This week, on Today In Space...our first 'Tech Talk' about AI & Business (with some aspirational takes on the role of AI in Humanity's future on Earth and in Space). Our guest David Hirschfeld, CEO of Tekyz, shares the knowledge of his 35-year career in software, including his origin story founding a vending machine software company that grew to 800 customers in 22 countries! We discuss business and AI; including Tekyz's take on the importance of product-market fit and early customer engagement given that "95-98%" of startups fail. David introduced "Launch First," a strategy for pre-launch sales to validate market demand, sharing success stories of securing $70,000 in 60 days for a real estate product and $250,000 for clinical trial software. Long story short - David was a wealth of knowledge and practical expertise, and we talked about almost anything and everything tech, AI, and even philosophy and business along with some laughs!

With the way 2025 is shaping up, AI and technology will continue to make a difference in our lives. Our goal is to dive-in head first, try to understand the unknown and talk to experts along the way and share it with you. Our goal is to face our fear of the unknow and try to understand the magic behind it, using the scientific mindset as our guide. If AI's promise of impact is anywhere close to humanity discovering fire, then every little bit of understanding we have will help us make a better future for the world tomorrow. While we definitely recommend you do your homework, all you need to do is get comfortable, get ready to listen, and dive in with us.

Alex shares some of his thoughts and concerns about AI, and the two have a great debate of ideas and topics, some of which include:

• The Value-Add for AI and how it can help you
• Concerns about AI and Corruption
• The Quality of data used to train AI models
• The Energy consumption of AI at scale
• The future of AI in Space Travel
• Examples of real life applications of AI to make life better for individuals and businesses

We thank David for joining us and being such a great guest! We look forward to checking in with him in the future and see if any of his predictions were spot on. Check out his new podcast, "Scaling Smarter" at https://tekyz.podbean.com/. People interested at becoming a guest can schedule at scalingsmarter.net

Note: The description above was drafted entirely by Otter. AI from the audio recording of this podcast. It was edited by a human, Alex G. Orphanos.

Keywords:

software industry, enterprise projects, vending software, trade show success, startup challenges, product market fit, customer feedback, Mom Test, clinician mindset, Launch First, pre-launch sales, AI tools, code generation, market disruption, self-driving cars, AI innovation, Star Trek economy, financial greed, AI training, useful data, internet infrastructure, power consumption, AI race, large language models, agentic workflows, workflow automation, podcast automation, AI as friend, AI feedback, AI bottlenecks

Timestamps:

00:00 David Hirschfield's Career Journey 04:18 Early Startup Experiences and Lessons 10:41 The Importance of Understanding People in Business 14:06 Launch First and Pre-Launch Sales Strategy 27:35 The Role of AI in Business and Future Predictions 28:06 The Impact of AI on Everyday Life and Business 01:00:17 The Evolution of AI and Its Practical Applications 01:09:16 The Future of AI and Its Broader Implications 01:09:05 AI's Potential and Ethical Concerns 01:13:58 AI's Energy Consumption and Practical Applications 01:19:49 Advancements in AI Technology and Workflow Automation 01:22:48 The Future of AI in Human Space Travel 01:24:12 AI as a Collaborative Tool and Personal Reflections 01:24:30 Closing Remarks and Contact Information

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Here's to building a fantastic future - and continued progress in Space (and humanity)! Spread Love, Spread Science

Alex G. Orphanos

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