Artificial intelligence is evolving at an unprecedented pace—what does that mean for the future of technology, venture capital, business, and even our understanding of ourselves? Award-winning journalist and writer Anil Ananthaswamy joins us for our latest episode to discuss his latest book Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI . Anil helps us explore the journey and many breakthroughs that have propelled machine learning from simple perceptrons to the sophisticated algorithms shaping today’s AI revolution, powering GPT and other models. The discussion aims to demystify some of the underlying mathematical concepts that power modern machine learning, to help everyone grasp this technology impacting our lives–even if your last math class was in high school. Anil walks us through the power of scaling laws, the shift from training to inference optimization, and the debate among AI’s pioneers about the road to AGI—should we be concerned, or are we still missing key pieces of the puzzle? The conversation also delves into AI’s philosophical implications—could understanding how machines learn help us better understand ourselves? And what challenges remain before AI systems can truly operate with agency? If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. Sign up for our newsletter at techsurgepodcast.com for exclusive insights and updates on upcoming TechSurge Live Summits. Links: Read Why Machines Learn, Anil’s latest book on the math behind AI https://www.amazon.com/Why-Machines-Learn-Elegant-Behind/dp/0593185749 Learn more about Anil Ananthaswamy’s work and writing https://anilananthaswamy.com/ Watch Anil Ananthaswamy’s TED Talk on AI and intelligence https://www.ted.com/speakers/anil_ananthaswamy Discover the MIT Knight Science Journalism Fellowship that shaped Anil’s AI research https://ksj.mit.edu/ Understand the Perceptron, the foundation of neural networks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perceptron Read about the Perceptron Convergence Theorem and its significance https://www.nature.com/articles/323533a0…
In this episode of The Pivot, host Todd Wheatland talks with David Brudenell, Universum's head of digital, about how his dreams of an Olympic medal crashed, an MBA classmate changed the trajectory of his career and much more about his journey.
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
Davor Miskulin, Enterprise Business Development, Burning Glass Technologies, thinks of himself as the descendent of fellow Croatian Marco Polo. "I have this drive for exploring and I had to rationalize it somehow," he tells The Pivot host Todd Wheatland and explains his unplanned life journey.
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
Never one for planning, Save The Children Australia's Nicole Brasz tells host Todd Wheatland about how her professional and personal path led her back to her hometown and a stint in an industry to which she never wanted to return.
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
Carla Johnson, Type A Communications, came from a science family so she studied electrical engineering. After two years, she opted to become a history major and learned the value of storytelling, a skill that has taken her far in her career. In this episode of The Pivot, host Todd Wheatland sits down with Carla to learn more about her journey and why she co-authored the book Experiences: The 7th Era of Marketing with Robert Rose.…
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
In this episode of The Pivot, host Todd Wheatland talks with the Head of Content Marketing at the famed maker of AutoCAD. Dusty DiMercurio shares how a music making philosophy major was able to play his own cool story in marketing.
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
You may know Jon Loomer as the "Facebook Ads Guy" but in this episode of The Pivot, host Todd Wheatland dives a bit deeper behind the man who is a Power Editor pro. Learn how this Philosophy Major from the Midwest found his way to entrepreneurship by way of the NBA and The American Cancer Society. Jon also discusses how choosing a tight niche in marketing has allowed him to grow his brand and his business.…
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
This week's episode of The Pivot has host Todd Wheatland talking with Emeric Ernoult, CEO and Founder of Agorapulse. Hear how Emeric was destined to become an entreprepreneur at the age of seven and his journey to achieving his dream of business ownership. From Africa to France and Washington DC, Emeric's journey is a global one that will remind you that achieving a dream requires persistence, patience and perfect timing.…
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland
In this episode of The Pivot, host Todd Wheatland sits down with Jesse Desjardins to find out how the Canadian became the Head of Social Media for Tourism Australia and how SlideShare has led to his firing, hiring and even a trip to SXSW.
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The Pivot: Marketing Backstories with Todd Wheatland