The ReForge Podcast

Chang Robotics
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Conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America, from robotics and automation to policy, workforce development, and the future of U.S. manufacturing. 

  1. 2d ago

    The Knowledge Is Retiring (with Matt and Colin) | ReForge 018

    In this episode, Matthew Chang and Colin Russ dig into the part of the silver tsunami nobody is solving: the decades of irreplaceable technical knowledge walking out the door with every retirement, and why AI-driven knowledge capture might be the only shot we have at saving it. If you care about manufacturing, engineering, workforce development, AI, or the future of American industry, this one is for you. What we cover Why it takes 15 years to make a good engineer and the country is an estimated 500,000 shortInfrastructure report cards across bridges, levees, airports, and air traffic control, and why none of the reindustrialization push works without fixing the foundationChang Robotics pulling retired experts and former Soviet Bloc engineers out of retirement to rebuild the US metals industry because no one left in America knows howKaia Rhodes and the textile collapse: 90% of global production down to 2%, and the only people who remember how are in their 70sWhy AI's real opportunity is knowledge capture, not AGIAI integrators, data privacy firewalls, and why small manufacturers can't just buy ChatGPTFactory floor monitoring: vision cameras, spaghetti diagrams, and the truck dock timer that changed a beverage distributor's entire operationUS ports operating at roughly 50% capacity because of crane staging bottlenecksChapters 00:00 Episode 18 Kickoff  01:02 The Great Replacement  17:42 AI for Knowledge Capture  21:01 Hunting Lost Knowhow  25:10 AI Integrators and Guardrails  36:30 Factory Visibility Wins Find Matthew Chang:  https://x.com/MatthewChang https://www.instagram.com/the.matthewchang https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/ https://www.tiktok.com/@the.matthewchang Find Colin Russ:  https://x.com/ThaaatColin https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/ Find Chang Robotics:  https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/ Follow ReForge LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/ X: https://x.com/thereforgepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/ Want to be a guest or partner? If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you.  Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com About ReForge ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America.  This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing.   Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ. Produced by Chang Robotics.

  2. Jul 16

    Who Speaks for the Small Manufacturer? (with Patrick Wolf and Ethan Copple) | ReForge 017

    Who Speaks for the Small Manufacturer? (with Patrick Wolf and Ethan Copple) | ReForge 017 In this episode, Colin Russ sits down with Patrick J. Wolf, PhD (Executive Director) and Ethan Copple, PhD (Director of Strategy) from the Institute for American Manufacturing to talk about why small and medium manufacturers have no voice in the policy conversations that determine their future, and what the Institute is doing to change that. If you care about manufacturing policy, trade, reshoring, the defense industrial base, or what it actually takes for a small shop to survive and modernize in America right now, this one is for you. What we cover What the Institute for American Manufacturing does and why it organized around three pillars: manufacturing, energy, and AIWhy the defense industrial base is the strongest current driver of reindustrializationTariffs, the 90-day pause, and why uncertainty is worse than the tariff itself for small manufacturersReshoring versus friend-shoring and why full supply chain visibility still doesn't existThe capital crunch: why a $2 million shop can't justify another $2 million to modernizeThe demographic cliff is probably worse than projected, and why that might actually help factories that automateHow the Institute captures field signals from small producers and gets them in front of policymakersChapters 00:00 Welcome and Guests Intro  01:44 Why Manufacturing Energy and AI Interlock  08:53 Small Shop Policy Pain Points and Tariffs  19:12 Tariffs Worth It  25:05 Mining Automation Comeback  30:58 Modernizing Small Shops Guests: Patrick J. Wolf, PhD, Executive Director at the Institute for American Manufacturing Ethan Copple, PhD, Director of Strategy at the Institute for American Manufacturing Find Patrick J. Wolf:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/wolfjpatrick/ Find Ethan Copple:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethancopple/ Find the Institute for American Manufacturing:  https://iamtpolicy.org Find Colin Russ:  https://x.com/ThaaatColin https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/ Find Chang Robotics:  https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/ Follow ReForge LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/ X: https://x.com/thereforgepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/ Want to be a guest or partner? If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you.  Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com About ReForge ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America.   This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing. Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ. Produced by Chang Robotics.

  3. Jul 9

    Dirty Power Is Killing American Factories (with Brian Keith) | ReForge 016

    In this episode, Matthew Chang, Colin Russ, and Brian Keith break down why American factories are getting hit with dirty power, rolling brownouts, and rising energy costs, and what can actually be done about it right now.  If you care about manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, reindustrialization, or what it takes to keep a factory running in America today, this one is for you.    What we cover  Why EV charging, AI data centers, and building electrification are all hitting the grid at the same time Dirty power, phase issues, and what happens when bad utility power burns up factory motors and computers Battery backup, power management systems, and how factories can get rebates on bad power The concrete truck problem: why safe shutdown matters more than keeping the lights on Small modular reactors are 10 years out at best, and the regulatory and logistics hurdles nobody wants to talk about Space-based power and why you'll make in space for space, not for Earth Microgrids, rooftop solar, and the policy changes that would take houses and offices off the grid tomorrow Power sovereignty as national security   Chapters  00:00 Dirty Power Factory Damage  01:56 Why Demand Is Surging  04:39 Battery Backup And Safe Shutdowns  10:53 Power Quality Filters And Rebates  17:32 Future Power SMRs Space And Microgrids  34:44 Energy Sovereignty And Wrap Up    Guest: Brian Keith, CMO at Chang Robotics  Find Brian Keith: https://x.com/BrianKeithAI https://www.linkedin.com/in/BrianKeithAI  Find Chang Robotics: https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/  Find Matthew Chang: https://x.com/MatthewChang https://www.instagram.com/the.matthewchang https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/ https://www.tiktok.com/@the.matthewchang  Find Colin Russ: https://x.com/ThaaatColin https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/    Follow ReForge  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/ X: https://x.com/thereforgepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/    Want to be a guest or partner?  If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you. Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com    About ReForge  ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America.  This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing.  Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ.  Produced by Chang Robotics.

  4. Jul 2

    Humanoid Robots Are Not Ready (with Matt and Colin) | ReForge 015

    In this episode, Matthew Chang and Colin Russ dig into the humanoid robot hype and why it doesn't match what's actually happening on factory floors, in logistics centers, or anywhere else.  If you care about robotics, automation, manufacturing, or the future of American industry, this one is for you.    What we cover  Why "robot" doesn't mean "humanoid" and the installed base is effectively zero Breaking down the viral intern-vs-humanoid package sorting video Battery life, thermal management, and why battery swap won't work for humanoids What Boston Dynamics Atlas gets right that no one else has shown Insurance, fire marshals, and the regulatory reality no one talks about What real manufacturing customers said when asked about deploying humanoids Why teleoperations is labor arbitrage disguised as autonomy   Chapters  00:00 Teleop Creeps and Robot Hype  02:23 Humanoids vs Real Logistics Automation  13:42 Battery Swaps and Atlas Reality Check  25:20 EV Battery Thermal Management  26:50 Humanoid Power and Charging  29:38 Regulation Privacy and Teleop    Find Matthew Chang: https://x.com/MatthewChang https://www.instagram.com/the.matthewchang https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/ https://www.tiktok.com/@the.matthewchang  Find Colin Russ: https://x.com/ThaaatColin https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/  Find Chang Robotics: https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/    Follow ReForge  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/ X: https://x.com/thereforgepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/    Want to be a guest or partner?  If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you. Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com    About ReForge  ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America.  This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing.  Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ.  Produced by Chang Robotics.

  5. Jun 25

    Billion Dollar Bets on American Manufacturing (with Matt and Colin) | ReForge 014

    In this episode, Matthew Chang and Colin Russ break down four major manufacturing and reindustrialization announcements, dig into the capacity crunch hitting every corner of the industry, and make the case that in the next five years, relationships are the only thing that will actually move the needle.  If you care about manufacturing, energy, venture capital, reindustrialization, or what it's going to take to build in America right now, this one is for you.    What we cover  Innovative Refrigeration Systems expands in Virginia: why industrial cooling is a critical and overlooked piece of the reindustrialization supply chain Ford repurposes its Kentucky battery facility for grid storage, and why every new factory being built today needs an onsite battery system Toyota's $2 billion Project Orca expansion in San Antonio, what Texas keeps getting right on economic development, and why the grid is the next bottleneck SendCutSend raises $110 million at a billion-dollar valuation from Sequoia, why bootstrapping with debt is the real vote of confidence, and what this means for the future of manufacturing venture Chang Robotics capacity update: 30 engineers deployed in two weeks, AI vision stacks replacing sensor banks, and why the capacity crunch will be total by end of year   Chapters  00:00 Relationships Win the Crunch   00:36 Podcast Intro and YouTube Ban   03:28 Refrigeration Expansion in Virginia   07:41 Ford Battery Storage and Power Quality   13:57 Toyota Texas Expansion and Grid Talk   17:36 SendCutSend Funding and Builder Playbook    Find Matthew Chang:  https://x.com/MatthewChang   https://www.instagram.com/the.matthewchang   https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/   https://www.tiktok.com/@the.matthewchang  Find Colin Russ:   https://x.com/ThaaatColin   https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/  Find Chang Robotics:   https://changrobotics.ai   https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/    Follow ReForge  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/   X: https://x.com/thereforgepod   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/   TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod   Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/    Want to be a guest or partner?  If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you. Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com  About ReForge  ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America. This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing. Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ.  Produced by Chang Robotics.

  6. Jun 18

    Stop Trusting Your AI (with Brian Keith) | ReForge 013

    In this episode, Colin Russ sits down with Brian Keith (CMO of Chang Robotics) to have an honest conversation about what LLMs actually do inside manufacturing businesses, why they lie constantly, and what the five levels of AI adoption mean for every factory owner and job shop in America.  If you care about AI, manufacturing, operations, small business, or the future of the American workforce, this one is for you.    What we cover  Why every LLM lies, how often it happens, and why telling it to stop doesn't work The difference between machine learning and large language models, and why conflating them is costing manufacturers money How to use adversarial AI, citation requirements, and human layers to reduce hallucinations in production environments Why local models aren't good enough yet and what the real opportunity cost is of trying to build your own The five levels of AI adoption, and why the AI level five company that shows up over a weekend is the real threat no one is talking about   Chapters  00:00 LLMs Lie in Production  00:25 AI Hype vs Manufacturing Reality  05:46 Why AI Lies and What to Do About It  16:21 Local Models and Human Layers  25:19 The Five Levels of AI Adoption    Guest: Brian Keith, CMO at Chang Robotics  Find Brian Keith:  https://x.com/BrianKeithAI https://www.linkedin.com/in/BrianKeithAI  Find Chang Robotics:  https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/  Find Colin Russ:  https://x.com/ThaaatColin https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/    Follow ReForge  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/  X: https://x.com/thereforgepod  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod  Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/  Want to be a guest or partner?  If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you. Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com    About ReForge  ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America. This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing. Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ.  Produced by Chang Robotics.

  7. Jun 11

    The Reshoring Checklist Is Getting Checked Off (with Matt and Colin) | ReForge 012

    In this episode, Matthew Chang and Colin Russ break down four major reindustrialization announcements from the past week and explain what they actually mean for American manufacturing, supply chains, and the bull run ahead.  If you care about manufacturing, defense, pharmaceuticals, drones, AI, or the state of American reindustrialization, this one is for you.  What we cover  Cleveland Cliffs partners with Palantir on AI-driven steel production across 32 sites, and what OEE, inventory, and working capital actually have to do with it Skydio commits $3.5 billion to expand US drone manufacturing, and Matt and Colin place their bets on where the factory lands AbbVie selects North Carolina for a $1.4 billion pharmaceutical campus, and why domestic drug precursor production is about 90 days away from becoming a national conversation L3Harris announces a $1.265 billion expansion of solid rocket motor production in Virginia, and why the reshoring read matters Where shipbuilding, grain oriented steel, lithium, and electrical infrastructure fit into the reindustrialization roadmap and what comes next Chapters  00:00 Modular Shipbuilding Teaser   00:21 AI Comes to American Steel   09:02 Skydio Drone Factory Bet   13:10 Pharma, Rockets, and the Reshoring Checklist   22:22 Reindustrialization Roadmap Wrap    Find Matthew Chang: https://x.com/MatthewChang https://www.instagram.com/the.matthewchang https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/ https://www.tiktok.com/@the.matthewchang  Find Colin Russ: https://x.com/ThaaatColin https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/  Find Chang Robotics: https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/  Follow ReForge  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/   X: https://x.com/thereforgepod   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/   TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod   Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/  Want to be a guest or partner?  If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you. Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com  About ReForge  ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America. This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing. Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ.  Produced by Chang Robotics.

  8. Jun 4

    A Factory for Every Town (with Brian Keith) | ReForge 011

    In this episode, Matthew Chang and Colin Russ bring back Brian Keith (CMO of Chang Robotics) to talk about what an agentically augmented human can actually do, why every town of 10,000 people should have a factory, and what Chang Robotics is building to make that happen.  If you care about AI, manufacturing, workforce, community, or the future of American reindustrialization, this one is for you.  What we cover  How Brian wrote a 41,000 word book in three days using AI while on a client site, and what that means for every knowledge worker Why the factories coming back to America will look nothing like the ones that left, and why that's a good thing for the American worker The case for a factory in every 10,000 person town: distributed production, local talent pipelines, and the return of single earner families How Chang Robotics is replacing overhead with AI agents so factory workers, not corporate layers, capture the economic upside Chang Factory School: the plan to launch a thousand factories per year, fully supported by Chang engineering and AI, at no cost to the founder Chapters  00:00 Meet Brian Keith, CMO of Chang Robotics   02:32 Writing a 41,000 Word Book in Three Days   09:18 The Agentically Augmented Human   23:49 A Factory in Every Town   29:44 The Dignity of the American Worker   36:29 Chang Factory School and What's Next  Guest: Brian Keith, CMO at Chang Robotics    Find Brian Keith:   https://x.com/BrianKeithAI   https://www.linkedin.com/in/BrianKeithAI  Find Chang Robotics:  https://changrobotics.ai https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/  Find Matthew Chang:  https://x.com/MatthewChang  https://www.instagram.com/the.matthewchang   https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/  Find Colin Russ:  https://x.com/ThaaatColin   https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/  Follow ReForge  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/   X: https://x.com/thereforgepod   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/   TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod   Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/  Want to be a guest or partner?  If you're building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we'd love to hear from you. Email: inquiries@thereforgepodcast.com   About ReForge  ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America. This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing. Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ.  Produced by Chang Robotics.

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About

Conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America, from robotics and automation to policy, workforce development, and the future of U.S. manufacturing. 

Information

  • Creator
    Chang Robotics
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The ReForge Podcast
  • Show Website
    The ReForge Podcast

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