AI Outcomes

Ben Drakes

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BUSINESS
UPDATED WEEKLY

AI Outcomes—the podcast that brings you real-world customer stories and data points on how companies are using artificial intelligence to drive business outcomes. If you’re in B2B sales, consulting, or any role that involves talking to clients about AI—at a business rather than a technical level—then this podcast is for you.

OCT 23

Ep31 Cuts, Skills & Growth: Goldman Sachs, Klarna, Microsoft, IBM & WEF/Forbes Jobs Impact Reports

Will AI take your job—or just the worst parts of it? In this episode, Ben is joined by Alan Back (30 years in sales leadership across public sector, cloud and PE-backed businesses) to unpack what AI really means for jobs, skills, and the future of work. We cut through the doom to look at where automation actually lands, where augmentation is winning, and how to stay on the right side of the change. What we cover: • World Economic Forum jobs outlook: displacement vs creation • Goldman Sachs’ productivity thesis—what “affected” jobs really means • Forbes on retraining reality (early careers vs 30-year veterans) • Klarna’s customer service experiment—when humans come back into the loop • Big Tech signals: job cuts vs massive AI investment & reskilling • Stanford’s “green-light” tasks: where workers want AI agents • Practical playbook: reposition, reskill, and focus on high-value work Chapters: 00:00 Introduction and Setting the Scene 00:35 Guest Introduction: Alan’s Background 01:28 Agenda Overview: AI and Job Market 02:39 World Economic Forum Jobs Report 07:39 Goldman Sachs on AI’s Impact 11:54 Forbes Insights on Job Displacement 18:29 Klarna’s AI and Customer Service Experiment 20:53 AI’s Impact on Customer Service 21:35 Job Cuts and AI Investments 22:15 Big Tech’s AI Commitments 23:26 The Growing Demand for AI Skills 24:40 The Future of Work with AI 31:45 Trust and Resistance to AI 35:12 Embracing AI for High-Value Work 41:09 Adapting to the New World of Work #AIJobs #FutureOfWork #ArtificialIntelligence #Automation #Augmentation #AICareers #Reskilling #Upskilling #CustomerService #AIAgents #Productivity #Workforce #TechTrends #AIEconomy #AIOutcomesPodcast

44 min
OCT 17

Ep30 How to Implement AI Successfully in Your Business–with Matt Armstrong-Barnes

In this episode of the AI Outcomes Podcast, Ben Drakes is joined by Matt Armstrong-Barnes, Group AI Practice Director at Servita and former CTO for AI at HPE. Matt breaks down what real enterprise AI adoption looks like—from strategy and governance to compliance and ethical considerations. 00:00 Introduction and Catch-Up 00:24 Guest Introduction: Matt Armstrong 00:38 Matt's Background and Experience 03:53 AI and Generative AI: Definitions and Misconceptions 07:08 Foundational Steps for AI Success 11:48 Challenges and Solutions in AI Deployment 18:42 Understanding RAG and AI Strategies 23:00 Introduction to AI Compliance Challenges 23:49 Navigating the Evolving Compliance Landscape 26:55 Building and Deploying AI Models 30:30 The Importance of AI Governance and Teams 35:53 Leadership and Organisational Strategies for AI 40:50 Addressing AI Job Displacement Fears 44:03 Conclusion and Final Thoughts If you’re a business owner, leader, or stakeholder planning your AI journey, this conversation gives you a practical roadmap for success. Connect with Matt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattarmstrongbarnes/ Servita website: https://servita.com/ #AIAdoption #AIOutcomesPodcast #MattArmstrongBarnes #EnterpriseAI #AICatalyst #AIGovernance #AICompliance #AIBusinessStrategy #RAG #AIDeployment #AILeadership #ArtificialIntelligence #BusinessTransformation

45 min
OCT 7

Ep29 Avoid the 95% Enterprise AI Failure Trap (MIT Report Explained)

MIT reports 95% of enterprise AI pilots fail. Why? In this episode of AI Outcomes, Rickard Hansson (CEO of Weavy) returns to unpack the real reasons so many AI initiatives crash and burn—and what to do instead. We break down MIT’s State of AI in Business 2025 report and explore what’s going wrong in enterprise POCs: lack of integration, poor workflows, unclear outcomes, and vendors over-promising on “magic” AI agents. Rickard also shares how he built a community intelligence tool in under 14 hours using vibe coding and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). It’s a live case study in getting AI right—from problem framing to workflow fit. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 02:02 Building a Community Intelligence Tool 12:41 MIT Report Deep Dive 17:46 Why POCs Fail (and How to Fix Them) 26:24 Real-World Example: Sarah in HR 28:24 The Right Way to Use RAG 38:54 AI vs. Human Tasks 39:59 What Executives Want From AI 50:56 Final Thoughts If you’re tired of AI hype and want to hear what actually works—this episode is for you. Connect with Rickard: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickardh/ #AIOutcomes #EnterpriseAI #RickardHansson #GenerativeAI #AIAgents #RAG #AIWorkflow #AIFails #MITAIReport #ProofOfConcept #DigitalTransformation #TechLeadership #AIPodcast #VibeCoding #BusinessAI

52 min
SEP 30

Ep28 OpenAI, NVIDIA, Meta, Google & Musk: The $700 Billion AI Power Grab

Welcoming back Thomas Odenwald to the AI Outcomes podcast! In this episode, we cover the breakneck pace of AI development across the globe—including billion-dollar deals, infrastructure arms races, and enterprise breakthroughs. From OpenAI’s $300B Oracle deal to NVIDIA’s 10-gigawatt AI datacenter push, we explore the money, the muscle, and the emerging power struggles. We discuss Meta’s latest smart glasses, Google’s Gemini 2.5 outperforming humans in coding, and what ChatGPT-5 means for the enterprise. We also dig into Europe’s position—with SAP focusing on AI inference, the EU AI Act backlash, and promising innovation in healthcare and public-good AI from Switzerland and the UK. And we finish on a shock: China has now overtaken the US in AI model downloads. 00:00 Welcome Back & Introduction 00:51 The Pace of AI Development 01:25 US-UK Tech Prosperity Deal 06:22 OpenAI-Oracle $300 Billion Deal 09:46 NVIDIA's Massive Investments 11:26 NVIDIA's $100 Billion OpenAI Partnership 13:43 Meta's Smart Glasses Launch 17:30 Where AI Gets Its Training Data 23:04 ChatGPT-5 Release & Reception 26:54 Elon Musk's Colossus 2 & Grok Updates 28:08 Google Gemini 2.5 & AI Programming 34:36 OpenAI Usage Data & Enterprise Challenges 37:27 Deterministic AI: The Enterprise Breakthrough 39:39 Europe's AI Strategy & EU AI Act 42:02 SAP's Focus on AI Inference 47:03 European AI Innovation in Healthcare 50:05 China Overtakes US in AI Model Downloads 52:17 Closing Thoughts & Wrap-Up Connect with Thomas Odenwald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasodenwald/ #AIOutcomes #NVIDIA #OpenAI #MetaAI #GoogleGemini #ElonMusk #ChatGPT5 #AIInference #SAP #EUAIAct #TechProsperityDeal #ArtificialIntelligence #AIInnovation #LLMs #GrokAI #Gemini25 #AIEnterprise #ChinaAI #AIPodcast #BusinessAI #RedwoodCity #UKAI #AIArmsRace

54 min
SEP 22

Ep27: 4–Steps to Engage Customers on AI Transformation (B2B Sales Guide)

In this episode of the AI Outcomes Podcast, we dive into Part 2 of our special series on how B2B sellers, consultants, and pre-sales professionals can effectively engage customers around AI adoption. If you missed Part 1, make sure to check it out first—it lays the foundation by showing why AI is not just a technology project but a full-scale business transformation program. 00:00 Introduction and Welcome 00:25 Recap of Part One 01:47 Step 1: Anchor on Business Outcomes 06:16 Step 2: Map Stakeholders and Governance 09:51 Step 3: Start Small, Prove Value, Then Scale 12:26 Step 4: Position Yourself in the Ecosystem #AIOutcomesPodcast #B2BSales #SalesStrategy #AIforBusiness #DigitalTransformation #EnterpriseAI #SalesConsulting #AIsales #BusinessOutcomes #FutureOfSales #ArtificialIntelligence #CustomerEngagement #SalesEnablement #AIAdoption

17 min
SEP 15

Ep26 AI Sales Advice Part 1: Mindset Shift

In Part 1 of this special two-part episode of the AI Outcomes Podcast, Ben Drakes shares practical advice for technology sellers, consultants, and pre-sales specialists looking to engage customers adopting AI at scale. 00:00 Introduction & Purpose of the Episode 01:50 Why AI Adoption is Not a Technology Project 03:41 Real Customer Example: Business Transformation with AI 05:34 Key Lesson: AI is a Business Transformation Program 06:50 Vision: Making Employees 30% Better with AI 08:48 Addressing Job Cuts & Media Narratives 10:54 Building an AI Policy and Governance Framework 12:04 CEO-Led AI Initiatives & Team Building 13:24 The Role of AI Guardians and Cross-Functional Teams 14:44 Communication & Overcoming Resistance 16:12 Tracking Adoption and Celebrating Discoveries 17:38 The Importance of CEO Engagement 19:15 How Technology Partners Can Get Involved 20:57 Researching Customer Business Outcomes 22:06 Researching Customer AI Initiatives & Stakeholders 23:14 Action Steps & Preparing for Part 2 24:22 Closing Remarks & Next Episode Teaser #AIOutcomes #TechSales #BusinessTransformation #AIinBusiness #AIStrategy #EnterpriseAI #B2BSales #AIforSales #AIGovernance #SalesConsulting #DigitalTransformation

22 min
SEP 3

Ep25: AI | Patient Outcomes | ROI | HPE on Healthcare's New Era

Alexis Coticchia and Chris Platt from the HPE Healthcare team join me to break down the real-world AI revolution transforming patient care. We move beyond the hype to explore critical use cases—from remote patient monitoring and preventing hospital readmissions to accelerating genomic sequencing and solving healthcare's massive data challenge. They detail HPE's partnership with NVIDIA to provide turnkey AI solutions and outline the three key stakeholders essential for any successful healthcare AI implementation. This is a must-listen for anyone in health tech, IT leadership, or healthcare administration looking to understand how AI is driving tangible outcomes right now. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction and Overview of Healthcare AI 02:13 AI in Healthcare: Key Focus Areas and Outcomes 03:42 Healthcare Industry Challenges and Complexity 05:41 Four Categories of Healthcare Technology Application 08:44 Patient Outcomes and Real-World Use Cases 12:14 Data Points and AI-Driven Healthcare Insights 29:42 HPE's Technology Solutions and Partnership with NVIDIA 39:15 Keys to Successful AI Implementation 46:32 The Evolution of Healthcare Sales and Future Outlook 51:35 Closing and Community Resources Connect with Alexis and Chris: Alexis: / alexis-coticchia-873a1617a Chris: / chris-platt-7831725 LinkedIn Group: / 14677018 #AIHealthcare #HealthTech #HPE #NVIDIA #ArtificialIntelligence #PatientOutcomes #DigitalTransformation #HealthcareIT #AIRevolution #HealthcareInnova

53 min
AUG 5

Ep24 AI Adoption Banking Race with Alexandra Mousavizadeh

Ep24 Alexandra Mousavizadeh, is Co-CEO of Evident Insights and she reveals which financial institutions are winning with AI – and who's at risk of being left behind. I really enjoyed this conversation and learned so much from Alexandra. It's critical to understand how banking and insurance companies are adopting AI as they front run other market verticals. I have found no comparable research to Evident Insights' AI Index: https://evidentinsights.com/ Discover: * Exclusive benchmarks: How banks and insurers really stack up * ROI proof points: AI use cases delivering 3X+ returns * Compliance tightrope: Balancing innovation with global regulations * Quantum computing's unexpected role in finance's future CHAPTERS: 00:00 – Intro & Evident's Mission 02:32 – Mapping AI Adoption in Finance 07:14 – The 4 Pillars of AI Success 13:04 – ROI: Real AI Wins in Banking 19:42 – Generative AI vs. Traditional AI 27:09 – The Growing AI Divide 33:21 – Governance & Time-to-Value 37:29 – Regulation's Make-or-Break Role 43:30 – Quantum Computing's Future Impact 53:50 – Regional Battles for AI Talent 58:10 – Final Takeaways Connect with Alexandra onLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandra-mousavizadeh/ Evident's AI Benchmarks: https://evidentinsights.com/ #ai #AIinFinance #BankingInnovation #AIBenchmarking #FinTech #FutureOfBanking #QuantumComputing #RegTech #AILeaders

51 min

AI Outcomes—the podcast that brings you real-world customer stories and data points on how companies are using artificial intelligence to drive business outcomes. If you’re in B2B sales, consulting, or any role that involves talking to clients about AI—at a business rather than a technical level—then this podcast is for you.

Creator

Ben Drakes
Years Active

2024 - 2025
Episodes

31
Rating

Explicit
Copyright

© 2025 AI Outcomes
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AI Outcomes