Practical AI

<p>AI models can win math olympiads… but still struggle to read an analog clock. In this fully connected episode, Dan and Chris break down the latest Stanford AI Index Report and explore what it reveals about the current state of AI. They discuss AI adoption and safety, disappearing junior tech jobs, robotics, AI’s “jagged frontier” of intelligence, and the growing race between the U.S. and China. Along the way, they debate whether AI should optimize everything, or if some things are better left human. </p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report">The 2026 AI Index Report</a></li></ul><p>Sponsors:</p><ul><li><strong>Prediction Guard: </strong>A self-hosted AI control plane for running agents in high impact environments. <a href="https://predictionguard.com/practicalai">predictionguard.com/practicalai</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li><li><a href="https://midwestaisummit.com/">Midwest AI Summit 2026</a></li></ul>

<p>What happens when AI agents start acting less like chatbots and more like coworkers? In this episode, Dan and Chris sit down with Craig McLuckie, CEO of Stacklok to explore MCP, Kubernetes, ToolHive, enterprise AI, and the emerging infrastructure powering AI-native applications. From identity management to agent orchestration and system architecture, this conversation dives into how organizations may soon manage entire fleets of AI agents working behind the scenes.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Craig McLuckie – <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigmcluckie/">LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://stacklok.com/?utm_source=linkedin&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=profile">Stacklok</a></li><li><a href="https://stacklok.com/download/">Toolhive</a></li></ul><p>Sponsors:</p><ul><li><strong>Prediction Guard: </strong>A self-hosted AI control plane for running agents in high impact environments. <a href="https://predictionguard.com/practicalai">predictionguard.com/practicalai</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li><li><a href="https://midwestaisummit.com/">Midwest AI Summit 2026</a></li></ul>

<p>Open Source AI is entering a new era, one shaped by self-improving AI Agents, recursive learning systems, and rapidly evolving AI Tools that blur the line between software and autonomous collaborators. In this episode, Daniel and Chris sit down with Nous Research co-founder and CTO Jeffrey Quesnelle to explore Hermes Agent. Along the way, they discuss models vs. harnesses, the changing role of developers, and one of the biggest questions facing the AI Future: what remains uniquely human as AI capabilities continue to accelerate?</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Jeffrey Quesnelle – <a href="https://jeffq.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-quesnelle-2490a524/">LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://nousresearch.com/">Nous Research</a></li><li><a href="https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/">Hermes Agent</a></li></ul><p>Sponsors:</p><ul><li><strong>Framer: </strong>The enterprise-grade website builder that lets your team ship faster. Get 30% off at <a href="http://framer.com/practicalai">framer.com/practicalai</a></li><li><strong>Prediction Guard: </strong>A self-hosted AI control plane for running agents in high impact environments. <a href="https://predictionguard.com/practicalai">predictionguard.com/practicalai</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li><li><a href="https://midwestaisummit.com/">Midwest AI Summit 2026</a></li></ul>

<p>U.S. Congressman Don Beyer returns to Practical AI for another far-reaching conversation with Chris about many of the most important AI challenges facing America and the world.  Blending political savvy and statesmanship with his unique technical understanding as an active Ph.D student in AI at George Mason University <em>(making him the coolest member of Congress!)</em>, the congressman shares his perspective about the really hard AI concerns that you would have asked him yourself.  Together, Congressman Beyer and Chris explore AI regulation, cybersecurity concerns sparked by advanced models like Mythos, bipartisan AI governance efforts, and the growing AI race between the U.S. and China. They fearlessly dived headfirst into AI-driven job displacement, mass surveillance, autonomous weapons, existential risk, and the philosophical questions surrounding consciousness and superintelligence as AI continues to accelerate.  This is an unusual and insightful conversation you don't want to miss!</p><p>Congressman Beyer was previously on Practical AI episode 271 on May 29, 2024:<br><a href="https://practicalai.show/271">AI in the U.S. Congress</a></p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Congressman Don Beyer – <a href="https://beyer.house.gov">Congress</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/don-beyer-6b444b4/">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/beyer.house.gov">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://x.com/RepDonBeyer">X</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li><li><a href="https://midwestaisummit.com/">Midwest AI Summit 2026</a></li></ul>

<p>In this fully connected episode, Dan and Chris break down one of the biggest questions in AI today: do open vs. closed models still matter? From the rise of physical AI and edge devices to the shifting landscape of open-source models like LLaMA, they explore whether the “model wars” are becoming irrelevant. The conversation then dives into a bigger transformation, the rise of agentic systems, workflows, and AI-driven infrastructure.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li><li><a href="https://midwestaisummit.com/">Midwest AI Summit 2026</a></li></ul>

<p>In this Fully-Connected episode, Dan and Chris start with Anthropic's Mythos frontier model, parsing what is publicly known about its cybersecurity capabilities and projecting its possible implications from "<em>We've been here before. </em>🙄<em>"</em> to <em>"See ya, cybersecurity! </em>😱<em>"</em>  It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine. 🙃</p><p>Then they have fun with the craziest AI announcement of the year (except for the Mythos one of course).  Allbirds pivots from shoe manufacturing 👟 to neocloud provider ☁️. No, we didn't see that one coming either! 🙈</p><p>They finish with rise of “tokenmaxxing” - the gamification 🎮 of writing code with maximum LLM usage.  Incredibly profitable 💰 for commercial frontier model providers and insanely expensive 🤑 for the gamers.  Better have 10X productivity just to avoid bankruptcy! </p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/apr/15/allbirds-stock-ai-pivot">Shares in Allbirds surge after maker of wool sneakers announces pivot to AI</a></li><li><a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/ai-boosted-hacks-with-anthropics-mythos-could-have-dire-consequences-banks-2026-04-13/">AI-boosted hacks with Anthropic’s Mythos could have dire consequences for banks</a></li></ul>

<p>Autonomous driving is not just a big tech or closed-source game, it's becoming accessible through open innovation and real-world deployment. Dan and Chris sit down with Harald Schäfer, CTO at Comma AI, to explore how OpenPilot is bringing self-driving to everyday vehicles using open source AI. We dive into the intersection of machine learning, robotics, and simulation, including how world models are enabling training at scale and shaping the future of autonomy.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Harald Schäfer –<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-klabnik/"> </a><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/harald-sch%C3%A4fer-567830132/">LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://comma.ai/">Comma</a></li></ul>

<p>In this fully connected episode, Dan and Chris break down the Anthropic Claude Code leak, what went wrong and what it reveals about agentic systems, AI architecture, and AI safety. They also explore how the open source community is responding and why this moment could reshape how AI systems are built and secured.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>AI is rapidly transforming how software is built, shifting economic incentives from open source code and collaboration toward on-demand, personalized development through agentic coding a.k.a. vibe coding. In this episode, Chris speaks with Miklós Koren of Central European University about how AI is reshaping open source and the software industry. They explore the economics of incentives, evolving collaboration patterns, and what this shift means for software development, the future of AI, and its broader impact on the technology sector.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Miklós Koren –<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/miklos-koren-b535a42a/"> LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://koren.mk/publications/vibe-coding">Vibe Coding Kills Open Source</a></li><li><a href="https://koren.mk/publications/directions">The Directions of Technical Change</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tailwind-engineer-layoffs-ai-github-2026-1">The Tailwind story</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>What does “AI at the edge” really mean in 2026, and why does it matter now more than ever before? In this episode, we’re joined by Brandon Shibley, Edge AI Solutions Engineering Lead at Qualcomm’s Edge Impulse, to discuss the current state and future of Edge AI in 2026. We discuss Gen AI, Small Models, and Cascades of Models, along with real-world constraints like latency, power, and privacy. We also dive into the role of MLOps, evolving hardware, and how developers can start building practical edge AI systems today.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Brandon Shibley –<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/shibley/"> LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.edgeimpulse.com/ebooks/the-ultimate-guide-to-edge-ai?utm_medium=inbound&amp;utm_source=organic-social&amp;utm_campaign=40531789-Q22026_practicalai_podcast">Read our Ultimate Guide to Edge AI</a></li><li>Download your copy of <a href="https://www.edgeimpulse.com/ai-at-the-edge?utm_medium=inbound&amp;utm_source=organic-social&amp;utm_campaign=40531789-Q22026_practicalai_podcast">O'Reilly's AI at the Edge</a> </li><li>Check out the Edge Impulse <a href="https://www.edgeimpulse.com/blog?utm_medium=inbound&amp;utm_source=organic-social&amp;utm_campaign=40531789-Q22026_practicalai_podcast">blog</a></li><li>Sign-up for an <a href="https://www.edgeimpulse.com/expert-led-trial?utm_medium=inbound&amp;utm_source=organic-social&amp;utm_campaign=40531789-Q22026_practicalai_podcast">expert led trial </a>of Edge Impulse</li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>What happens when an AI hater starts building with AI agents? In this episode, we talk with software engineer Steve Klabnik, known for his work on the Rust programming language, about his journey from criticizing AI to experimenting with it firsthand. We explore Steve’s programming language Rue, largely built with the help of AI tools like Claude, and discuss what this means for software engineering and the future of coding in an AI-driven world.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Steve Klabnik –<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-klabnik/"> LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://doc.rust-lang.org/book/title-page.html#the-rust-programming-language">The Rust Programming Language</a></li><li><a href="https://rust-lang.org/">Rust</a></li><li><a href="https://rue-lang.dev/">Rue</a></li><li><a href="https://meetings.hubspot.com/catherine-katie/rsa-cyber-expo-start-up-march-23">Daniel's RSA Meeting link for March 23, 2026</a></li><li><a href="https://meetings.hubspot.com/catherine-katie/rsa-superprime-booking">Daniel's RSA Meeting link for March 24-25, 2026</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>AI is reshaping global power, from chip manufacturing and computing power to AI governance and US-China relations.  In this episode, Ben Buchanan, Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins SAIS and former White House Special Advisor for AI, explores how AI policy, geopolitics, and international cooperation intersect with AI  innovation and AI safety. We discuss the strategic importance of computing power, the future of AI governance, and what it will take for democracies to lead responsibly in the age of AI.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Ben Buchanan –<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/buchananbenjamin/"> LinkedIn</a> </li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/artificial-intelligence-grand-bargain-buchanan-collins">The AI Grand Bargain</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>As AI accelerates innovation and adoption, leaders are facing rising cognitive load, shifting systems, and new emotional realities inside their organizations. In this episode, Deloitte’s Chief Innovation Officer Deborah Golden joins us to explore how AI is reshaping leadership, why vulnerability and empathy are critical in this moment, and how anti-fragility, not just resilience, will define the future of work.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Deborah Golden –<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborah-golden/"> LinkedIn</a> </li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.deloitte.com/global/en.html">Deloitte</a></li></ul><p>Sponsor:</p><ul><li> Framer - The website builder that turns your dot com from a formality into a tool for growth. Check it out at <a href="http://framer.com/PRACTICALAI">framer.com/PRACTICALAI</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>AI is moving fast from research to real-world deployment, and when things go wrong, the consequences are no longer hypothetical. In this episode, Sean McGregor, co-founder of the AI Verification &amp; Evaluation Research Institute and also the founder of the AI Incident Database, joins Chris and Dan to discuss AI safety, verification, evaluation, and auditing. They explore why benchmarks often fall short, what red-teaming at DEF CON reveals about machine learning risks, and how organizations can better assess and manage AI systems in practice.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Sean McGregor– <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanbmcgregor/">LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.averi.org/">AI Verification &amp; Evaluation Research Institute</a></li><li><a href="https://incidentdatabase.ai/">AI Incident Database</a></li><li><a href="https://aaai.org/conference/aaai/aaai-26/iaai-26-call/">38th convening of IAAI</a></li><li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE17hShOF_Q">BenchRisk</a></li><li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOjTPSimNJk">State of Global AI Incident Reporting</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>AI agents are moving from demos to real workplaces, but what actually happens when they run a company? In this episode, journalist Evan Ratliff, host of <em>Shell Game</em>, joins Chris to discuss his immersive journalism experiment building a real startup staffed almost entirely by AI agents. They explore how AI agents behave as coworkers, how humans react when interacting with them, and where ethical and workplace boundaries begin to break down.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Evan Ratliff  – <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/evan-ratliff-2453031/">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://x.com/ev_rat?lang=en">X</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.shellgame.co/">Shell Game</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>As AI increasingly shapes geopolitics, elections, and civic life, its impact on democracy is becoming impossible to ignore. In this episode, Daniel and Chris are joined by security expert Bruce Schneier to explore how AI and technology are transforming democracy, governance, and citizenship. Drawing from his book <em>Rewiring Democracy</em>, they explore real examples of AI in elections, legislation, courts, and public AI models, the risks of concentrated power, and how these tools can both strengthen and strain democratic systems worldwide.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Bruce Schneier – <a href="https://x.com/schneierblog">X</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links: </p><ul><li><a href="https://www.schneier.com/">Schneier on Security</a></li></ul><p>Sponsors:</p><ul><li>Framer - The website builder that turns your dot com from a formality into a tool for growth. Check it out at <a href="http://framer.com/PRACTICALAI">framer.com/PRACTICALAI</a></li><li>Zapier - The AI orchestration platform that puts AI to work across your company. Check it out at <a href="http://zapier.com/practical">zapier.com/practical</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>As generative AI moves into production, traditional guardrails and input/output filters can prove too slow, too expensive, and/or too limited. In this episode, Alizishaan Khatri of Wrynx joins Daniel and Chris to explore a fundamentally different approach to AI safety and interpretability. They unpack the limits of today’s black-box defenses, the role of interpretability, and how model-native, runtime signals can enable safer AI systems. </p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Alizishaan Khatri – <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/alizishaan-khatri-32a20637/">LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>In this start-of-year FC episode, Chris and Daniel break down what really mattered in AI in 2025, and what to expect in 2026. They explore the rise of AI agents, the practical reality of multimodal AI, and how reasoning models are reshaping workflows. The conversation dives into infrastructure and energy constraints, the continued value of predictive models, and why orchestration (not just better models) is becoming the defining skill for AI teams. The episode wraps with grounded 2026 predictions on where AI systems, tooling, and builders are headed next.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Sponsor:</p><ul><li>Framer - The enterprise-grade website builder that lets your team ship faster. Get 30% off at <a href="http://framer.com/practicalai">framer.com/practicalai</a></li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>Chris and Daniel unpack how AI-driven document processing has rapidly evolved well beyond traditional OCR with many technical advances that fly under the radar. They explore the progression from document structure models to language-vision models, all the way to the newest innovations like Deepseek-OCR. The discussion highlights the pros and cons of these various approaches focusing on practical implementation and usage.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Sponsors:</p><ul><li>Shopify – The commerce platform trusted by millions. From idea to checkout, Shopify gives you everything you need to launch and scale your business—no matter your level of experience. Build beautiful storefronts, market with built-in AI tools, and tap into the platform powering 10% of all U.S. eCommerce. Start your one-dollar trial at <a href="http://shopify.com/practicalai">shopify.com/practicalai</a></li><li><a href="http://fabi.ai/">Fabi.ai</a> - The all-in-one data analysis platform for modern teams. From ad hoc queries to advanced analytics, Fabi lets you explore data wherever it lives—spreadsheets, Postgres, Snowflake, Airtable and more. Built-in Python and AI assistance help you move fast, then publish interactive dashboards or automate insights delivered straight to Slack, email, spreadsheets or wherever you need to share it. Learn more and get started for free at <a href="http://fabi.ai/">fabi.ai</a></li><li>Framer – Design and publish without limits with Framer, the free all-in-one design platform. Unlimited projects, no tool switching, and professional sites—no Figma imports or HTML hassles required. Start creating for free at <a href="https://www.framer.com/design/">framer.com/design</a> with code `PRACTICALAI` for a free month of Framer Pro.</li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>

<p>Fireflies CEO, Krish Ramineni shares how the company is transforming AI-powered note-taking into a deeper layer of knowledge automation. He breaks down the technology behind real-time functionality like Live Assist, the user behavior patterns driving product evolution, and how Fireflies is innovating far beyond meetings. Krish also shares insights on future trends in AI and the potential for hardware integration, emphasizing the ongoing evolution of AI in knowledge work.</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Krish Ramineni – <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/krishramineni/">LinkedIn</a></li><li>Chris Benson – <a href="https://chrisbenson.com/">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisbenson">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chrisbenson.bsky.social">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://github.com/chrisbenson">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/chrisbenson">X</a></li><li>Daniel Whitenack – <a href="https://www.datadan.io/">Website</a>, <a href="https://github.com/dwhitena">GitHub</a>, <a href="https://x.com/dwhitena">X</a></li></ul><p>Links:</p><ul><li><a href="https://fireflies.ai/?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=cpc&amp;utm_campaign=brand_generic&amp;utm_content=t3_eng&amp;utm_term=fireflies%20ai&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=22223532138&amp;gbraid=0AAAAA-Os34oUk-ezo-P5YCtrVIq2M7Syi&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQiArOvIBhDLARIsAPwJXOYIp5jWfJ_dDb47HXab4depti-NGtBT6sI37P2axyimuI6KUfuib7waAvlWEALw_wcB">Fireflies AI</a></li></ul><p>Sponsors:</p><ul><li>Miro – Get the right things done faster with Miro's Innovation Workspace. AI Sidekicks, instant insights, and rapid prototyping—transform weeks of work into days. No more scattered docs or endless meetings. Help your teams get great done at [Miro](<a href="https://miro.com/">https://miro.com</a>).</li><li>Framer – Design and publish without limits with Framer, the free all-in-one design platform. Unlimited projects, no tool switching, and professional sites—no Figma imports or HTML hassles required. Start creating for free at [<a href="http://framer.com/design](https://www.framer.com/design/)">framer.com/design](https://www.framer.com/design/)</a> with code `PRACTICALAI` for a free month of Framer Pro.</li></ul><p>Upcoming Events: </p><ul><li>Register for <a href="https://practicalai.fm/webinars">upcoming webinars here</a>!</li></ul>