Wharton Tech Toks

Join us as we talk to Kartik Hosanagar, John C. Hower Professor of Technology and Digital Business and a Professor of Marketing at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Kartik’s research focuses on the digital economy, in particular the impact of analytics and algorithms on consumers and society, Internet media, Internet marketing and e-commerce. In this episode, we dive into the Artificial Intelligence (AI) landscape by discussing key players, new and exciting areas of development, applications across industries, impact on jobs, algorithms, the balance between transparency and control and the science behind machine learning (ML). Kartik is currently working on starting his own company powered by AI and ML so tune in to hear his expansive knowledge of the space and entrepreneurial journey. AI, ML, NLP, GPT-3...random acronyms, buzzwords or technological advancements that will make Westworld a reality? With data now at the heart of every big tech’s company strategy, it seems everybody is touting their AI and ML capabilities and applications. But from an outsider’s perspective, it’s hard to tell if they’re truly using AI to make a difference, hello AI in diagnosing cancer and preventing blindness, or just have a team of writers and graphic designers creating some captivating content, paging Watson. AI has the power to make humans more efficient and effective by taking over redundant, mundane tasks. From diligence and contract creation in the legal industry to identifying patterns in scans and symptoms of Covid patients for faster diagnoses in the healthcare industry to even GPT-3 enabling machines to write screenplays, poems and songs in the entertainment industry. While nobody can replace Quentin Tarantino, I’d like to see how humans and AI can work together to save more lives or provide higher quality and more targeted content. If you’re at all interested in AI or don’t want to live in the stone ages, tune in for another riveting episode so that you can call yourself a tech professional. Read more about Kartik here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Join us as we talk to Jay Richman, VP, Head of Global Advertising Business & Platform at Spotify, a digital music service that needs no introduction. In this episode, we dive into the streaming industry, the podcast landscape and trends, advertising technology, streaming targeted ads, creator platforms, the algorithm revolution, recent acquisitions, entrepreneurship and more! Spotify revolutionized the music industry by providing users with easy access to millions of songs and personalized playlists, but recently they’ve made moves in the podcast game through exclusive contracts with top podcasters, acquisitions of podcast advertising and publishing platforms and investments in advertising technology and a creator marketplace. Spotify’s ability to harness the power of its data to create a personalized experience with curated playlists, recommendations and ads through AI and algorithms has made the company successful in both music and podcasts. Wharton Tech Toks is out here trying to be the next Joe Rogan but as a podcaster myself, I appreciated learning about the tools and platforms to help publish, monetize, grow and advertise content (seriously, fellow podcasters out there take notes!). With the spur of the creator economy, sounds like Wharton Tech Toks launched at just the right time! So tune into the podcast to a) support our success (how are we going to be famous without your help?!) and b) learn about all things ad tech and creative platforms! Read more about Jay here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Join us as we talk to Sukanya Soderland, Chief Strategy Officer at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, one of the largest private health plans in Massachusetts serving 3 million members. In this episode, we dive into how big data is changing digital health, why patients will own their data, and the technology innovations that will bring about the Apple of EHRs. With the rise of COVID, we’re overcoming byzantine barriers like hyper locality. Your doctor doesn’t need to be down the street, they can be across the country. It’s progress but Tele-health doesn’t equal digital health. For years we thought the problem was a lack of data, but now doctors are drowning in it. Electronic health records were supposed to bring about a revolution or at least free up some office space. Instead, it takes 62 clicks for a doctor to prescribe Tylenol! It’s faster to skip the doctor and go straight to CVS. So what now? Learn how health systems, EHRs, and physicians can leverage data and patient condition views to provide better health outcomes. How do we marry big tech and health care? Is it Amazon health, niche VC-backed startups, or examples like Author by Humana? Find out on the podcast! Read more about Sukanya here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Join us as we talk to Andrew Straus, VP of Sales Strategy and Planning at Snowflake, a cloud-based data warehousing company. Snowflake made history in September 2020 with the largest software IPO ever selling 28 million shares and raising nearly $3.4 billion. During this episode, we get an incredible understanding of the rise of cloud, the current state of the market, how cloud customers think about their cloud strategy and the future of data analytics powered by cloud. Dude where’s my cloud? Back in the stone ages, data was housed in clunky on-prem data warehouses resulting in high maintenance, rigid infrastructures that siloed data making it difficult to paint holistic financial or analytical pictures. Fast forward to the cloud disrupting the data warehouse industry by compiling and unifying data from disparate systems to one location enabling the ability to securely share governed data. With players dominating the US market such as AWS, Azure and Google Cloud and now a global player, hello Alibaba, Snowflake has carved out a unique position with their data cloud’s ability to operate concurrently on all platforms. As an MBA student, I love a good multi-task and if you don’t know what that last sentence meant...listen to the damn podcast! Read more about Andrew here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Join us as we talk to Nash Ahmed, CEO and Founder of Undock about the Future of Work, the technologies that will change our daily lives and his 1 Billion user vision. Undock just raised $1.6M from big ol’ names like Bessemer Venture Partners and Lightship Capital. COVID struck. Zoom went Boom. WFH became “permanent”. Incumbents are snapping unicorns up like afternoon tea to stay competitive (yes, you Salesforce / Slack - Slackforce?). The workplace shifted by lightyears! We were all excited by the dream of the 4 hour work week or WFH (work from Hawaii) - but what really is the future of work? Read more about Nash here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Space is the new Silicon Valley and Musk, Bezos and Branson are all competing to be the real life version of Tony Stark (nerds and their superheroes…). In fact, they're all playing a new game of: My Rocket Ship is Bigger than Your Rocket Ship. But, why the hell are we investing in space? Do we just plan on abandoning Earth like last week's leftovers (i mean, how much turkey can you eat)? Where are we really in this quest to become space people? What are the potential tech and business applications that exist today and could be tomorrow? How do we not screw up space like we did earth (did no one watch The 100 and learn their lessons)???? Join us as we talk to the author of Space Is Open For Business, Robert Jacobson where he shares his views on the race to space and key opportunities like in-space manufacturing, space militarization (please don’t make a real life Death Star) and the reality that business in space is already here, today. Read more about Robert here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Healthcare is in the Dark Ages. Seriously. Even the DMV has better NPS scores. And we’ve been talking about ‘radically’ changing the system for what, two decades now? Telemedicine was supposed to be the best thing since the stethoscope but adoption was slower than a turtle racing in F1 before COVID forced us to change. Join us as we talk to Mount Sinai Health System’s Chief Product Officer and Head of Consumer Digital Innovations, Dave Kerwar, where he covers the barriers to innovation, the NYC competitive health system landscape, and creating delightful consumer centric digital experiences. Read more about Dave here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Social media dominates our daily lives from a morning scroll through Instagram (hello enews), mid-day break to get ‘inspired’ by LinkedIn (click to be influenced) and evening rabbit hole on YouTube (1 hour, 3 funny dog compilations later). But where can I get advice from senior leaders on the daily struggles as a junior resource? Yes Bob, projecting my screen to watch me perform a financial forecast live is the definition of micromanaging. Where can I talk candidly to fellow young professionals about compensation and careers? Will trade Marriott points for a McKinsey referral. Fishbowl is a powerhouse player, swimming in the huge markets of traditional social media and professional networks with a grand vision to fill the space. In this conversation, we talk to Fishbowl’s co-founder and CEO Matt Sunbulli where he shares his personal story, Fishbowl’s founding and unique (hilarious) insights, his Amazon-ian / Bezos-esque vision for the future, their unique takes on moderation and community, and the role of government in social media. Read more about Matt here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/

Everything is connected - my car, my speakers, my TV,  my coffee machine, my toothbrush - what’s next? My toilet paper? Join us as we talk about human-centered design and connected devices, particularly Autonomous Vehicles, with Zafar Razzacki. Zafar is an expert on the design, development and launch of connected and innovative products. His experience spans over 15 years of product, marketing, and strategy roles at companies including Google, General Motors, Accenture, and multiple technology start-ups. In this conversation, we cover: the future of connected devices, autonomous vehicles and their roadmap, questions of safety and accountability, and meta questions of the impact on our humanity. Read more about Zafar here: https://whartontechtoks.medium.com/