The Data Exchange with Ben Lorica

52 minutes 15 seconds
Why Foundation Models Haven’t Replaced Classical Machine Learning
In this episode, Ben Lorica sits down with Doris Xin and Moustafa Abdelbaky, co-founders of Disarray, to discuss why classical machine learning models remain essential despite the rise of foundation models and LLMs.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes and transcript, can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
28 May 2026, 11:00 am
43 minutes 28 seconds
When "Garbage In, Garbage Out" Gets It Wrong
Ben Lorica speaks with Terrence Lee-St. John, founder of Enli and lead author of From Garbage to Gold: A Data Architectural Theory of Predictive Robustness.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes and transcript, can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
21 May 2026, 11:00 am
43 minutes 56 seconds
As Code Generation Speeds Up, Who Tests the Output?
In this episode, Ben Lorica talks with Evan Marshall, CTO of Ito AI, about why software testing and QA are becoming the critical bottleneck in the age of coding agents.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes and transcript, can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
14 May 2026, 11:00 am
56 minutes 22 seconds
The Gap Between AI Hype and Enterprise Reality
In this episode, Ben Lorica talks with Richard Garris and Barry Dauber from Databricks, about what enterprises are actually struggling with as they move AI from demo to deployment.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes and transcript, can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
7 May 2026, 11:00 am
56 minutes 32 seconds
Reading the Tea Leaves: What the World's Top AI Researchers Are Really Working On
Ben Lorica talks with Nick Vasiloglou, VP of Research at Relational AI, about Nick’s deep dive into NeurIPS 2025 and what people in industry should actually pay attention to.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
30 April 2026, 11:00 am
31 minutes 7 seconds
From Web Video to Real-World Robots
Ben Lorica speaks with Changan Chen, co-founder and Chief Research Officer at Rhoda AI, about what it takes to build foundation models for robots that can operate in the real world.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
23 April 2026, 11:00 am
27 minutes 55 seconds
Why Your AI Committee Might Be Your Biggest AI Problem
In this episode, Ben Lorica and Evangelos Simoudis discuss how enterprises are structuring their internal AI efforts, highlighting the friction between top-down AI governance committees and bottom-up “shadow IT” innovation.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
18 April 2026, 11:00 am
32 minutes 42 seconds
Building Mathematical Superintelligence
Ben Lorica speaks with Tudor Achim, cofounder of Harmonic, about the fast progress of AI for mathematical reasoning and what it would take to build “mathematical superintelligence.”
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
16 April 2026, 11:00 am
46 minutes 6 seconds
Your First AI Employee Is Already Clocking In
In this episode, host Ben Lorica sits down with Kay Zhu, Co-founder & CTO of Genspark AI, to explore the rapid evolution of autonomous AI agents and the concept of hiring your first “AI employee.”
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.

9 April 2026, 11:00 am
52 minutes 21 seconds
Are Multi-Agent Systems More Complex Than They Need to Be?
In this episode, host Ben Lorica sits down with Arun Kumar (Associate Professor at UC San Diego and Co-founder/CTO of RapidFire AI) to explore the rapidly evolving discipline of agent engineering.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
2 April 2026, 11:00 am
41 minutes 39 seconds
Coding Agents Meet Data Science
In this episode, Ben Lorica is joined by Mikio Braun, Senior Principal Applied Scientist at Zalando, for a wide-ranging conversation about the practical realities of AI-powered coding agents. They explore the unique challenges of using coding agents for data science workflows, the team-level implications of dramatically increased developer velocity, and what skills will matter most in an AI-augmented workplace.
Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter 📩 https://gradientflow.substack.com/
Subscribe: Apple · Spotify · Overcast · Pocket Casts · AntennaPod · Podcast Addict · Amazon · RSS.

Detailed show notes - with links to many references - can be found on The Data Exchange web site.
26 March 2026, 11:00 am
More Episodes? Get the App