The Irish Tech News Podcast

In February 2020 I recorded my last ever face to face podcast with Jason Adams and Michelle McDaid. Shortly afterwards the pandemic hit and remote working became part of our daily lives with the acceleration of the digital workplace. As how we worked has changed I reconnect with Michelle McDaid the Senior Director of Engineering at Workhuman, and talk to her about remote working and more. Michelle, talks about how the pandemic impacted on Workhuman, what she thinks the future workplace will be, if remote and hybrid working has made staff more productive. Michelle also talks about creating more diverse teams, different skillsets, solving problems and mental health.. More about Michelle McDaid: Michelle McDaid is the Senior Director of Engineering at Workhuman, one of the world's fastest-growing integrated Social Recognition and management platform and a keen supporter of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Michelle is also a Member of TU Dublin Saer Advisory Board, and a mentor on their mentoring programme. In 2019 she was a finalist in the Trailblazer category at the 2019 Women in Tech Awards.

Data is central to everything that we do. But as we go about our daily lives, how do we ensure we are protected? It’s not just about what data is being collected and what is being done with it; it’s also about who holds the power to make those decisions. And what guardrails do we have in place to ensure companies are acting ethically? Can we push them to change? In this episode of One Vision, Theo chats with Joe Toscano, author of Automating Humanity, on data privacy and rights. When we don’t have protected communications, we lose democracy and freedom. As Joe said, “Democracy is an active fight.”

Description: An Inclusive Financial System goes beyond reducing the number of people with no bank accounts or with no access to credit & investment opportunities. This long but colorful discussion with Theodora Lau from DC and Richard Turrin from Shanghai touch on the complexity and the nuances of the topic.  This discussion was prompted after reading the WEF paper on `Shared principles for an inclusive financial system`https://www.weforum.org/whitepapers/s... Both guests are authors of books that cover such topics.  `Beyond Good` Theo Lau & Bradley Leimer https://www.lehmanns.ch/shop/naturwis...`Cashless`Richard Turrin https://richturrin.com/ Dr. Efi Pylarinou is the No.1 Global Woman Influencer in Finance & the Data conversation by Refinitiv, a Top Thought Leader by Onalytica, and a Top Digital Futurist, Linkedin and Twitter Voice, by Engatica. A seasoned Wall Street professional & a recognized technology thought leader on innovation topics. Founder of Efi Pylarinou Advisory servicing Big Tech, Financial Services and Fintech clients. She strongly believes in building bridges between the old and the new economy. She shares her passion of content creation with her 190,000+ followers on Linkedin and 18,000+ on Twitter.  Join her on the social platforms https://linktr.ee/Efiglobal

We know our listeners are shakers and movers in their sphere but today Melanie Boylan and Siobhán Finn are talking about Champion ChangeMakers (TM).  Hear how the Community Enterprise Association Ireland has created ‘hackathon’ type events that bring local communities together to solve real world, everyday societal or economic challenges in ways that will positively impact our ever-changing world. Hosted as Champion ChangemakersTM, individuals of all ages as well as local groups, special interest organisations, societies and networks are invited to take part in these weekends across a number of locations from September 23rd –  25th 2022. Do you want to be a part of social change? Then visit their website and join them in locations all around Ireland. Under 18's are allowed with the permission of an adult. https://communityenterprise.ie/champion-changemakers/

Many entrepreneurial students start their first company while in college, but few start a company that will go on to be the largest political fundraising platform in the US. By the time Tom Serres came to sell his company, Rally, in 2014 it was powering 70,000 political operations across the US from aspiring senators to dog catcher campaigns. At its heart was a mechanism to raise funds efficiently over the internet and by 2014 it accounted for 50% of all political donations collected online. The experience of running his own company and raising money saw a natural segue into opening an advisory firm, Animal Ventures in 2016 working with Fortune 100 companies. And in 2019 he opened Serres Warburg Investments, a private equity entity, which was to invest in all things Web 3. “I was ten years in Rally but the last three showed me how to scale and fast. Learning from my own company means I can really identify with other founders – I’ve got the tee-shirt.” Tune in to find out more about how Tom invests in Web 3 Your host is Jillian Godsil

Earlier this year my colleague Simon Cocking reviewed the book Practical sustainability, circular commerce, smarter spaces and happier humans. Written by Corey Glickman and Jeff Kavanaugh, the book shares specific examples and case studies as well as reinforcing the concepts outlined by the authors. Ronan talks to Corey and Jeff, about the book, practical sustainability tips and more. More about Corey and Jeff: Corey Glickman is vice president and head of the Infosys Sustainability & Design business, which develops and deploys Smart Space technologies at private and public organisations. Corey has over 35 years of experience in industry consulting, providing advice on technology and business. He is an expert in strategic design, digital transformation, customer experience strategy, and the use of visualisation applied to the development of innovative products, processes, and services. Corey specialises in the formation of design and innovation programs, overseeing execution teams, working in a global centers of excellence that creates breakthrough business solutions and technologies. Corey is a member of the World Economic Forum Pioneer Cities working group, and he is also a Singularity University faculty expert guest lecturer. He has served on review boards for publications like the Harvard Business Review, and he has won international design awards, including being named one of the 100 most influential designers of the decade by the American Institute of Graphic Arts. He lives in the Pittsburgh area. Jeff Kavanaugh is vice president and global head of the Infosys Knowledge Institute, the research and thought leadership arm of tech services leader Infosys, and previously led their manufacturing consulting unit. He also serves as an adjunct professor at the Jindal School of Management at the University of Texas at Dallas. Under his leadership, the Knowledge Institute’s team of award-winning producers, editors, journalists, and analysts publishes a wide portfolio of thought leadership each year. Jeff is the author of the books The Live Enterprise: Create a Continuously Evolving and Learning Organisation(McGraw-Hill, 2021) and Consulting Essentials: The Art & Science of People, Facts, and Frameworks (Lioncrest, 2018). He has also been published in Harvard Business Review and other leading periodicals. Jeff lives in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area.

Maarten Ectors is a man of many parts, mostly disruptive. He joined the Pollen DeFi team in October just after the initial founders put the project together. He reckons it’s all about the money, follow the money. “Take a step back,” Ectors advises. “Ten years ago if you had money it was relatively easy to invest through a broker or asset manager. Then Warren Buffet came along and burst the bubble pointing out that most of the managers never beat the market. So the next opportunity was indexed funds which were expected to go up – continually. Except that is not sustainable so where can money go now? “So, why not create an index token that gets invested in such a way to beat the market. But if the market goes down, then you go short. If the market goes up, you go long. And what if we can make something that the investors pay gas fees to rebalance their assets? And that last part is the key to Pollen.” To find out more, tune into the podcast Your host is Jillian Godsil

#AI #Technology #Economy Description: Technosocialism is the way the authors of the new book `The Rise of Technosocialism` suggest we tackle the complex large-scale problems that are facing humanity - Inequality, AI, and Climate.In this episode, I discuss new concepts with futurist Brett King for our socio-economic future.   Brett King https://www.linkedin.com/in/brettking/  The Rise of Technosocialism https://riseoftechnosocialism.com/ Brett King is a world-renowned futurist and speaker, an International Bestselling Author, and media personality. President Xi Jinping cited his book Augmented on the topic of Artificial Intelligence in his address to the nation in 2018. In 2019 his book Bank 4.0 was awarded the Top Book by a Foreign Author in Russia. In 2020 he was inducted into the Fintech Hall of Fame by CB Insights. King hosts the world's #1 ranked Radio show and Podcast on FinTech called "Breaking Banks" and is the Chairman and Founder of Moven. Dr. Efi Pylarinou is the No.1 Global Woman Influencer in Finance & the Data conversation by Refinitiv, a Top Thought Leader by Onalytica, and a Top Digital Futurist, Linkedin and Twitter Voice, by Engatica. A seasoned Wall Street professional & a recognized technology thought leader on innovation topics. Founder of Efi Pylarinou Advisory servicing Big Tech, Financial Services and Fintech clients. She strongly believes in building bridges between the old and the new economy. She shares her passion of content creation with her 190,000+ followers on Linkedin and 18,000+ on Twitter.  Join her on the social platforms https://linktr.ee/Efiglobal

If you could be anyone in the world, who would you be? Would you be a spy, a lead singer in a rock band, a legendary product designer, or something else? What happens when fintech minds collide in the most random fashion?  In this episode of One Vision, which at times feels more like a family dinner conversation, Theo reunites with Barb MacLean and Chris Garrod to talk about our virtual selves, technology, and Barb’s fintech playlist. While we might all be at different physical locations, fintech will always be the common bond that brings us back together. All aboard the crazy train, shall we?

A very common problem amongst older people is the development of cognitive disorders. This results in more round the clock care needed which can be very expensive. But it’s not all doom and gloom as there is a solution being developed that will help. Zhanat Makhataeva, PhD candidate in Robotics Engineering at Nazarbayev University School of Engineering and Digital Sciences, has developed an app for digital headsets called ExoMem , an AR-based human memory augmentation system. Zhanat talks about the app, the equipment used with the app, future versions of the app, the freedom users will have, and Microsoft HoloLens. Zhanat also talks about how developing the app came about, how improving technology has helped, battery life, memory, trying to live a normal life, future plans for the project, AI, and her internship with Microsoft in London. More about the app Zhanat is developing: The app works by recognising and remembering objects and their location to aid individuals and mitigate the effects of conditions such as dementia or Alzheimer’s. Zhanat believes that AR head-mounted displays, computing technologies, and AI algorithms can significantly benefit research in assistive systems and human-technology interaction, especially for people affected by cognitive impairments and memory decline. The augmentation of hearing and vision in humans, which can help both healthy people and people with cognitive impairments, is a possible direction for AR and AI research. By restoring the perception and memory functions of people with cognitive impairments, we can improve not only the lives of patients, but also those around them.