Data Radicals The Rise of AI: Voices from the Frontlines
In this special compilation episode, we're bringing together the most insightful conversations from our latest season exploring the rise of AI. You'll hear from thought leaders like Fortune's AI editor Jeremy Kahn on rebuilding the middle class, marketing executive Michael Olaye on creative acceleration, and Tom Davenport on what real AI transformation looks like. Plus insights from numerous other AI experts including CDOs, academics, and tech entrepreneurs who are shaping our AI future today.
We'll explore practical AI use cases, examine how data leaders can leverage these technologies, and discuss how the CDO role is evolving in response to AI's momentum.
Listen to this episode to learn:
- How AI copilots are fundamentally changing the way we work and uplifting workers across industries.
- Why it's important to have data leaders who can translate between technical possibilities and business realities.
- How solid data infrastructure, clear business objectives, and thoughtful human oversight leads to successful AI transformation.
Whether you're a data professional, business leader, or simply curious about AI's impact, this episode offers perspectives from those on the frontlines of the AI revolution.
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“I think this is gonna be a tremendously transformative technology, and I think there's some really big positive effects, particularly I think we are gonna see a huge uplift in labor productivity, and I don't think we're gonna see sort of mass joblessness from this technology. I think actually this is a technology that could enable people to sort of be lifted back up into the middle class.” – Jeremy Kahn
“You can do stuff that would take weeks before in days. You can collaborate with people who have no technical knowledge on technical things. We have tools now that you can code by like verbally speaking natural language. We have tools that you can do design without having any design skills. So, I think it's opened up a whole new site for agencies, consultancies, companies, but it's also opened a whole new site for a new like economy of like content creators. When you build anything with AI, having a human in that loop where we are today, having humans in that loop, checking that also, it's good.” – Michael Olaye
“It's not rocket science. It's having senior people who are interested in analytical, decision making, hiring people who can do the work. The day-to-day work of analytics, both the data management and the data analysis. And ultimately having some sort of unique data that is proprietary to you, that will really differentiate you. Because ultimately data is a fuel of analytics and AI. And if you don't have something distinctive, you're gonna have the same models that everybody else has.” – Tom Davenport
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Timestamps
*(01:18): AI as copilot
*(04:30): AI: It’s still early days
*(06:13): AI Use Cases
*(11:26): How data leaders can leverage AI
*(14:07): Data leadership and systems thinking
*(18:17): The future (and limits) of the CDO
*(29:15): Predictions
*(35:16): Career advice
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Sponsor
This podcast is presented by Alation.
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