Mona Sabet is the co-author of Sail to Scale: Steering Startups Clear of Mistakes from Launch to Exit and currently serves as SVP, Strategy, Projects, and Operations at GCG. With a track record of driving growth and strategic transformations, she has held executive roles at VulcanForms, UserTesting, and Cadence Design Systems. At UserTesting, she played a pivotal role in securing $100M in funding, leading acquisitions, taking the company public, and negotiating its $1.3B sale to Thoma Bravo. Beyond her corporate leadership, Mona is a passionate advocate for women in tech, law, and policy, having co-founded ChIPsNetwork.org and leading HiPower, a community dedicated to empowering executive women shaping the future of technology.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• The critical mistakes startups make at different growth stages—Mona shares insights from Sail to Scale on why companies struggle to scale and how to avoid common pitfalls.
• How founders should "fire themselves" to scale effectively—Why transitioning from founder to CEO requires a mindset shift, and the biggest mistakes leaders make in this process.
• The AI bubble: hype vs. reality—Mona explains why overfunding in AI-first companies mirrors past tech bubbles and what it means for the future of the industry.
• Why acquisitions should be a long-term strategy, not a last-minute decision—The importance of planning exits early and why companies that wait too long often fail to sell at the right valuation.
• The evolving landscape of M&A and IPOs—How companies can differentiate themselves in a crowded market of late-stage startups waiting for an exit.
• The unseen biases keeping women out of leadership—Mona’s perspective on why brand bias impacts diversity in tech and what leaders can do to create real change.

Resources:

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter
• Connect with Mona on LinkedIn
• AI fun fact article
• On How to how AI is changing the entertainment industry

Coinciding with International Women’s Day this week, this special episode of AI and the Future of Work highlights key conversations with women leading the way in AI ethics, governance, and accountability.

In this curated compilation, we feature four remarkable experts working to create a more equitable, trustworthy, and responsible AI future:

🔹 Navrina Singh (Founder & CEO, Credo AI) – Listen to the full conversation here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/14341487

🔹 Meredith Broussard (Author, Artificial Unintelligence: How Computers Misunderstand the World) – Listen to the full conversation here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/12284213

🔹 Juliette Powell (Co-Author, The AI Dilemma: 7 Principles for Responsible Technology) – Listen to the full conversation here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/14435648

🔹 Merve Hickok (Founder, AIethicist.org) – Listen to the full conversation here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/11801221

Bias, lack of transparency, and ethical concerns in AI are some of the most urgent issues of our time. These leaders are shaping the policies and frameworks needed to ensure AI serves everyone—fairly and equitably.

Resources

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter: https://aiandwork.beehiiv.com/subscribe
• Data Privacy Day Special Episode: AI, Deepfakes & The Future of Trust: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/16554098

Dr. Brandeis Marshall is a leading advocate for responsible data science and the CEO of Dataedx Group, a data ethics and learning development agency dedicated to helping teams identify and address discrimination in data. Previously, she was a professor of computer science at Spelman College and a faculty associate at Harvard. Dr. Marshall holds a master’s and Ph.D. in computer science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI).

In this conversation, we discuss:

• Why AI-powered companies should be regulated like scientific entities—and the hidden ways they optimize human behavior.
• The role of data ethics in AI—how companies can prevent bias and why everyone in the data pipeline is responsible for ethical decision-making.
• Why most businesses struggle with AI adoption—Brandeis explains how companies can bridge the AI gap and align data strategies with real business impact.
• The future of healthcare data—how a patient-owned, portable medical record system could revolutionize access and transparency.
• How AI can be leveraged to expose systemic inequalities and provide better opportunities for marginalized communities.
• Why AI should be seen as a support tool, not a replacement—Brandeis shares how AI can help neurodivergent individuals and enhance human decision-making.

Resources:

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter
• Connect with Brandeis on LinkedIn
• AI fun fact article
• On Using AI to Unlock Human Potential

Dave Kellogg is a seasoned venture capitalist, serial tech executive, and one of the most respected voices in SaaS metrics. As an Entrepreneur in Residence at Balderton Capital, he brings decades of experience leading companies like Host Analytics, Salesforce, MarkLogic, and Business Objects (acquired by SAP). A sought-after speaker, Dave’s SaaStr talks consistently rank among the most watched, and he’s known for his bold predictions and sharp analysis of industry trends. He is also an advisor, director, blogger, and podcaster, sharing insights that shape the future of SaaS and enterprise software.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• Dave Kellogg’s bold predictions for 2025 and how he scored himself on last year’s forecasts, from AI’s continued hype cycle to the rise of PR as the new SEO.
• Why venture capital is evolving, with AI-first companies reshaping funding strategies and a widening gap between US and European investment trends.
• The future of search—why traditional SEO may be dying and how businesses must adapt to AI-driven content discovery.
• The unlikely revival of branding—how companies are rediscovering brand differentiation in a "sea of sameness" where SaaS products look increasingly alike.
• AI’s impact on SaaS metrics and go-to-market strategies—can AI-driven sales and marketing tools help companies achieve the Rule of 40?
• The future of LinkedIn and social media in business—Dave’s concerns about LinkedIn’s engagement-driven model and why it might be entering the "social media death cycle."

Resources:

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter
• Connect with Dave Kellogg on LinkedIn
• AI fun fact article
• On How AI is Making Networks Smart

SC Moatti, founder of Mighty Capital and Products That Count, is one of the most dynamic venture capitalists and product leaders in Silicon Valley. As an early investor in PeopleReign, SC combines her investment expertise with a passion for advancing product leadership globally. She is the author of the award-winning book Mobilize and a sought-after keynote speaker and lecturer at Columbia and Stanford business schools. Before her venture capital career, SC was an instrumental product leader in the early days of mobile, driving innovation at companies like Electronic Arts, Nokia Labs, and Facebook.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• SC Moatti’s journey from studying electrical engineering in Paris to becoming a tech entrepreneur and venture capitalist in Silicon Valley.
• Why founding Mighty Capital was the hardest challenge SC has faced and how applying product thinking helped her reshape the venture capital landscape.
• The unique due diligence process at Mighty Capital, focusing on high-performing teams, ambitious traction, and fair, long-term partnerships.
• How Products That Count grew from a small community into a global network of over half a million product leaders and its influence on the industry.
• The evolving role of product managers in an AI-first world and how professionals can adapt to stay ahead in this rapidly changing environment.
• The ethical responsibilities of product leaders, from managing unintended consequences of AI to maintaining trust and transparency in product development.

Resources:

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter
• Connect with SC Moatti on LinkedIn
• AI fun fact article
• On How Disruptive Leaders Drive Innovation Across Industries in the Era of AI

George Sivulka, hailed as a wunderkind by Peter Thiel, is the founder of Hebbia, a groundbreaking AI company revolutionizing financial research. Having worked at NASA as a teenager, he later earned a math degree from Stanford in just 2.5 years. George has secured $130M in funding for Hebbia at a $700M valuation, backed by Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Google Ventures, and Thiel himself. Hebbia’s AI platform, trusted by firms like Centerview Partners and Charlesbank, has driven a 15x revenue growth in 18 months by pioneering RAG techniques that ensure LLM outputs remain within company-sanctioned data.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• How Hebbia is reshaping financial research with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG).
• The leap from academia to entrepreneurship—how George Sivulka turned research into real-world impact.
• The expanding role of AI in high-stakes industries where precision is critical.
• The ethical challenges of AI and how transparency can make or break trust.
• Why AI agents will change knowledge work—but not in the way you might think.
• The future of AI-powered research and its impact on decision-making.

Resources:

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter: https://aiandwork.beehiiv.com/subscribe
  Connect with Sivulka on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sivulka/
• AI fun fact article: https://www.chicagobooth.edu/review/what-ai-sees-market-that-you-might-not
• On How AI-Powered Writing is reshaping Enterprise Content Creation: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/may-habib-ceo-of-writer-discusses-llms-and-the/id1476885647?i=1000628256870

In this special compilation episode of AI and the Future of Work, we celebrate Data Privacy Day by revisiting powerful conversations with industry leaders tackling some of today’s biggest AI challenges. From deepfake detection to ethical AI, this episode highlights the critical role of privacy, trust, and security in the future of AI.

Join us as we revisit insights from top experts in AI:

🔹 Vijay Balasubramaniyan (CEO, Pindrop) – Listen to his full episode here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/15742476
🔹 Ray Wang (Founder, Constellation Research) – Listen to his full episode here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/16144550
🔹 Dr. Zohar Bronfman (CEO, Pecan AI) – Listen to his full episode here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/16064087
🔹 Holger Mueller (VP, Constellation Research) – Listen to his full episode here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/16098992

Resources

Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter: https://aiandwork.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Connect with Vijay: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vijayab

Connect with R "Ray" Wang: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rwang0/

Connect with Dr. Zohar Bronfman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zohar-bronfman/

Connect with Holger: https://www.linkedin.com/in/holgermueller/

Megh Gautam, Chief Product Officer at Crunchbase, is one of the sharpest product minds in Silicon Valley. With a track record that includes leadership roles as Head of Product at Twilio and Director of Product Management at Dropbox and Hearsay Systems, Megh has honed his expertise in driving innovation and growth. An active angel investor, Megh combines his industry insights with a passion for supporting emerging talent and ideas. He holds a Master of Science in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University and a Bachelor's degree in Information Technology from the National Institute of Technology Durgapur in India.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• How Crunchbase is leveraging AI and proprietary data to provide predictive insights for startups and investors.
• The balance between enhancing data accuracy and maintaining ethical transparency in AI-driven decision-making.
• The emergence of AI marketplaces that empower creators to monetize their content while preserving ownership rights.
• Why trust and attention are the scarcest resources today, and how Crunchbase ensures both through innovation and responsibility.
• The importance of skepticism in the age of LLMs and how to foster critical thinking in a generation growing up with AI.
• Megh’s reflections on his journey as a product leader and how mentorship has shaped his career at top tech companies like Twilio, Dropbox, and Hearsay Systems.

Resources:

• Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work Newsletter: https://aiandwork.beehiiv.com/subscribe
• Connect with Megh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meghbartma/
• AI fun fact article: https://pressgazette.co.uk/platforms/news-publisher-ai-deals-lawsuits-openai-google/
• On how SambaNova became the first generative AI unicorn and accelerated LLM advancements with open-source AI: https://www.buzzsprout.com/520474/episodes/13151659