AI or Die

In this episode of AI or Die, hosts Nick Woo and Brendan Kelly dive into the busy fall conference season and the AI patterns they’re seeing across enterprises. What We CoverConference Insights – Highlights from recent events like Ohio VC Fest and what’s ahead at Data Connect.Enterprise AI Trends – Common challenges organizations face in improving the throughput of AI solutions and reinventing governance.Case Study Spotlight – A look at AI Meets Gene Therapy, a feature collaboration with Andelyn Biosciences, exploring how AI is shaping the future of healthcare.Community & Connections – Why the fall season is packed with opportunities to meet partners, customers, and innovators across the AI ecosystem.Why ListenIf you’re an AI leader, builder, or curious observer, this episode gives you a front-row seat to the conversations shaping enterprise adoption. Expect practical insights, emerging trends, and a touch of the personal that keeps the AI or Die community grounded and connected.

On this episode, our hosts Nick Woo, Rehgan Bleile, and Brendan Kelly return for another audience Q&A episode, providing insight into the ethical implementation of AI systems within the enterprise.The team dives into how to responsibly enhance model performance and evaluate the ROI from generative AI. We also discuss and address questions around automation inside the enterprise. Additionally, we focus on recent AI developments and how these may shape current and future conversations between leaders and their teams.AlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI Instagram

On this episode, we welcome Nan Li, an experienced AI and machine learning leader at Nationwide. Nan shares her insights from years of enabling AI and machine learning adoption within large enterprises, with a focus on workforce readiness, human-AI interaction, and operating model design. We explore how enterprises are evolving to support AI adoption beyond technical teams, highlighting the shift from centralized innovation to more distributed, domain-embedded use. Additionally, we examine the emerging personas within an AI-enabled workforce—builders, users, and protectors—and the cultural and structural changes required to empower each group. From democratizing low-risk use cases to managing risk in high-impact workflows, we offer a practical look at how organizations can build an AI-ready workforce in a responsible, scalable way.Nan Li’s LinkedinAlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI Instagram

This week, our hosts Nick Woo, Rehgan Bleile, and Brendan Kelly celebrate their 20th episode with a reflection on AI advancements in 2024 and predictions for 2025.In this episode, the team dives into the diverse maturity levels of enterprise AI adoption, from early experimentation to large-scale deployment, the role of executive buy-in, and collaboration between business and technical teams. They highlight the rise of AI agents, growing reliance on data quality, and the shift toward optimization and governance as enterprises consolidate tools and processes. Looking ahead, they predict faster deployment cycles, deeper integration of AI into workflows, and a focus on user-centered design.AlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI Instagram

This week, our hosts Nick Woo, Rehgan Bleile, and Brendan Kelly return for a special Q&A episode, addressing listener questions about AI adoption and governance in large enterprises. They explore how organizations balance AI innovation with practical implementation, focusing on integrating AI into existing systems while managing data privacy and security.The hosts dive into how enterprises can approach AI use case prioritization, weighing internal applications against more complex, customer-facing solutions. They also discuss the shift from building AI in-house to purchasing specialized solutions for greater efficiency. Additionally, they highlight the critical role of governance, including AI Centers of Excellence (COEs) and committees, in overseeing and guiding AI initiatives.AlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI Instagram

On this episode, we welcome Kathy Koontz, who currently serves as the Global Head HCLS Data & AI at AWS. Her career includes significant roles at Nationwide, Teradata, and Wells Fargo, where she has focused on embedding core data practices into organizational frameworks.During this episode, we dive into Kathy's expertise, gaining valuable insights for integrating core data fundamentals and practices. We explore how change management is essential for effectively deploying AI across organizations. Additionally, Kathy highlights the significance of understanding the content and quality of unstructured data, explaining that this knowledge is essential for accurately representing and achieving successful business outcomes.Kathy KoontzAlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI WaitlistAlignAI Instagram

On this episode, we welcome Maria Villar, a seasoned expert with over 20 years of experience as a practitioner in data management and strategy. Maria has spent the last few years of her career working at SAP as the Head of Enterprise Data Strategy and Transformation. She is also a member of the Women Leaders in Data & AI (WLDA) network.During this episode, we dive into her expertise in business data leadership, gaining valuable insights into the key challenges encountered in designing and executing data strategies. We discuss the leaders who are spearheading these initiatives and examine the influence of AI on data strategy as a whole. Additionally, we explore how data security and AI strategies together affect data strategy.Maria's LinkedinMaria's YouTube MasterclassWLDA Ventures WebsiteAlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI WaitlistAlignAI Instagram

This week we are joined by Nicolay Christopher Gerold. In this episode, Nicolay (Nico) brings a unique blend of expertise with his rich background in GenAI, NLP, and LLMs. Nico discusses a practical approach to the real-world applications and implications of generative AI technologies. During this episode, we dive into the multifaceted impacts of GenAI, discussing its role in data extraction, the challenges surrounding data governance and privacy, and the significance of synthetic data. Nico offers valuable insights on the future of AI user interfaces and the shift towards specialized AI models by making AI integrations more accessible and intuitive for users.Nicolay’s LinkedinAISBACH Data SolutionsAlignAI LinkedinAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI WaitlistAlignAI Instagram

This week we are joined by Maya Mikhailov. Maya is the Co-Founder & CEO of SAVVI AI and on a mission to make all companies more competitive to leverage the power of AI and machine learning. The company has created a platform and tool to build, launch, and manage their own purposeful machine learning apps for practical everyday business decisions. The company does this in a responsible, transferable and auditable way that is crucial for enterprises who are leveraging machine learning and AI today.On this episode, we discuss recent data and AI trends, how AI is impacting small and large companies, the build vs. buy AI conversation, and how companies are prioritizing use cases for adopting AI to fulfill company objectives.Linkedin: Maya MikhailovSAVVI AILinkedin: AlignAIAlignAI WaitlistAlignAI WebsiteAlignAI Instagram

Welcome back to episode 8. This week we are joined by Salema Rice. Salema is the CEO and Founder of CDO Today. Throughout the course of her career, she has established a decorative portfolio by being a builder, lawmaker, and a strategic driver within the Data and AI space. Salema has been an industry Chief Data Officer (CDO) for almost 20 years and has thrived within the industry for over 25 years.Now, with CDO Today, she finds herself in a Strategic Advisor role, as she works with hundreds of C-Level Executives by creating a "think tank" for CDOs by CDOs. It is a private community with executive mentorship, board advisory, and thought leadership. CDO Today allows Salema to be a voice for the industry, especially with the uptick of evolutionary technology being built and released within the world today.This episode we discuss the #1 topic that enterprises are leveraging for generative AI, how CDOs are thinking about AI strategy, guidelines and guardrails for Data Governance, and how critical data can solve organizational problems.Salema Rice Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjrice/AlignAI Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/alignaiAlignAI Website: https://www.getalignai.com/platform?utm_source=Social_Media&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_campaign=Social_Media_SeptAlignAI Waitlist: https://www.getalignai.com/waitlist?utm_source=Social_Media&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_campaign=Social_Media_SeptAlignAI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aiordie_podcast/

This week we are joined by Michael Cavaretta of Ford Motors. Mike is currently an Analytics Executive in manufacturing at Ford Motors.We discuss scaling MLOps in an organization and delivering capabilities. Not to mention, incorporating models into a critical operation.Many organizations struggle to have business outcomes from implementing MLOps, we discuss how Mike is currently addressing that within his current organization.We teamed up with Ford Motors recently to write a playbook, check it out in our resources.

This week we are joined by Pete Gordon. Pete has worked with many companies to build NLP solutions. Pete believes that beautiful things happen when Statistics and Software come together on the Internet to bring Automated Inference (AI) and the ideal User Experience. This week we cover topics:Update from Nick at the conference he’s attending in Cincinnati, Ohio.Why are companies avoiding data governance right now?Why Cyber Security should care about AI.Paradigm shift and digital transformation with ChatGPT. How much impact will this have on workers (programmers, data scientists, and writers)The AI Revolution. How previous revolutions replaced or accelerated the past technologies we use today.How start-ups have embraced AI and why.Word embeddings with OpenAI