Zach Wallace, a Staff Software Engineer at Nearpod Inc., shares his expertise in AI integration within e-commerce and edtech. He discusses how AI agents enhance personalized user targeting and streamline data with tools like Redshift and DBT. The conversation delves into the challenges of maintaining AI systems, ensuring data quality, and the balance between specialization and cost in agent performance. Zach emphasizes the transformative potential of LLMs in education and the importance of educator involvement for effective AI tool development.
47:07
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
question_answer ANECDOTE
AI Agents for Education
Zach Wallace's team built AI agents for question generation to help teachers reduce workload.
Initial agents were like "three-year consultants," requiring refinement with subject matter experts.
insights INSIGHT
Agents vs. LLMs
Agents excel in domain-specific tasks, like validating input for sensitive topics or generating questions.
LLMs without data lack quality and reliability, making data platforms essential.
question_answer ANECDOTE
E-commerce Use Case
In e-commerce, agents can personalize product recommendations by analyzing user interests and business needs.
Data platforms enable feedback loops to improve agent performance and identify areas for autonomous learning.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Machine Learning, AI Agents, and Autonomy // MLOps Podcast #283 with Zach Wallace, Staff Software Engineer at Nearpod Inc.
// Abstract
Demetrios chats with Zach Wallace, engineering manager at Nearpod, about integrating AI agents in e-commerce and edtech. They discuss using agents for personalized user targeting, adapting AI models with real-time data, and ensuring efficiency through clear task definitions. Zach shares how Nearpod streamlined data integration with tools like Redshift and DBT, enabling real-time updates. The conversation covers challenges like maintaining AI in production, handling high-quality data, and meeting regulatory standards. Zach also highlights the cost-efficiency framework for deploying and decommissioning agents and the transformative potential of LLMs in education.
// Bio
Software Engineer with 10 years of experience. Started my career as an Application Engineer, but I have transformed into a Platform Engineer. As a Platform Engineer, I have handled the problems described below
- Localization across 6-7 different languages
- Building a custom local environment tool for our engineers
- Building a Data Platform
- Building standards and interfaces for Agentic AI within ed-tech.
// MLOps Swag/Merch
https://shop.mlops.community/
// Related Links
https://medium.com/renaissance-learning-r-d/data-platform-transform-a-data-monolith-9d5290a552ef
--------------- ✌️Connect With Us ✌️ -------------
Join our slack community: https://go.mlops.community/slack
Follow us on Twitter: @mlopscommunity
Sign up for the next meetup: https://go.mlops.community/register
Catch all episodes, blogs, newsletters, and more: https://mlops.community/
Connect with Demetrios on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dpbrinkm/
Connect with Zach on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zachary-wallace/
MLOps.community