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PODCAST

Pioneers of AI

Pioneers of AI is your guide to the latest technological frontier. Each week, host Rana el Kaliouby (AI scientist, investor, author, co-founder of Affectiva) is joined by the leading creators, critics, and thinkers behind mind-blowing technology and asks the important questions about how artificial intelligence is changing the way we live. As we venture together into the unknown, Pioneers is your tool to understanding and anticipating what comes next.

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All Episodes

00:35:42

Reid Hoffman says the AI race is not a cage match

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/06/24

Anthropic and OpenAI’s plans to go public have set off waves of speculation about the ripple effects, and how they’ll stack up to the SpaceX IPO. What’s really driving the value of these companies? Does the timing of the IPOs matter? How might they impact the AI startup ecosystem? To process all this, Rana phones a friend: Reid Hoffman. As co-founder of LinkedIn and Manas AI, a longtime Microsoft board member, investor in OpenAI and Anthropic, and so much more, Reid offers his take on the AI

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00:41:31

What we risk losing to AI, w/ Natalie Monbiot

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/06/17

Natalie Monbiot is the founder of Virtual Human Economy (VHE) and was one of the first experts to advocate that your digital twin can be one of your most valuable assets. In fact, she argues that when we use AI models like ChatGPT and Claude, we are already creating a digital twin of ourselves. We welcome Natalie back to the show, following up on some topics we touched upon in our 2025 live taping at On Air Fest, “The making of an AI clone.” In this conversation, Rana and Natalie dive into what’s

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00:39:27

Rapid Response: The race no one can win: AI’s...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/06/15

Big Tech is moving fast on AI. But who's watching out for the rest of us? Aza Raskin, co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, has spent years sounding the alarm about where the race to build powerful AI is actually taking us. He joins Rapid Response to expose the incentive structures quietly pushing Silicon Valley toward dangerous territory, and to make the case that it's not too late to change course. Raskin also unpacks the significance of Pope Leo XIV's sweeping new encyclical on AI, what

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00:40:06

Does AI know you better than your doctor? w/ Ōura CEO...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/06/10

Historically, the only way to know what was going on in your body was to make a doctor’s appointment, run tests, and wait for the results. Now, wearable tech is changing access to health data. Rana sits down with Tom Hale, CEO of Ōura, the company behind the smart ring found on the fingers of everyone from elite athletes to patients managing chronic illness. Together they discuss how wearables give your body a voice, why and how Ōura is leaning into women’s health, and how a trifecta of sensors,

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00:34:34

Reimagining business school through AI with...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/06/03

When MasterClass CEO David Rogier was a kid, his grandmother sat him down and told him how she'd lost everything during World War II. The lesson David took from her is that education is the one thing no one can ever take from you.That idea became the basis of the online learning platform he co-founded, MasterClass. Now, after celebrating its 10-year milestone, AI is leading David to reimagine what learning actually looks like. On this Pioneers of AI episode, David joins host Rana El Kaliouby in a

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00:31:38

Rapid Response: Duolingo’s battle for learning in an...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/06/01

When Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn sent an internal memo about AI last year, he didn't expect it to go viral — or to ignite a firestorm about the future of work. Now he joins Rapid Response to unpack what he got right, what he got wrong, and what the backlash taught him about the real limitations of AI. Von Ahn also reveals why he's made a deliberate pivot in 2026: chasing users, not revenue — and what that bet says about how big Duolingo can get before ads become inevitable. It's a candid reckoning

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00:26:15

What it means to be raised by AI

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/05/27

Many parents are wondering how their kids’ lives will be shaped by AI. Will it help them land a future job or make that job obsolete? Will it coach them toward more meaningful relationships or replace human connection altogether? As we enter a moment in history where AI may, for the first time, surpass human intelligence, one thing is clear: we need to make sure this technology is safe. At the MIT Media Lab, for their 2026 Advancing Humans with AI symposium, titled "Raised by AI,” Rana el Kaliouby

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00:34:06

How fast can you upskill in AI? We did a sprint to...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/05/20

We all feel the urgency: learn to use AI, or risk falling behind at work. And we all know there's an upside: AI can reduce tedious tasks, streamline operations, and boost output. But knowing is half the battle (maybe even less) and implementing AI needs to happen across an entire organization. So what does it take to start?Well, here at WaitWhat (the company behind this podcast!) we paused all operations for three days to find out. From editorial curation to visual design to event planning, we

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00:57:17

Possible: Should we give AI a bank account?

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/05/18

This week, we're sharing something from our friends over at Possible. In this episode of Possible, Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger talk with Sean Neville, co-founder of Circle and architect of USDC, about building the financial infrastructure for an AI-driven economy. Now leading Catena Labs, Neville is working on what he calls the first AI-native bank—designed for autonomous agents that can transact, comply, and interact without humans in the loop. The conversation explores what breaks when AI tries

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00:39:56

I gave AI a year of my life: tech journalist Joanna...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/05/13

It’s not easy to cover AI as a reporter when the technology moves so fast. Joanna Stern’s approach: learn by doing. For one year, the longtime Wall Street Journal tech reporter and Pulitzer Prize finalist embedded AI into every corner of her life: her doctor's office, her kids' toys, even her romantic relationships. (Her wife approved the last one.) Stern chronicles the experience in her new book, I Am Not a Robot, a perspective on consumer AI that's equal parts honest, funny, and hopeful. On this

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00:36:31

John Deere's AI vision for future farms

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/05/06

Tractors are smarter than you think. John Deere, the nearly 200-year-old company, is combining sensors, data, and machine learning in highly advanced vehicles and software to reinvent how the world grows food. On this Pioneers of AI episode, John Deere CTO Jahmy Hindman breaks down how AI is making farms faster, smarter, and more sustainable. Plus he shares his vision for a fully autonomous farm.Learn more about Pioneers of AI: http://pioneersof.ai/ Follow Pioneers of AI on all channels:

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00:47:58

ChatGPT doesn’t want you to email your ex

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/04/29

The rhetoric around AI tends to swing between doomerism and idealism, but the reality is much more nuanced. In this special live episode, Pioneers of AI turns the tables; MIT Sloan professor Sinan Aral interviews host Rana el Kaliouby and gets her candid perspective on the current state of AI. Dr. el Kaliouby makes the case for human-centric artificial intelligence that augments humans, rather than replace them. She also speaks frankly on the risks of a male dominated startup landscape, defends why

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00:33:23

Mining the minerals to power AI

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/04/22

AI is transforming one of the oldest industries on Earth: mining. KoBold Metals is a mineral exploration company using AI to locate deposits of copper, lithium, and other resources. This is more critical than ever. These raw materials power electrification, AI infrastructure, and the global clean energy transition. On this episode, KoBold co-founder and president Josh Goldman takes us on a modern-day treasure hunt. He shares how KoBold is making mineral exploration faster, smarter, and more ethical

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00:30:54

What is agentic commerce? Stripe’s CRO of AI explains.

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/04/15

What does a former skydiver have to say about getting started with AI? Go ahead and jump! While Maia Josebachvili doesn’t spend her free time leaping out of airplanes these days, she still is a firm believer in taking calculated risks. It's a mindset that's followed her to her role as Chief Revenue Officer of AI at Stripe, a financial services platform at the forefront of agentic commerce. On this Pioneers of AI episode, Josebachvili makes the case for AI chat-enabled shopping, examines the risks of

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00:44:05

SXSW Keynote: Humanize AI before it dehumanizes us,...

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/04/08

AI is moving fast. But are we really keeping humans at the center? In this special live Rapid Response, recorded on stage at South by Southwest, host Bob Safian sits down with AI scientist, founder of Affectiva, investor at Blue Tulip, and host of Pioneers of AI, Dr. Rana el Kaliouby. El Kaliouby makes the case that human-centric AI isn't just a safety guardrail; it's the key to thriving socially, economically, and emotionally. She also cuts through the noise on the buzziest AI myths, weighs in on

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00:35:01

How AI is reshaping Wall Street

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/04/01

Samaya AI is bringing AI agents to Wall Street and the biggest firms are paying attention. Their agents tackle complex analysis that financial professionals do every day. Which raises some big questions: What happens when AI can do your work? And in an industry where billions of dollars are on the line — how do you make sure these AI systems are reliable? Samaya co-founder and CEO Maithra Raghu joins Pioneers of AI to unpack the future of AI in finance, how to make high-stakes systems accurate, and

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00:30:26

AI Roundup: Anthropic, OpenClaw, layoffs, and more

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/03/25

AI is dominating news headlines, but how do we find a signal in the noise to tell us where AI is headed? Host Rana el Kaliouby brings in Fortune’s AI editor Jeremy Kahn for a candid conversation on the biggest AI storylines: the Anthropic-Pentagon standoff, waves of AI-driven layoffs, war in the Gulf states, and more. We dig beneath the surface to get into what these moments mean for the industry and your lives.Learn more about Pioneers of AI: http://pioneersof.ai/ Follow Pioneers of AI on all

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00:30:05

Could a robot fix the loneliness epidemic?

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/03/18

Most humanoids are built to perform tasks. Grace Brown is building one that can authentically connect. As co-founder and CEO of Andromeda, Brown is on a mission to solve the loneliness epidemic with Abi, a social robot designed for the aging population. In this episode, Rana el Kaliouby sits down with Brown to talk about why physical AI needs emotional intelligence, how nonverbal cues make or break human-robot interactions, and the importance of designing robots people actually want in their

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00:36:28

We have a power grid problem. Can AI fix it?

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/03/11

There's no shortage of headlines about AI's environmental toll — but what if this technology could also help solve the climate crisis? Priya Donti, MIT Assistant Professor and co-founder of Climate Change AI, believes AI can play a critical role in the fight against climate change, though she's quick to say it's no silver bullet.Donti is using machine learning to tackle some of our most urgent environmental challenges, from optimizing power grids to training the next generation of climate leaders

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00:42:42

Possible: R.I.P. Computer Keyboard (1964 – 2025)

Pioneers of AI ·

2026/03/04

This week, we're sharing something from our friends over at Possible. In this special live episode, hosts Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger sit down with Wispr Flow founder and CEO Tanay Kothari to explore a post-keyboard future where voice becomes the primary way humans interact with computers. From building one of the world’s first voice assistants as a child to creating a product now used the world over (with, as of publish, 70% user retention after one year and daily users at over half of the Fortune

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128 results

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