TechStuff

A world where customers can buy everything they want, whenever and wherever they want isn’t 100% there—but it’s pretty close. And perhaps no company has been up for that challenge as much as Lowe’s.   In this episode of The Restless Ones, I had the chance to sit down with Seemantini Godbole, EVP and CIO of Lowe’s Companies, Inc., whose early start as an engineer has fueled problem-solving throughout her career. From helping customers prepare for projects via virtual appointments and designs, to making sure their local stores have the physical products needed to complete them, Seemantini is arming Lowe’s teams with the technology solutions to infuse more joy into home improvement without the usual friction.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The promise of autonomous vehicles and machinery has been on the minds of industries, consumers and science fiction writers for many years. While advancements in AI, Robotics, Edge Computing and 5G Connectivity have gotten us closer to that vision, we are still quite far from computers solely running the show. The brain’s ability to compute and react to real-life situations is still a critical component to most operations, and companies such as Phantom Auto are working hard to combine these two forces - the advancements in machine learning  and the power of human decision making, opening entire sectors of the labor force previously unseen.    In this episode of The Restless Ones, I had the pleasure of sitting with the founding partners of Phantom Auto, Elliot Katz and Shai Magzimof who are actively merging the world’s needs for autonomous machine operation and dynamic employment opportunities. With skilled labor as a key problem for their clients, Phantom specializes in creating remote controlled solutions for everything from forklifts, to factory and warehouse vehicles and more, all made possible through connecting the power of technology and human intelligence. Their work is also bridging the worker divide, allowing blue collar workers to enjoy the benefits of remote work that their counterparts enjoy, avoiding the hazardous and other physical challenges typically associated with their work. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Craig Rupp left Iowa in the 80s, he never wanted to step foot on a farm again. A whirlwind career as an engineer took him to some of the biggest companies - Motorola, Apple, Samsung - but he always felt a strong connection to his roots. He had an idea he couldn’t shake - an opportunity to change farming forever. Introducing Sabanto and its best-in-class Autonomous Operator, Steward. On the day of their first big test, the tractor froze, stuck in a field in a blizzard - no planting, no company, no future. If Craig wanted this to work, he had to find a solution - and fast.  Ben is back with a series of episodes celebrating businesses from across America, starting with the great state of Iowa and Sabanto Agriculture. Joining Ben is Sachin Seghal Founder of Elevate Digital Marketing in Des Moines and Brian Lamb, Northeast segment head for Middle Market at JPMorgan Chase. Together they discuss the developments in Artificial Intelligence and its importance for small businesses while sharing insights on how small businesses can effectively transition to mid-sized enterprises and beyond.    The Unshakeables is brought to you by Chase for Business and Ruby Studio by iHeartMediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Could you be on a livestream for three years straight? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah explore the push to include AI education in schools, the parallel universe of the Chinese car market and why criminals should be wary of Interpol. On TechSupport, The Washington Post’s technology reporter Drew Harwell reflects on his time shadowing Emilycc, the record-breaking Twitch streamer – and why people have been tuning in 24-hours a day for the past three years.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nicolas Niarchos is a journalist whose work focuses on conflicts, migration and, most recently, the energy transition. Specifically, the hidden costs of extracting minerals like cobalt, which remains a critical element in the technology we use to run our lives. Niarchos sits down with Oz to discuss what he’s observed in mineral-rich Congo and Indonesia – and how the battle for geopolitical advantage over these natural resources are overturning the world order.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can AI help search-and-rescue dogs do their job? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah explore the AI-powered technologies being used in war and why some Meta staffers worry about underage users interacting with their AI companions. On TechSupport, Olivia Carville, an investigative reporter at Bloomberg and the host of the podcast Levittown, discusses the Take It Down Act and what it means for the future of the internet.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Evan Ratliff is an investigative journalist and podcast host. His Wired article, “The Delirious, Violent, Impossible True Story of the Zizians,” marked the culmination of a two-year deep-dive into a group of young tech radicals and their spiral into violence. Ratliff sits down with Oz to unpack how the group formed, what they believed – the parts we can decipher, at least – and how those beliefs led to alleged murder.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Should you delete yourself from the internet? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah dig into humanoid robots running a half-marathon, the AI-generated personas helping law enforcement interact with potential suspects and Google’s updated ‘Results About You’ tool. On TechSupport, Jeff Rosenthal, the co-founder of the venture capital firm CIV, discusses the role of private investment in building out energy infrastructure to meet the AI boom.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lionel Barber is a journalist, author, and former editor of the Financial Times. He’s interviewed state leaders like former US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. But in Gambling Man: The Wild Ride of Japan’s Masayoshi Son, Barber chronicles the life of SoftBank’s enigmatic CEO from his childhood as an ethnic Korean in Japan to becoming the richest man in the world – briefly. Barber sits down with Oz to discuss the impact SoftBank’s investments have had on technology.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How would Salvador Dalí have used generative AI? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah dig into this year’s most common uses for generative AI, the rise of code editor, Cursor, and how Google DeepMind’s Veo2 interprets a surrealist screenplay. On TechSupport, The Washington Post’s staff writer, Naomi Nix, discusses the first week of Meta’s antitrust trial.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jen Statsky is a comedian, writer, and producer who’s worked on some of TV’s biggest comedies like The Good Place, Parks & Recreation and Broad City. Most recently, she’s been behind the scenes as one of the co-creators of the hit show Hacks. Jen sits down with Karah to talk about how writing and producing for TV has changed in the face of accelerating AI, the “second-screening” phenomenon, and the optimization of streaming services.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What’s a ‘mega API’? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah break down the ever-evolving landscape of tariffs and what it all means for tech companies, Tinder’s ChatGPT-powered dating game, and the rise of ‘Frankenstein’ laptops in India. On TechSupport, The Wall Street Journal’s Family & Tech Columnist Julie Jargon explains how imposter scams are becoming more believable thanks to generative AI.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reid Hoffman is a longtime entrepreneur, venture capitalist and author. Throughout his career, Hoffman has helped build or support some of the biggest tech companies we know today. He was one of PayPal’s first employees, a co-founder of LinkedIn and an early investor and board member for OpenAI. These days, Hoffman spends a lot of time thinking about the potential positive outcomes of AI development, which is the subject of his latest book — Superagency: What Could Possibly Go Right with our AI Future. Hoffman sits down with Oz to talk about how he formed his tech philosophy, what our AI future may look like, and why he doesn’t mind going against the political tides in Silicon Valley.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do LLMs solve math problems? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah explore what AI models could mean for the fashion industry, the humble-but-mighty device our modern world depends on, and what Anthropic’s researchers learned about the inner workings of their LLM. On TechSupport, The Washington Post’s technology reporter Gerrit De Vynck explains the state of the AI race and how some of tech’s biggest companies are vying for position.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Zak Brown is the CEO of McLaren Racing, the second-oldest Formula 1 team. When he joined in 2016, McLaren was in a difficult spot — lagging behind in race wins, sponsorships, and morale. Brown set out to transform the team by elevating their in-house racing technology and fostering active collaboration. He led the team to win the F1 Constructors’ Championship last year, their first one after more than 25 years. In this episode, Oz visits McLaren's headquarters to speak with Brown about how the team made their comeback, and what they’re doing to keep their edge this season.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What even is a crypto mixer? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and Karah dig into potential Slack-enabled corporate espionage, the recall of a Kim K-beloved product and the group chat that broke the internet. On TechSupport, The Washington Post’s technology columnist Geoffrey Fowler discusses 23andMe’s financial woes and what it means for the genetic data of the roughly 15 million people who bought DNA testing kits from the company.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the first episode of a new podcast called Levittown. It’s a real-life horror story for the AI generation. In this six-part series from Bloomberg, Kaleidoscope and iHeartPodcasts, reporters Olivia Carville and Margi Murphy take listeners from the quiet suburbs of New York to as far as New Zealand and into the darkest corners of the internet. Where tech moves faster than the law, and it’s up to everyday people to hold back a rising tide of explicit deepfakes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do you calm down a chatbot? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and producer Eliza Dennis dig into the book that Meta doesn’t want you to read, chatbot reactions to stressful stimuli, and the new home of Pokémon Go data. On TechSupport, 404 Media’s Joseph Cox discusses a tool with surprising data scraping capabilities that is used by US agencies like ICE.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Astro Teller is Alphabet’s Captain of Moonshots. He oversees projects at X – the moonshot factory behind innovations like Waymo and Google Brain. To celebrate X’s 15 years of pushing boundaries, Astro Teller decided to take listeners inside the factory. On The Moonshot Podcast, inventors and entrepreneurs behind breakthrough technologies reflect on their projects, both the highs and the lows. Teller sits down with Oz to discuss the process of experimentation, the importance of accepting failure and the future of innovation at Alphabet’s X.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Could AI help you land an internship? This week in the News Roundup, Oz and producer Eliza Dennis explore the rise of vibecoding, what it means for the future of software development and how one college programmer hopes to reform the Big Tech hiring process. On TechSupport, Oz chats with the founder and researcher of the Exponential View newsletter, Azeem Azhar, about the latest AI innovation and its significance in the battle for technological supremacy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.