the health insurance industry actually become? 12:12 — How does new transparency legislation empower self-insured employers? 12:02 — When did the real barrier reveal itself to VXTRA HEALTH? 34:26 – Who benefits from the "Our Town" healthcare model?   Quote of the Show (9:08):"If I make it right for the doctor-patient relationship, then the money will take care of itself." — Larry Hightower   Join our Anti-PR newsletter where we’re keeping a watchful and clever eye on PR trends, PR fails, and interesting news in tech so you don't have to. You're welcome.   Want PR that actually matters? Get 30 minutes of expert advice in a fast-paced, zero-nonsense session from Karla Jo Helms, a veteran Crisis PR and Anti-PR Strategist who knows how to tell your story in the best possible light and get the exposure you need to disrupt your industry. Click here to book your call: https://info.jotopr.com/free-anti-pr-eval   Ways to connect with Larry Hightower:LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/vxtrahealth/Company Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vxtrahealth/home/ How to get more Disruption/Interruption:  Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/eccda84d-4d5b-4c52-ba54-7fd8af3cbe87/disruption-interruption Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disruption-interruption/id1581985755 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6yGSwcSp8J354awJkCmJlD YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=disruption+%2F+interuuptionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Scott Shay, founder of N3XT, joins Disruption/Interruption to explain how traditional fractional reserve banking puts depositors' money at risk by lending it out while telling customers their funds are safe and available. He traces the systemic failures of this model from the 2008 financial crisis to government pressure campaigns like Choke Point, arguing that businesses unknowingly carry hidden counterparty risk every day. Shay presents N3XT as the first full reserve bank in the United States, where every deposited dollar is held in short-term Treasuries and available to account holders at all times. The result is a bank that enables immutable, real-time settlement for B2B payments, eliminating the delays and risks of legacy banking rails.     Key Takeaways: 3:56 — What is fractional banking and why does Scott Shay call it a "noble lie"? 5:00 — When does the hidden risk of fractional banking become visible? 11:14 — How does N3XT's full reserve model eliminate risk for business depositors? 18:20 – Who benefits most from immutable, real-time settlement?   Quote of the Show (22:28):"Money should work for the buyer and the seller, not just for the bank." — Scott Shay   Join our Anti-PR newsletter where we’re keeping a watchful and clever eye on PR trends, PR fails, and interesting news in tech so you don't have to. You're welcome.   Want PR that actually matters? Get 30 minutes of expert advice in a fast-paced, zero-nonsense session from Karla Jo Helms, a veteran Crisis PR and Anti-PR Strategist who knows how to tell your story in the best possible light and get the exposure you need to disrupt your industry. Click here to book your call: https://info.jotopr.com/free-anti-pr-eval   Ways to connect with Scott Shay:LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-shay Company Website: https://n3xt.io   How to get more Disruption/Interruption:  Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/eccda84d-4d5b-4c52-ba54-7fd8af3cbe87/disruption-interruption Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disruption-interruption/id1581985755 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6yGSwcSp8J354awJkCmJlD YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=disruption+%2F+interuuptionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.