Lead With AI

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall speaks with Sandeep Sankarankutty, VP of Operations at Recycle Track Systems, who reveals how AI-powered sensors are transforming the $75 billion waste management industry. Sankarankutty shares how their "Pello smart Bin sensors" can detect contamination in real-time, predict literal dumpster fires, and turn reactive waste management into a proactive operation that prevents problems before customers even notice them. Employee number one at the decade-old company, he explains how their technology increased recycling diversion rates by 55% at Citi Field stadium, keeping thousands of tons of recyclables out of landfills. The conversation explores how major commercial clients across North America now receive text alerts about waste issues before they become problems, and how cycle vending machines at sports stadiums are turning recycling into an engaging experience for fans. Sankarankutty envisions a 2030 where waste management becomes completely transparent and educational, helping his own children understand that recycling creates real environmental impact beyond just sorting trash. For listeners wanting immediate proof of this technology's impact, he invites them to visit Citi Field to see how AI is turning 30,000 baseball fans into recycling champions.

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall sits down with Lexi Reese, CEO and co-founder of Lanai Software, who exposes a startling reality: 80% of AI use in companies happens completely off the radar. Reese shares a jaw-dropping story from an insurance company where sales teams unknowingly uploaded customer zip codes into AI tools - creating potential legal issues as zip codes can serve as proxies for race in insurance decisions. Lanai's platform acts as a "sixth sense" for organizations, detecting AI interactions across the enterprise in real-time and transforming apparent chaos into strategic opportunity - helping one financial institution boost client satisfaction by 30% after identifying and scaling effective AI use cases. The conversation tackles the ethics of visibility versus surveillance, with Reese emphasizing their commitment to focus on patterns, not policing employees, guided by their advisor's principle to "don't be creepy." For leaders wondering what AI tools their teams are actually using, Reese suggests creating an anonymous five-question survey that typically reveals teams are using 3-5× more AI tools than management realizes.

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall uncovers a shocking truth with Nathan Werst, founder of Shoptimized AI: major retailers waste millions advertising products that never drive purchases. Werst reveals the shocking moment when clients first see their wasted ad spend, sometimes discovering 40% of their budget goes to products that generate zero sales. Using neural networks that can predict with 92.3% accuracy which products will sell in specific timeframes, Shoptimized is transforming retail marketing by analyzing patterns humans could never detect - like why blue items sell better on Sundays at 3pm while red items fail. A former data scientist for DICK's Sporting Goods and Farfetch, Werst challenges listeners to search Google for their own out-of-season products to witness firsthand how much money they're wasting right now. Looking ahead to 2030, Werst envisions not just revolutionizing retailers' ROI but creating truly seamless shopping experiences where customers never waste time clicking ads that don't match what they actually want to buy.

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall sits down with Ben Arnon, co-founder of Color Farm Media, and creator of Showtime AI, to unpack the quiet crisis facing movie theaters and delves into the transformative potential of artificial intelligence in revitalizing the movie theater industry. With decades-old infrastructure and seats sitting empty outside blockbuster weekends, theaters are operating at just 15–25% capacity. Arnon shares how Showtime AI is uses a community driven data, dynamic scheduling, and hyper-personalized recommendations to rebuild the movie going experience from the ground up, envisioning "a time where a theater manager sees like a 23% of 35% revenue increase within six months." Instead of static showtimes and unpredictable attendance, Showtime AI will enable theaters to adapt in real time to audience demand, optimizing showtimes, pricing, and even the concession experience to fit viewer habits. Arnon describes a future where every part of the theater journey feels orchestrated just for you; and where the cinematic experience returns to being something truly special and how AI can play a pivotal role in bringing audiences back to theaters and ensuring the sustainability of the cinema industry. If you care about the future of entertainment, this conversation is a must-listen. 📬 Follow Ben’s work and thinking at: benarnon.substack.com

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall sits down with Tim Balz-mechanical engineer, high-school hero who once traded his moped to motorize a classmate’s wheelchair, and now CEO/co-founder of Kalogon-to explore the future of adaptive seating. Discover how Kalogon’s smart cushions, infused with pressure sensors and machine-learning algorithms, auto-customize each air cell to your unique body shape-ending decades of pain, healing multi-year pressure wounds, and empowering pilots, wheelchair users, and long-haul travelers alike. Balz shares his bold 2030 vision for integrated seating in self-driving cars and premium cabins, and explains how you can experience this AI magic today: visit Kalogon.com to request a demo or connect with a RESNA-certified ATP near you. Connect & Follow: Tim Balz (CEO): LinkedIn → linkedin.com/in/timbalzKalogon Socials: Twitter: @KalogonofficialLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/kalogonInstagram: @Kalogon

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall speaks with Dr. Anand Verma, founder and CEO of Expect AI, whose platform Una is solving a hidden crisis: 330 million small businesses contribute half of global emissions yet lack access to climate resources. Verma reveals how Una creates instant carbon profiles from public data alone, connecting businesses to billions in untapped green subsidies and turning a six-month application process into just six minutes. A machine learning pioneer before AI was fashionable, Verma predicts Expect AI will generate $40 billion in savings by 2030 while cutting 500 megatons of emissions. The conversation explores how Una's "climate knowledge graph" builds a neural network of business relationships and opportunities that small companies never knew existed. For immediate results, Verma invites listeners to simply type their company name into Una to discover how AI can simultaneously boost their profits and climate impact without requiring any technical expertise.

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall interviews Hina Dixit, CEO and co-founder of Decompute, who walked away from a successful career at Apple to tackle a fundamental problem - AI compute access. Dixit reveals how her "LaserTune" technology fine-tunes AI models in just 10 seconds, allowing users to analyze 200-page financial documents on their laptops without ever touching the cloud. The conversation takes a surprising turn when Dixit introduces the concept of "right to forget" - challenging the industry's push toward infinite context windows by asserting that humans deserve privacy in the AI age. Financial firms are already using this technology to analyze complex SEC filings instantly, completely offline. Dixit makes a bold prediction that by 2030, cloud usage will drop below 25% as AI becomes primarily device-based, shifting money and control away from tech giants and back to individuals. For listeners interested in trying this technology, Blackbird is available now for macOS and Windows, offering six specialized agents for finance, legal documentation, research, coding, meetings, and general work - all running securely on your own hardware.

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall sits down with Paul Roberts, co-founder of Taalk, who reveals the shocking story of a real estate agent who woke up to 72 appointments booked overnight by an AI assistant. Roberts takes us behind the scenes of how Taalk AI creates agents that can resolve complex customer issues in 40 seconds instead of 20 minutes and can learn from tens of thousands of interactions daily. The conversation uncovers the surprising truth about how AI handles objections better than humans and why some industries risk being left behind in this technological revolution. Roberts shares his vision for 2030, where businesses can launch in multiple countries overnight with AI speaking five different languages across every channel without hiring a single person. This glimpse into the future of customer engagement shows how AI is not replacing humans but instead creating what Roberts calls "the age of the entrepreneur" where anyone with a good idea can scale globally. The episode concludes with Roberts' personal concern about companies using AI to cut corners rather than enhance real connections with customers.

Wall Street's greatest disruption isn't coming from new regulations or market shifts - it's AI agents working as virtual colleagues at superhuman speeds. In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall sits down with SigTech founder Bin Ren, who reveals how his MAGIC platform is turning financial institutions upside down by enabling AI agents to collaborate in real-time. Bin stuns listeners with examples of his technology processing two million words of financial documents in just 15 minutes - work that would take human analysts six weeks! The conversation takes unexpected turns as Bin predicts 2025 will be the final year humans outcode AI and explains why smaller hedge funds can now compete with giants. He challenges traditional thinking about AI in finance, arguing these technologies won't find alpha but will dramatically reshape how firms operate. The episode delivers an insider's look at how finance is being transformed at breakneck speed by technology that thinks, collaborates, and executes faster than humans ever could.

In this episode of Lead with AI, Dr. Tamara Nall speaks with Tom Fitzsimmons, co-founder of ByWay App, an AI-powered platform connecting people with spiritual guidance. Tom shares his journey from experiencing abuse within religious orders to building tech that helps people find meaning through genuine human connection. ByWay aims to revolutionize spiritual guidance by using AI to match seekers with guides quickly, whether they're Christian, atheist, or from any faith tradition. The conversation explores how technology can create bridges to community rather than isolation, with Tom explaining why he believes "the church is a hospital for broken people." Dr. Nall and Tom examine the balance between digital convenience and authentic spiritual growth, discussing how AI might serve as a tool for deeper human connection in an increasingly disconnected world. The episode offers a fresh perspective on how technology and spirituality might evolve together, challenging listeners to consider what role AI could play in their own search for meaning.