Tech Talks Daily

Neil C. Hughes

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.

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2,001 episodes
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Episodes2001

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Oct 16, 2021 · 27 min
1752: Level Up Your Remote Teams With Virtual Reality Training
We now have employees recruited, onboarded, and working daily without ever meeting their teammates in person. So how do we bring everyone together and make them feel a valued part of a team well? In today's episode of Tech Talks Daily, I explore how technology can help develop and train teams to innovate even when employees are working from home and the office. When a team is stuck in its comfort zone, growth and innovation are dead in the water. But a tech company believes that nothing inspires a new mindset more than adventure. But most teams can't drop everything to climb a mountain. At Vestigo, they are bringing the adventure to you: VR experiences that force employees to let go of fear and think differently, designed to help remote teams level up from fear to bravery, enabling radical innovation and adaptability. For example, Vestigo's AltspaceVR experience unites teams in an unforgettable Mt. Everest expedition. Marshall Mosher is a world-record-holding action sport poly athlete, tech futurist, and host of the Inside the Adventure podcast. As the Founder and CEO of Vestigo, he's bringing his passion for adventure into the digital world by building the future of virtual reality adventure by digitally recreating the world's most inspiring and daunting adventure environments. I learned how his recent VR team programs include work for enterprises and businesses like Microsoft and the CNN Emerging Product & Platform team. Marshall has tapped into something with his business as he evaluates how tech teams are tapping the power of virtual reality to harness their fearlessness to innovate and work together. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 15, 2021 · 22 min
1751: LogRhythm - Why It's Time for the CSO to Report Directly to the CEO
In the wake of major breaches over the last few months, organizations across industries are re-evaluating their cybersecurity strategies, with many realigning priorities to ensure their security team and technology solutions can meet the needs of an evolving threat landscape. Mark Logan, CEO of LogRhythm, talks about the importance of the CSO reporting directly to the CEO. Mark explains why this reporting structure demonstrates the value a company places on cybersecurity as an enabler of business performance at a time when cyber breach headlines are top of mind for the public and maintaining trust is crucial. Cybersecurity is now a board-level initiative for all companies, not just those in the software and security spaces. We talk about why enterprises that do not get on board with this shift in organizational structure that brings CSOs to the forefront could lose out on key talent. Perhaps more concerningly, they also stand to see a weakening of consumer trust and business value, especially if the organization ultimately experiences a damaging breach because security was not prioritized. Mark discusses how this reporting structure fosters trust among consumers and future business partners that security and data privacy are taken seriously and given the highest priority within the company. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 14, 2021 · 38 min
1750: AvidPlay and the Tech Making Music Distribution Seamless
AVID empowers media creators with innovative technology and collaborative tools to entertain, inform, educate and enlighten the world. For example, AvidPlay, Avid's subscription-based, independent music distribution service, now allows independent artists and labels to distribute their Dolby Atmos tracks directly to Apple Music's Spatial Audio. Apple Music is the latest streaming service with the largest user base to receive Atmos tracks directly from AvidPlay. In addition, the distribution service has delivered immersive audio to Amazon Music and TIDAL since 2020. Avid is the only provider of both music production tools and an independent distribution service where Dolby Atmos tracks can be made and delivered from the same setup. AvidPlay makes it extremely easy for artists and labels to distribute and monetize the music they're creating with Pro Tools, Avid's industry-leading, Rob D'Amico joins me on Tech Talks Daily to share his lifelong passion for audio and production informed his position and goals at Avid. I learn more about AvidPlay: what it is, who uses it, and details about the audio formats and quality it enables artists and producers to work with, as well as details about how compensation, splits, and fees work with other independent distribution services in the market. Rob shares a few use cases to illustrate how AvidPlay works and a detailed description of the process from production suite to streaming services. We discuss why today's creators need AvidPlay; the opportunities it provides artists, labels, audio engineers, and how AvidLink fosters community amongst users by enabling feedback and questions. We talk about how an artist can start using AvidPlay and make the most out of the service, along with how customer demands and feedback are informing future offerings. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 13, 2021 · 27 min
1749: Exploring The Great Resignation With Explorance
As "the Great Resignation" continues to rock companies across industries (recent surveys say 37% of workers are thinking of making a move) it's more important than ever to listen to employee feedback and take real action to improve employee retention. However, mining rich, actionable insights from thousands of employee comments has always proved a daunting and incredibly time-consuming task until now. Samer Saab, the CEO of Explorance, shares his story and the path that led to him starting Explorance 18 years ago. He discusses the three foremost challenges facing the industry today – recruiting, retention and inclusion. We also talk about machine learning has proven beneficial in helping address these issues. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 12, 2021 · 21 min
1748: Empathy and The Tech Helping Families Navigate Loss
It feels like every aspect of our lives is dominated by tech. It also makes our lives easier in so many ways. But when we lose a loved one, it seems that tech and innovation are absent. Suddenly at a time when you don't want to speak to anyone, you can be thrust into endless calls to arrange a funeral, flowers, closing accounts, removing names from mailing lists, and so much more, Empathy is removing the taboo on death while providing information to help families navigate the logistics of losing a loved one. These are just some things technology excels at, like navigating logistics. Empathy's app combines technology and human support to streamlines end-of-life bureaucracy, minimizes tedious tasks, and automates processes involved in the administration of an estate while also providing emotional guidance. It's a sensitive topic, and today I learn more from Ron Gura about how the collaboration of humans and technology can help when we are trying to go through the grieving process. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 11, 2021 · 30 min
1747: How to Prevent Email Tracking With Ghostery
Pete Knowlton, Senior Director of Operations for Ghostery, rejoins me on Tech Talks Daily to discuss data tracking, specifically the new (terrifying) channel of email tracking. Pete is a privacy expert who leads US operations for Ghostery, a privacy intelligence platform with over 7 million monthly active users. Pete focuses primarily on web tracking and how little bits of code can get ahold of your data when you're using Google or another browser. However, as more people have become wary of online tracking, Ghostery has found that email trackers are becoming more prolific, and most people don't know how to protect their data in their inbox. Pete shares what email tracking is and how to prevent it in a language that everyone can understand. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 10, 2021 · 36 min
1746: How Etherisc Is Democratizing & Decentralizing Insurance
Etherisc is developing a protocol for decentralized insurance applications. We use blockchain technology to make the purchase and sale of insurance more efficient, enable lower operational costs, provide greater transparency into the industry. Christoph Mussenbrock shares how Etherisc is on a mission to make insurance fair and accessible through its open-source, decentralized insurance protocol and collectively build insurance products on the Ethereum blockchain. Since its launch in 2016, the Etherisc protocol has been reimagining insurance solutions to democratize the process in the interest of the consumer. Etherisc is currently working with ACRE Africa on the Bima Pima crop insurance product, which offers farmers weather index insurance policies to protect them against climate-related risks for their crops. This crop insurance is more affordable, fairer, and more transparent than the traditional insurance solutions available to farmers to protect their livelihoods in case of extreme weather events fueled by climate change. Other projects currently hosted on Etherisc's open-source Generic Insurance Framework include Flight Delay Insurance, Crop Insurance, Social Insurance, and Hurricane Protection. Podcast Sponsor Download Hirect, the free app is trusted by 10,000+ startups who chat directly with ideal candidates and accelerate their hiring process 10x faster than traditional ways.
Oct 9, 2021 · 21 min
1745: Re-Experience Life's Best Memories With Free AI Cloud Storage
Degoo is an experience-driven cloud provider offering 100GB of free, secure storage with an AI-empowered interactive display that helps users re-discover their best, stored memories. Designed in the bursting Swedish startup scene, Degoo's platform offers users a place to securely store and uniquely experience their photos and memories anywhere in the world. With Degoo, users will never run out of space for their photos and have protection knowing that running out of storage space or a broken phone no longer equals the loss of your favorite photos. In addition, Degoo is available across operating systems and on the web, meaning that users will never be without their memories. Degoo is constantly innovating and improving their product, having recently released AutoAlbums, which uses AI to create albums of similar photos - whether they are taken during the last year or are photos of basketball games or specific landmarks. Carl Hasselskog joins me on the podcast and discusses how Degoo has watched competitor after competitor acquired by Google Photos, making it one of the few challenger brands left on the market. He also shares how Degoo has navigated the changing landscape of photo cloud storage.
Oct 8, 2021 · 45 min
1744: Cybersecurity Month: The Citrix Security Stack and Ecosystem
Andre Leibovici and Anil Kumar join me in a conversation where we explore the Citrix Security Stack and Citrix Ready Security Ecosystem. The guests discuss how expensive it has become to recruit security professionals and how businesses can turn this challenge into an opportunity. They also talk about retiring legacy VPNs, Zero Trust, monitoring, and analytics to measure your security improvements. Useful Links Citrix Ready Workspace Security Ecosystem: https://citrixready.citrix.com/program/workspace-security-program.html Citrix Secure Access solutions: https://www.citrix.com/solutions/secure-access/
Oct 7, 2021 · 34 min
1743: Carbon Sequestration to Creating an Intergalactic Internet
Mike Betzer, CEO of Hypergiant, joins me on The Tech Talks Daily Podcast to chat about how artificial intelligence is actively solving some of the world's biggest problems, both on earth and in space. From powering carbon sequestration machines with algae and fighting climate change to building out the infrastructure for an internet on Mars, artificial intelligence undoubtedly has the capacity to do good. As an enterprise AI company, Hypergiant is genuinely in the trenches developing these groundbreaking technologies – just ask companies like NASA, Boeing, and Apple, all of which are turning to Hypergiant for new and improved AI solutions. Hypergiant Industries is an enterprise AI company focused on developing world-changing technologies to solve the world's biggest problems in the areas of space, defense, and critical infrastructure. Hypergiant offers a suite of AI services, software, and solutions that support companies and governments in preparing for the future of AI. Mike discusses how artificial intelligence impacts space innovations, defense solutions, infrastructure improvement, climate solutions, and how tech and AI can shape the future.
Oct 6, 2021 · 29 min
1742: Happy Mining With RAKwireless on The Peoples Network (HNT)
Since 2014, RAKwireless has delivered simple but powerful tools that eliminate barriers in IoT connectivity and empower people to build a smart future. RAK's continuous development of these IoT solutions empowers innovators and commercial enterprises to build the right environment for their property. The brand has held partnerships with some of the world's leading tech players such as Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Microsoft. In addition, they regularly partner with academies, schools, and organizations supporting young people working to build a better, more innovative future through IoT devices. But after hearing how they recently secured $10M in Series A funding, I invited Jose Marcelino, Solutions Architect at RAKwireless, on the podcast to learn more. Despite global manufacturing and supply chain disruption, the renowned producer of IoT tools, hardware, miners, and software tools has seen tremendous growth. We talk about RAKwireless, the relationship with Helium, and how the miners work. We discuss the People's Network, what it represents and why the 'builder community is so important to RAKwireless. We also talk about how to mine the Helium cryptocurrency tokens (aptly named HNT) and how it allows people to create passive income. Finally, we talk about why this is such an exciting time for RAK fans and other young folks who love to 'tinker, create and build new devices and ideas?
Oct 5, 2021 · 19 min
1741: Sezzle - The Tech Behind The Buy Now, Pay Later Solution
Killian Brackey is the CTO at Sezzle, a Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) payments tool working with global brands like Discover, Target, Lamps Plus, GameStop, Barstool Sports and more. Over the last few years Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) has exploded in popularity, especially during the peak of the pandemic when online spending saw record levels. Now that stores have fully reopened across the country, consumers are looking to get a fix of the in-store shopping experiences. However, many still want to have the option to finance their purchases with BNPL payments platforms. Additionally, BNPL will only improve the touchless experience at the register, with tap-to-pay tools, improving the overall contactless experience. Killian discusses what Sezzle is doing to move the needle on that front with its own tap-to-pay technology, as well as Apple's move into buy now, pay later, whether big tech is set to take over the space (and why that may not be a good thing for innovation), and more.
Oct 4, 2021 · 19 min
1740: accessiBe - The Tech Making the Internet More Accessible
People relied on the internet more than ever before throughout the pandemic, doing everything from ordering groceries to keeping up with critical health updates online. However, for millions of people with disabilities, only 2% of all websites are accessible, making navigating the internet nearly impossible. This is where accessiBe comes in, using proprietary technology to make websites usable for people in the disability community. As a web accessibility hub, accessiBe provides different AI-Powered solutions for testing and remediating web accessibility and various professional services to create an inclusive web and help businesses comply with web accessibility standards and regulations, i.e., WCAG and ADA. accessiBe's full suite of web accessibility solutions enables businesses of all sizes, from solopreneur to large corporations, to participate in global inclusion efforts and make their websites available to everybody, regardless of ability. accessiBe's founding team has deep domain expertise in the field of web development and accessibility services. It has developed the technologies in close partnership with users who have vision impairments or blindness, epilepsy, motor impairments, cognitive dysfunctions, and other disabilities. I learn how their technology helps businesses meet ADA and WCAG 2.1 compliance within 48 hours and as low as $49/month.
Oct 3, 2021 · 32 min
1739: Forbes Asia 30 under 30 Crypto CEO on Staking, DeFi and Blockchain Interoperability
Proof-of-Stake (PoS) continues to dominate the blockchain landscape in 2021, with Ethereum moving closer to its 2.0 upgrade and PoS consensus, as well as other major protocol launches this year using the consensus mechanism. Tushar Aggarwal, CEO, and Founder of Persistence, an ecosystem of next-generation financial services designed to stimulate global liquidity, has been a long-term advocate for PoS blockchains. A former Podcast Host for Decrypt Asia and Venture Partner deal sourcing for blockchain and crypto startups for Outlier Ventures, Tushar has extensive expertise across operations, investment, and management consultancy in the financial technology and blockchain industry. Prior to founding Persistence in 2015, Tushar worked as a Principal at blockchain and cryptocurrency fund LuneX Ventures. The experienced entrepreneur and investor, Tushar was awarded a place on the renowned Forbes 30 under 30 Asia list in 2021 for his work in finance and venture capital. As CEO of Persistence, Tushar is aiming to bridge the gap between legacy finance and decentralized finance via a fully interoperable protocol and evolving ecosystem of services purpose-built for seamless integration across blockchains. As a recognized thought leader on DeFi, staking, and interoperability, he shares his insights on several developments in blockchain including, Interoperability in blockchains; the importance of a self-sovereign network of blockchains. We also discuss Blockchain network governance on Eth2.0 and liquid staking and how to stimulate locked assets. Finally, we discuss unlocking mass DeFi adoption through better tooling.
Oct 2, 2021 · 22 min
1738: Joe Baguley, VP and CTO, EMEA at VMware
The UK's plans to explore its own central bank digital currency (CBDC) is a testament to the increasingly mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies and the realization of its potential to truly revolutionize the way we move money around the world today. Rishi's Sunak's recent announcement claimed that a Britcoin could tackle some of the challenges of popular cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin – i.e., from a regulatory and volatility point of view. However, Joe Baguley, VP, and CTO, EMEA at VMware believes the chancellor must also consider the sustainability cost of introducing Britcoin en-masse and how it could foil the government's green ambitions due to the unjustifiably high environmental burden of cryptocurrencies. Joe joins me on Tech Talks Daily in a conversation about the fundamental mistake the founders of bitcoin made by building the cryptocurrency on a proof-of-work blockchain which consumes an incredible amount of energy. We also discuss why we cannot unpick the environmental problems proof of work blockchains have caused by plugging renewable resources into powering them. If the UK considers its own CBDC seriously, it must learn from the industry's early mistakes and ensure that it is green by design. We explore what building a more sustainable blockchain ecosystem would look like and the role that VMware will play in a new future of work from any device, location, and time.
Oct 1, 2021 · 34 min
1737: Cybersecurity Awareness Month With Robust Network Solutions
Now in its 18th year, Cybersecurity Awareness Month continues to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity. So what will you be doing differently this year? Will it be switching to a password manager? or adding MFA to your email and social accounts? Alanna Gilson and Eric Due from Robust Network Solutions join me on today's episode of Tech Talks Daily in a discussion about how to improve your security hygiene. Robust Network Solutions is a premier IT consulting firm headquartered in San Mateo, CA, that specializes in providing proactive services to many professional firms in the San Francisco Bay Area. Specializing in Microsoft, VMware, Cisco, Citrix, HP, IBM/Lenovo, network buildouts, technology projects, mobile technology, remote access, enhanced security, disaster recovery, improved network performance, helpdesk support. About Eric Eric Due works as a Senior Engineer at Robust Network Solutions. He helps provide business planning and implementation to bring digital services that align with business needs. He has over 25 years in systems and business implementation. Alongside his design skills and startup experience, he brings a wealth of perspective. Focusing on people and reducing risks, Eric is passionate about aligning solutions with business goals and ensuring IT is a positive experience. About Alanna Alanna has worked in the digital media tech industry for more than 20 years. With experience in global web and mobile app monetization, inventory management, and internet fraud, the seasoned tech business development executive is also passionate about advancing cybersecurity and cyber-Training for Businesses and their Employees. In addition to business development/IT consulting, she is also involved in digital marketing, virtual/experiential events, and digital content development. Outside of the office, Alanna enjoys her work as an accomplished artist and spending time with her family.
Sep 30, 2021 · 18 min
1736: CEO of $400M+ Funded Startup on Culture-first Hypergrowth
Liftoff is a performance-based mobile app marketing and retargeting platform, using post-install user data to run true cost-per-action user acquisition and re-engagement campaigns. Traditionally, marketers pay for each click or app download when devising a mobile ad campaign, regardless of whether new customers spend money in the app. Liftoff changes this model by only requiring marketers to pay for advertising when a person completes an action or spends money in an app. Powered by machine learning and lookalike targeting, Liftoff's campaigns drive actions beyond the install, securing only the most engaged users for its customers. Mark Ellis, CEO, and co-founder of Liftoff joins me on the Tech Talks Daily Podcast. Mark has made community and culture a core tenet of Liftoff's work, eschewing the toxicity that's rampant in fast-growing Silicon Valley businesses and aiming for impact beyond revenue alone. This approach has been integral to building Liftoff's global, high-performance mobile app marketing platform that's attracted customers like CBS Sports, Amwell, Lifelock, acorns, and many others. The last three years served as another great stretch for Liftoff as the company had explosive growth with over 400% increase in revenue from 2017-2020. With Mark's leadership, Liftoff cemented itself as an industry leader, creating an alliance of mobile marketers focused on promoting good-business practices in a dynamic sector. This community-first approach has come to define Mark's successful tenure and sets him apart from his peers in the tech-startup world.
Sep 30, 2021 · 35 min
1735: Expert AI - The Case for a Hybrid Approach to AI in NLP
Industries like insurance, finance, and media have all found impactful ways to apply symbolic AI and deep/machine learning to common pain points when taking unstructured language data from documents, social content, and emails. By extracting sentiment and the deeper meanings of words that only humans can do, language can be turned into data, and actionable insights for a wide range of use cases can be drawn from it. Walt Mayo, CEO of expert.ai, the natural language processing AI company trusted by The Associated Press, Dow Jones, Gannett, and other top brands, joins me on the Tech Talks Daily podcast. We discuss how combining a symbolic approach to AI with machine learning can form an innovative hybrid model. Walt talks about the difference between symbolic AI and deep learning/machine learning and what kinds of use cases are typically applied together. We also discuss the strengths of each and what organizations can gain by combining them. Finally, we discuss how a hybrid approach addresses the "black box" problem in AI; and scaling existing human biases.
Sep 29, 2021 · 35 min
1734: Infragistics and the Tech Accelerating Application Design
Dean Guida officially launched enterprise software company Infragistics in 1989 when his small start-up of 10 people went head to head against Microsoft for a $300k deal with Philadelphia Conrail—and won. Dean has since scaled the company to 250 employees across six countries, including a 75,000 square foot headquarters in New Jersey, without accepting outside funding. As a result, the company now boasts a client roster that includes 100% of the S&P 500, including Intuit, Exxon, and Morgan Stanley. And this year, Dean launched Infragistics' $50M Innovation Fund and Lab to encourage entrepreneurism within his own company. Dean joins me on the Tech Talks Daily Podcast to share his entrepreneurial journey and how he has navigated Infragistics through its 30+ years in the tech space. Infragistics has thrived through major economic recessions, tech bubbles, and bursts. Dean reveals how the company survived – and saw success –during even the most challenging times. Dean also shares why he never accepted outside funding and how he bootstrapped Infragistics to, the multi-million dollar global company today, without ever taking VC funding. We also discuss how their Innovation Fund works and creates freedom for internal inventors to experiment with innovations beyond its core UI/UX products without an immediate need to generate revenue.
Sep 28, 2021 · 40 min
1733: AdTech - The Tech Transforming Digital Ad Verification
Integral Ad Science (IAS) ensures ads are running exactly where, when, and how you want — no ifs, ands, or bots. They help protect brands and save their cusotmers from spending time and money on inappropriate content, markets, or fraudulent traffic. These insights are based on 100+ billion web transactions they process every day. Netflix, Apple TV, and consoles are becoming more popular advertising avenues than traditional linear TV. As a result, we're consuming more video than ever before, and I wanted to explore the challenges and opportunities with connected TVs and explore the latest shopping trends. I invited Tony Marlow, CMO, Integral Ad Science, to analyze these trends and understand the scale of the problem with fraud and the role that technology will play in the industry's future. Tony Marlow is the Chief Marketing Officer for Integral Ad Science, based in New York. He is an insights-driven executive and leads all aspects of corporate marketing strategy, brand development, and communications for the company. Before joining IAS in 2019, he was the CMO for the big data company Data Axle. Before that, he was the Global Head and Vice President of B2B Marketing for Yahoo – overseeing all B2B Marketing, Marketing Strategy, Product Marketing, Sales Learning, and Sales Insights.