Tech Talks Daily - podcast cover

Tech Talks Daily

Neil C. Hughestechtalksnetwork.com
If every company is now a tech company and digital transformation is a journey rather than a destination, how do you keep up with the relentless pace of technological change? Every day, Tech Talks Daily brings you insights from the brightest minds in tech, business, and innovation, breaking down complex ideas into clear, actionable takeaways. Hosted by Neil C. Hughes, Tech Talks Daily explores how emerging technologies such as AI, cybersecurity, cloud computing, fintech, quantum computing, Web3, and more are shaping industries and solving real-world challenges in modern businesses. Through candid conversations with industry leaders, CEOs, Fortune 500 executives, startup founders, and even the occasional celebrity, Tech Talks Daily uncovers the trends driving digital transformation and the strategies behind successful tech adoption. But this isn't just about buzzwords. We go beyond the hype to demystify the biggest tech trends and determine their real-world impact. From cybersecurity and blockchain to AI sovereignty, robotics, and post-quantum cryptography, we explore the measurable difference these innovations can make. Whether improving security, enhancing customer experiences, or driving business growth, we also investigate the ROI of cutting-edge tech projects, asking the tough questions about what works, what doesn't, and how businesses can maximize their investments. Whether you're a business leader, IT professional, or simply curious about technology's role in our lives, you'll find engaging discussions that challenge perspectives, share diverse viewpoints, and spark new ideas. New episodes are released daily, 365 days a year, breaking down complex ideas into clear, actionable takeaways around technology and the future of business.
Last refreshed:
Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.
Download Metacast podcast app
Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app
Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

Building Responsible Agentic AI: Genpact's Blueprint For Enterprise Leaders

*]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id= "54141b02-3c0e-46be-b764-c57b8d9d7ccc" data-testid= "conversation-turn-28" data-scroll-anchor="true" data-turn= "assistant"> In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Jinsook Han, Chief Agentic AI Officer at Genpact, to unpack one of the most misunderstood shifts in enterprise AI right now. Many organizations feel confident about the value AI can deliver,...

Feb 09, 202632 minEp. 3582

Slalom On The AI Leadership Gap Between Confidence And Capability

What happens when leaders are confident about AI, but the people expected to use it are not ready? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Caroline Grant from Slalom Consulting to explore one of the most persistent tensions in enterprise AI adoption right now. Boards and executives are spending more, moving faster, and expecting returns sooner than ever, yet many organizations are struggling to translate that ambition into outcomes that scale. Caroline brings fresh insight from Slal...

Feb 08, 202632 minEp. 3582

LastPass CEO: If the Browser is AI's New Interface, What Does it Mean for Security?

Is the browser quietly becoming the most powerful and dangerous interface in modern work? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Karim Toubba, CEO of LastPass, to unpack a shift that many people feel every day but rarely stop to question. The browser is no longer just a window to the internet. It has become the place where work happens, where SaaS lives, and increasingly, where humans and AI agents meet data, credentials, and decisions. From AI-native browsers to prompt-based navig...

Feb 07, 202630 minEp. 3582

Harness And The AI Velocity Paradox Slowing Software Delivery

What really happens when AI helps teams write code faster, but everything else in the delivery process starts to slow down? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined once again by returning guest and friend of the show, Martin Reynolds, Field CTO at Harness. It has been two years since we last spoke, and a lot has changed since then. Martin has relocated from London to North Carolina, gaining back hours of his working week. Still, the bigger shift has been in how AI is reshaping software d...

Feb 06, 202635 minEp. 3581

FreedomPay on The $44.4 Billion Payment Risk Facing Retail And Hospitality

What really happens to a business when payments stop working, even for a few minutes? I recorded this episode live at Dynatrace Perform in Las Vegas, inside the Venetian, surrounded by engineers, operators, and business leaders all wrestling with the same uncomfortable reality. Payment outages are no longer rare edge cases. They are becoming a routine operational risk, and the cost is far higher than many organizations realize. To unpack that shift, I sat down with Victoria Ruffo, Software Engin...

Feb 05, 202625 minEp. 3580

What Bubble Learned About Responsibility in AI-built Apps

In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Josh Haas, co-founder and co-CEO of Bubble, to unpack why the next phase of software creation is already taking shape. We talk about how the early excitement around AI-powered code generation delivered fast demos and instant gratification, but often fell apart when teams tried to turn those experiments into durable products that could grow with a business. Josh takes us back to Bubble's origins in 2012, long before AI hype cycles and trend-drive...

Feb 05, 202624 minEp. 3579

Cloudinary and the Business Case for Developer-Led Product Growth

How do you turn a developer-first product into a growth engine without losing trust, clarity, or focus along the way? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Sanjay Sarathy, VP of Developer Experience and Self Service at Cloudinary, for a grounded and thoughtful conversation about product-led growth when developers sit at the center of the story. Sanjay operates at a rare intersection. He leads Cloudinary's high-volume self-service motion while also caring for the developer community ...

Feb 04, 202627 minEp. 3578

Syntax - From AI First Thinking To Data First Reality

What happens when the rush toward AI collides with the messy reality of enterprise data that was never designed for it? That is exactly where this episode with Kevin Dattolico from Syntax begins. Before we even hit record, we were swapping stories about music, travel, and a certain farewell concert that set the tone for a conversation that was both grounded and unexpectedly human. But once we got going, the discussion quickly shifted to one of the biggest blind spots I keep hearing about at tech...

Feb 03, 202630 minEp. 3577

Neurosymbolic AI And Why Reasoning Matters More Than Scale

Why do today's most powerful AI systems still struggle to explain their decisions, repeat the same mistakes, and undermine trust at the very moment we are asking them to take on more responsibility? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Artur d'Avila Garcez, Professor of Computer Science at City St George's University of London, and one of the early pioneers of neurosymbolic AI. Our conversation cuts through the noise around ever-larger language models and focuses on a deeper questi...

Feb 02, 202623 minEp. 3576

Why Stability Is Emerging As A New Performance Signal In Healthcare Tech

Why does healthcare keep investing in new technology while so many clinicians feel buried under paperwork and admin work that has nothing to do with patient care? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Dr. Rihan Javid, psychiatrist, former attorney, and co-founder and president of Edge. Our conversation cuts straight into an issue that rarely gets the attention it deserves, the quiet toll that administrative overload takes on doctors, care teams, and ultimately patients. Nearly half ...

Feb 01, 202625 minEp. 3575

Why Relationship-First Platforms Will Win The Next AI Wave

*]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-(--header-height)" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id= "b1254d76-9782-4038-9aa8-382a2395255e" data-testid= "conversation-turn-13" data-scroll-anchor="false" data-turn="user"> *]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id= "80196f3d-a0ce-44b9-917e-9b4df5d25b93" data-testid= "conversation-turn-14" data-scroll-anchor="true" data-turn= "assistant"> Why do small business leaders...

Jan 31, 202633 minEp. 3574

Nyobolt And The Power Bottleneck Inside Modern AI Infrastructure

What happens when power, rather than compute, becomes the limiting factor for AI, robotics, and industrial automation? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Ramesh Narasimhan from Nyobolt to unpack a challenge that is quietly reshaping modern infrastructure. As AI training and inference workloads grow more dynamic, power demand is no longer predictable or steady. It can spike and drop in milliseconds, creating stress on systems that were never designed for this level of volatility. ...

Jan 30, 202623 minEp. 3573

Cobalt Shares Hard Lessons From the State of Pen Testing Report

What happens when artificial intelligence starts accelerating cyberattacks faster than most organizations can test, fix, and respond? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Sonali Shah, CEO of Cobalt, to unpack what real-world penetration testing data is revealing about the current state of enterprise security. With more than two decades in cybersecurity and a background that spans finance, engineering, product, and strategy, Sonali brings a grounded, operator-level view of where s...

Jan 29, 202627 minEp. 3572

LAMs (Large Action Models) and the Future of AI Ownership

What happens when AI stops talking and starts working, and who really owns the value it creates? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Sina Yamani, founder and CEO of Action Model, for a conversation that cuts straight to one of the biggest questions hanging over the future of artificial intelligence. As AI systems learn to see screens, click buttons, and complete tasks the way humans do, power and wealth are concentrating fast. Sina argues that this shift is happening far quicker t...

Jan 28, 202632 minEp. 3571

Pegasystems on Why Legacy Modernization Finally Has a Way Forward

What does it really take to remove decades of technical debt without breaking the systems that still keep the business running? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Pegasystems leaders Dan Kasun, Head of Global Partner Ecosystem, and John Higgins, Chief of Client and Partner Success, to unpack why legacy modernization has reached a breaking point, and why AI is forcing enterprises to rethink how software is designed, sold, and delivered. Our conversation goes beyond surface-level...

Jan 27, 202656 minEp. 3570

UiPath and the Reality of Managing AI at Enterprise Scale

What does it really take to move AI from proof-of-concept to something that delivers value at scale? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Simon Pettit, Area Vice President for the UK and Ireland at UiPath, for a grounded conversation about what is actually happening inside enterprises as AI and automation move beyond experimentation. Simon brings a refreshingly practical perspective shaped by an unconventional career path that spans the Royal Navy, nearly two decades at NetApp, and...

Jan 26, 202626 minEp. 3569

3568: Getty Images: How Brands Can Avoid AI's Sloppification of Visual Content

*]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id= "72e2f87d-7178-4c4c-8917-454a147e9ed3" data-testid= "conversation-turn-14" data-scroll-anchor="true" data-turn= "assistant"> What happens when speed, scale, and convenience start to erode trust in the images brands rely on to tell their story? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I spoke with Dr. Rebecca Swift, Senior Vice President of Creative at Getty Images, abou...

Jan 25, 202640 minEp. 3569

3567: What a Chief Communications Officer Really Does and Why It Matters

What actually happens when a company loses control of its own voice in a world full of channels, platforms, and constant noise? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Joshua Altman, founder of beltway.media, to unpack what corporate communication really means in 2026 and why it has quietly become one of the most misunderstood leadership functions inside modern organizations. Joshua describes his work as a fractional chief communications officer, a role that sits above individual ca...

Jan 25, 202625 minEp. 3567

3566: How Ergodic Predicts Complex Disruptions Before They Happen

What if your AI systems could explain why something will happen before it does, rather than simply reacting after the damage is done? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Zubair Magrey, co-founder and CEO of Ergodic AI, to unpack a different way of thinking about artificial intelligence, one that focuses on understanding how complex systems actually behave. Zubair's journey begins in aerospace engineering at Rolls-Royce, moves through a decade of large-scale enterprise AI program...

Jan 24, 202638 minEp. 3566

3565: CKEditor and the Reality of Supporting Developers Across Every Tech Stack

What does it actually take to build trust with developers when your product sits quietly inside thousands of other products, often invisible to the people using it every day? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Ondřej Chrastina, Developer Relations at CKEditor, to unpack a career shaped by hands-on experience, curiosity, and a deep respect for developer time. Ondřej's story starts in QA and software testing, moves through development and platform work, and eventually lands in de...

Jan 24, 202637 minEp. 3565

3564: Why Banking Is the Ultimate Test for Responsible AI

If artificial intelligence is meant to earn trust anywhere, should banking be the place where it proves itself first? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Ravi Nemalikanti, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Abrigo, for a grounded conversation about what responsible AI actually looks like when the consequences are real. Abrigo works with more than 2,500 banks and credit unions across the United States, many of them community institutions where every decision affects local busi...

Jan 23, 202634 minEp. 3564

3563: Vijay Rajendran on Why Startup Advice Fails When Reality Kicks In

What really happens after the startup advice runs out and founders are left facing decisions no pitch deck ever prepared them for? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Vijay Rajendran, a founder, venture capitalist, UC Berkeley instructor, and author of The Funding Framework, to discuss the realities of company building that rarely appear on social feeds or investor blogs. Vijay has spent years working alongside founders at the sharpest end of growth, from early fundraising conve...

Jan 23, 202627 minEp. 3563

3562: Veeva Systems on AI and the Future of Clinical Trials

What happens when decades of clinical research experience collide with a regulatory environment that is changing faster than ever? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Dr Werner Engelbrecht, Senior Director of Strategy at Veeva Systems, for a wide-ranging conversation that explores how life sciences organizations across Europe are responding to mounting regulatory pressure, rapid advances in AI, and growing expectations around transparency and patient trust. Werner brings a rare ...

Jan 22, 202628 minEp. 3562

3561: Xero on Trust, Technology, and the Future of Accounting Relationships

What happens when an industry that has barely changed for generations suddenly finds itself at the center of one of the biggest shifts in modern work? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I'm joined by Kate Hayward, UK Managing Director at Xero, for a conversation about how accounting is being reshaped by technology, education, regulation, and changing expectations from clients and talent alike. Kate describes this moment as the largest reorganization of human capital in the history of the profe...

Jan 21, 202624 minEp. 3561

3560: How People.ai is Turning Sales Activity Into Answers Leaders Can Act On

What does sales leadership actually look like once the AI experimentation phase is over and real results are the only thing that matters? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Jason Ambrose, CEO of the Iconiq backed AI data platform People.ai, to unpack why the era of pilots, proofs of concept, and AI theater is fading fast. Jason brings a grounded view from the front lines of enterprise sales, where leaders are no longer impressed by clever demos. They want measurable outcomes, b...

Jan 20, 202634 minEp. 3560

3559: Conviva CEO on Turning Experimental AI Agents Into Reliable Systems

In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Keith Zubchevich, CEO of Conviva, to unpack one of the most honest analogies I have heard about today's AI rollout. Keith compares modern AI agents to toddlers being sent out to get a job, full of promise, curious, and energetic, yet still lacking the judgment and context required to operate safely in the real world. It is a simple metaphor, but it captures a tension many leaders are feeling as generative AI matures in theory while so many dep...

Jan 19, 202630 minEp. 3559

3558: Do You Really Have an Offline backup, or Just the Illusion of One?

In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Imran Nino Eškić and Boštjan Kirm from HyperBUNKER to unpack a problem many organisations only discover in their darkest hour. Backups are supposed to be the safety net, yet in real ransomware incidents, they are often the first thing attackers dismantle. Speaking with two people who cut their teeth in data recovery labs across 50,000 real cases gave me a very different perspective on what resilience actually looks like. They explain why so ma...

Jan 18, 202625 minEp. 3558

3557: MythWorx Explains Why Reasoning Matters More Than AI Scale

What happens when the AI race stops being about size and starts being about sense? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Wade Myers from MythWorx, a company operating quietly while questioning some of the loudest assumptions in artificial intelligence right now. We recorded this conversation during the noise of CES week, when headlines were full of bigger models, more parameters, and ever-growing GPU demand. But instead of chasing scale, this discussion goes in the opposite direct...

Jan 17, 202627 minEp. 3557

3556: How Illumio Is Helping Leaders Rethink Cybersecurity for a World Where Attacks Keep Happening

What happens when we finally admit that stopping every cyberattack was never realistic in the first place? That is the thread running through this conversation, recorded at the start of the year when reflection tends to be more honest and the noise dial is turned down a little. I was joined by returning guest Raghu Nandakumara from Illumio, nearly three years after our last discussion, to pick up a question that has aged far too well. How do organizations talk about cybersecurity value when brea...

Jan 16, 202641 minEp. 3556

3555: Immersive on Why Incident Response Plans Break Down in Reality

What really happens inside an organization when a cyber incident hits and the neat incident response plan starts to fall apart? That question sat at the heart of my return conversation with Max Vetter, VP of Cyber at Immersive. It has been a big year for breaches, public fallout, and eye-watering financial losses, and this episode goes beyond headlines to examine what cyber crisis management actually looks like when pressure, uncertainty, and human behavior collide. Max brings a rare perspective...

Jan 15, 202629 minEp. 3555
Hosted on Libsyn
For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android