Today in Tech

Foundry

3.7 (12)
Technology
Updated Semiweekly

Host Keith Shaw and his expert guests discuss the latest technology news and trends happening in the industry. Watch new episodes twice each week or listen to the podcast.

3d ago

The Hidden Costs of AI: Are Companies Spending Too Much?

Companies have spent billions racing to adopt artificial intelligence. But as AI moves from experimentation into production, are businesses discovering that the real costs are much higher than expected? In this episode of Today in Tech, host Keith Shaw talks with Erwan Menard, senior vice president of product at Crusoe, about the economics of AI, the hidden costs of AI agents, and whether the industry's massive investments in infrastructure are sustainable. The episode explores why GPU pricing and token costs tell only part of the story, how businesses should measure AI return on investment (ROI), and why inference workloads are changing the economics of enterprise AI. Keith and Erwan also discuss the growing role of open AI models, how companies can reduce costs by choosing the right model for each task, and why electricity availability may be a bigger obstacle to AI growth than GPU shortages or funding. Topics covered: * Why AI agents can dramatically increase inference costs * The hidden expenses of scaling AI from pilot projects to production * How businesses should measure AI ROI and successful task completion * Why open models and smaller language models could lower enterprise AI costs * The growing energy crisis facing AI data centers * Community backlash against data center construction and electricity demand * Whether companies are overbuilding AI infrastructure * Are we experiencing an AI bubble, or is demand just getting started? Menard argues that AI's biggest challenge isn't a lack of demand or investment. It's the ability to deliver enough power and infrastructure to support continued growth. But Keith challenges that optimism, questioning whether AI spending, circular investments and infrastructure expansion are creating an unsustainable boom. Is AI delivering enough value to justify its growing costs? And who ultimately pays for the infrastructure behind it?
Oct 6

When Agents Start Talking to Each Other, What Could Go Wrong?

AI agents are moving beyond simple chatbots and isolated tasks. The next step is agent-to-agent communication, where AI systems operated by different companies could negotiate, exchange information, make decisions and even conduct business with each other. But what happens when those agents misunderstand each other, hallucinate, get hijacked or make a costly decision without a human catching it? In this episode of Today in Tech, Keith Shaw talks with Swamy Kocherlakota, Chief AI Officer at Zscaler, about the promise and risks of agent-to-agent communication. They discuss how AI agents establish trust across company boundaries, why identity and access controls become critical, the danger of compounding hallucinations, where humans still need to stay in the loop, and why autonomous AI transactions will need the equivalent of “circuit breakers.” The bigger question: Is autonomous agent-to-agent business really around the corner, or are AI vendors getting ahead of their skis?
Sep 22

AI Slop is Creating More Work, Not Less

AI was supposed to save us time. Instead, it may be creating a new problem: AI slop (polished-looking emails, reports, presentations, research and code that someone else has to review, fact-check and fix). In this episode, Today in Tech host Keith Shaw talks with Chris Bevil of Commvault about the growing “review tax” of generative AI, why executives and employees may have very different views of AI productivity, and what happens when AI-generated information starts becoming accepted as corporate truth. They also dig into productivity theater, AI checking other AI, why people may trust AI more than it has earned, and a disturbing deepfake scam involving fake executives. Is AI actually eliminating work, or just moving the work to someone else?
Sep 8

Why Companies Aren’t Getting More Productive With AI

AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude and Copilot are spreading rapidly through the workplace, but simply giving employees access to AI isn't the same as teaching them how to use it effectively. In this episode of Today in Tech, Keith Shaw talks with Anthony Salcito, general manager of Enterprise at Coursera, about why companies are struggling to turn AI investments into meaningful productivity gains and why the missing piece may be human skills rather than more technology. They discuss why AI has created so much anxiety about job displacement, why companies can't treat AI deployment as employee training, and which skills workers actually need to succeed in an AI-driven workplace. They also explore the growing importance of critical thinking, decision-making, communication and lifelong learning, along with the role of certifications and microcredentials as jobs continue to change. Plus, Anthony explains what schools and universities are getting wrong about preparing students for AI and why banning students from using generative AI may miss a much bigger opportunity.
Aug 25

Hackers Don’t Break In Anymore, Because AI Helps Them Blend In

Hackers are using AI, social engineering, and legitimate business tools to make cyberattacks look like normal work. Instead of breaking through security systems, they study how employees communicate, impersonate trusted vendors, manipulate email conversations, and exploit everyday business processes. Piotrek Wojtyla of Abnormal Security joins Today in Tech to explain how attackers are improving phishing and business email compromise attacks with AI. He discusses fake invoices, vendor impersonation, compromised email accounts, shared inbox vulnerabilities, prompt injection, and the risks created when companies give AI agents access to sensitive workflows. The episode also examines why traditional security awareness training may no longer be enough, how cognitive overload makes employees more vulnerable, and what organizations can do to protect workers without expecting them to identify every sophisticated attack. Can companies continue trusting email, vendors, and automated systems when cyberattacks look almost identical to legitimate business requests? Subscribe to Today in Tech for weekly conversations about cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, enterprise technology, and the trends changing how we work.
Aug 11

Why Your Tech Stack is Breaking Your AI Strategy

AI was supposed to make businesses faster, smarter, and more agile. Instead, many companies are discovering that AI projects are stalling, pilots are failing in production, and existing technology stacks are becoming even more complicated. In this episode of Today in Tech, Keith Shaw speaks with Tempo CEO Vic Chynoweth about why fragmented SaaS environments, disconnected data, technical debt, and outdated workflows are preventing enterprises from getting real value from AI. They discuss why companies cannot simply layer AI onto broken systems, the difference between becoming AI-relevant and AI-native, why impressive AI prototypes often fail in production, and how the “illusion of intelligence” can make inaccurate results look trustworthy. They also explore whether companies should build or buy AI tools, when organizations need to rethink their technology architecture, and what separates companies successfully operationalizing AI from those being buried by it. Subscribe to Today in Tech for weekly conversations about artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, enterprise technology, and the future of work.
Jul 28

Physical AI Explained: Why Robots Are Finally Learning Like Humans

Robots have been used in manufacturing for decades, but a new wave of physical AI is changing what they're capable of doing. Instead of following rigid, pre-programmed instructions, the latest robots can learn from demonstrations, adapt to changing environments, and make decisions in real time. In this episode of Today in Tech, Keith Shaw speaks with Andrew Pether, Head of AI Partnerships at Teradyne Robotics, about what's driving this shift and why physical AI could transform manufacturing, logistics, warehouses, hazardous environments, and eventually even the home. They discuss: • What "physical AI" actually means • How robots are learning from people instead of code • Why AI-powered robots can adapt to real-world unpredictability • The role of simulation, synthetic data, and real-world training • How safety works when AI controls physical machines • Why manufacturing is likely to see the biggest impact first • Whether humanoid robots are closer than most people think • Why today's physical AI is both overhyped and genuinely revolutionary Can AI finally bridge the gap between software intelligence and the physical world? Watch the discussion to find out.
Jul 21

Your Workplace is Becoming a Cybersecurity Nightmare

Slack messages, shared documents, AI copilots, Microsoft Teams, email, and constant notifications were supposed to make work faster. Instead, they may be creating the perfect environment for cybercriminals. In this episode of Today in Tech, Keith Shaw speaks with Rob Juncker, chief product and technology officer at Mimecast, about how attackers are exploiting workplace complexity, employee burnout, notification fatigue, and trust. They discuss how cyberattacks now move across email, collaboration platforms, phone calls, and AI tools, making malicious requests look like a normal part of the workday. The conversation also explores prompt-injection attacks, AI voice cloning, deepfakes, business email compromise, shared-document manipulation, shadow AI, and highly personalized scams. Are employees really the weakest link in cybersecurity, or have companies created work environments that move faster than humans can safely process? Topics include: • How attackers exploit workplace overload • Why phishing messages now look like normal work • AI-powered impersonation and voice cloning • Cyberattacks across Slack, Teams, email, and phone calls • Prompt injection hidden inside emails • The security risks of shadow AI • Why employee shaming may make security worse • How companies can reduce human risk without slowing work Subscribe to Today in Tech for more conversations about AI, cybersecurity, emerging technology, and the changing workplace.

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3.7

out of 5

12 Ratings

Rah-Rah Take On Tech Job Market

12/06/2024

Artair Geal

It’s hard to take a show like this seriously when it uses cooked unemployment numbers (did you take into account people falling off the UI rolls after a year of unemployment?), makes unfounded assumptions (yes, the unemployed are still learning, Captain Condescension), and basically paints a rosy picture where all is well, AI is fine, and hiring practices aren’t vile. Nobody asked for corporate cheerleading. Try digging down and REPORTING sometime.
Spot On!

09/28/2023

peacelove67

This show helps me weed through advertising and industry hype. They ask the tough questions, not just about the tech but the ethical and societal consequences. Topics range broadly so if your first listen doesn’t grab you, it will be worth your while to listen to next week’s show. I tune in to know more about AI, Android, electric cars, home automation, iOS and more.
Why is it not called Today in Apple?

11/16/2022

GavWrecker

Literally all they cover is Apple products and events.
Bordering on Recklessness

03/08/2020

AverageListener3000

I just listened to the first and last episode of this podcast, the one about FIDO security and a possible password-less future. The description of Zero Trust was inaccurate to put it mildly. But, the real problem was the core subject of passwords being replaced with biometrics. They did not discuss any of the problems with biometrics, like the fact that they cannot be changed or revoked like passwords can. They did not mention the risks of using SMS for 2FA due to SIM swap attacks, or the extreme measures some have suffered where criminals have cut off fingers to sign in to victims’ accounts. Hey, how about at least suggesting a password manager solution for the time being. These people know not of what they speak. Do not trust them.

Host Keith Shaw and his expert guests discuss the latest technology news and trends happening in the industry. Watch new episodes twice each week or listen to the podcast.