FeedbackNow VP of AI, Sam Koch, joins the show to share how he’s actually using AI, not just talking about it. From automating real workflows to bringing hardware back into tech, Sam breaks down what works (and what doesn’t) when scaling automation in Private Equity.

Why watch:

• Real examples of AI that save hours of work
• What failed (and why some automations aren’t worth it)
• Why hardware gives startups defensibility again
• How culture and management make or break AI transformation
• Actionable lessons from hand-labeling data to scaling lean startups

Topics:

AI in Private Equity · Workflow automation · Real-world data · Hardware comeback · State space models · Culture in digital transformation

Articles discussed:

• State Space Model gets major funding (LinkedIn)
• Data Centers and Jet Engines (IEEE Spectrum)
• Michael Burry bets against Palantir and NVIDIA (Yahoo Finance)
• Amazon vs. Perplexity AI Agent (Bloomberg)

Hosts:

Rob May (NeuroMetric) · Anna Kirk (Nadia Partners) · Ryan Eppley (Root Access)

Want us to wear your company swag on the show or talk bookings?

Email: [email protected]

Like, subscribe, and drop your favorite NYC burger in the comments!

Discover SimpleApply — the smarter way to land your next job!

Visit: https://simpleapply.ai

Hosts: Rob May — CEO & Co-founder, NeuroMetric AI

Anna Kirk — Chief of Staff, Nadia Partners

In this episode of AI in NYC, hosts Rob May (CEO & Co-founder, NeuroMetric) and Anna Kirk (Chief of Staff, Nadia Partners) sit down with Joe Perrotta, CEO and founder of SimplyApply, to explore how AI is transforming the job search, hiring, and the future of work.

What’s Inside:

Joe shares the story behind SimpleApply and how it’s helping thousands of job seekers automate and streamline their job hunt.

The team debates “AI doom loops” in hiring—will automation and countermeasures spiral out of control, or is it just a temporary inefficiency?

Real-world metrics: Joe reveals SimpleApply’s growth, user success rates, and what’s really happening in today’s job market.

Beyond resumes: Why networking, authenticity, and human connection still matter in an AI-driven world.

Rob’s unique approach to hiring for diversity and the value of randomness in finding hidden talent.

Favorite interview questions, personality tests, and candid takes on the latest AI news: OpenAI’s new browser, Anthropic’s leadership statement, and the future of AI hardware.

Featured Articles & Resources:

SimpleApply.ai

https://theconversation.com/ai-genera...

https://techcrunch.com/2025/10/21/ope...

https://www.anthropic.com/news/statem...

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/13/te...

“By building our own chip, we can embed what we’ve learned from creating frontier models and products directly into the hardware, unlocking new levels of capability and intelligence.” - Signs OpenAI is vertically integrating hardware stack, less reliance on NVIDIA

Hosts:

Rob May — CEO & Co-founder, NeuroMetric

Anna Kirk — Chief of Staff, Nadia Partners

Ryan Eppley — Co-founder & CEO, Root Access

Guest:

Joe Dormani — Partner, Thomson Reuters Ventures

Episode Overview:

This week we sit down with Joe Dormani for a deep dive into AI investing, legal tech, and how enterprise adoption is really unfolding in the wild. We cover venture strategy, defensibility, the future of professional services, and whether the billable hour can survive AI. We also explore the cultural side of AI — including dating apps, RizzGPT, and Joe’s belief that “organic rizz is better than synthetic rizz.”

Segments & Key Topics:

• Joe’s career path across AI product, corporate strategy, and venture investing

• How Thomson Reuters Ventures evaluates companies in legal, tax, accounting, fintech, and compliance

• Build vs. buy vs. partner vs. invest — how enterprises make AI decisions

• Real-world AI adoption: what’s working and what still has friction

• Defensibility in AI: data, workflow depth, UX, and true IP

• The billable hour vs. an AI-native legal industry

• The rise of AI tool proficiency as a career skill

• Cultural AI: RizzGPT, dating-app AI, and generational shifts

• $300M+ seed for Periodic Labs, AMD vs. NVIDIA, and macro AI market dynamics

• NYC segment — our favorite calm spots in the city

Quotes:

“AI is a tool — proficiency and investment determine the outcome.”

“The billable hour may not survive an AI-first legal industry.”

“Organic rizz is better than synthetic rizz.”

!!!Founders!!! send us your merch for a shoutout in a future episode.

Subscribe, comment, and drop your guest suggestions for next week.

In this episode Rob and Ryan interview Eric Litman, CEO of Aescape, which builds a robotic massage table. Eric talks about how robotics has exploded in NYC in the last few years, and how it compares to building his first company in mobile tech in the mid 2000s.

The crew also discusses an article about how ChatGPT is destroying marriages, and debates again whether or not AI is in a bubble.

Leave a comment on the show and we will choose the best one to get an Aescape gift card for a free massage.

In this episode Rob, Anna, and Ryan talk to Collectivei co-founder Stephen Messer and discuss his background as an early NYC tech entrepreneur, and building AI in New York before it was cool. The crew also discusses an article from The Atlantic about whether or not there is an AI bubble, and Jerry Neumann’s recent Collossus article “AI Will Not Make You Rich”

The show ends with everyone contributing their best “what I overheard in New York” story.

Listen to Rob, Anna, and Ryan discuss the New York tech scene and recent

AI articles with Charlie O'Donnell. Charlie is a life long New Yorker

and long time venture capitalist. He discusses his experience working

for Josh Kopelman and Fred Wilson, two of the most successful venture

capitalists of all time, and the key catalysts that have turned NYC into

a dominant hub for AI.

Charlie's blog - thisisgoingtobebig.com

Welcome to exhilarating episode of AI Innovators with Rob May!

In this episode, Rob is joined by Dan Schwarz, founder of FutureSearch, for an in-depth conversation about the future of artificial intelligence and the pivotal role forecasting plays in understanding where AI is headed. Unlike any previous guest, Dan brings his unique perspective as a leader of a company that leverages AI to predict the future of AI itself.

Dan and Rob dig into some of FutureSearch’s boldest forecasts—like predictions on OpenAI’s 2027 revenue and the emerging business models that could power an intelligence explosion.

They explore how AI-driven forecasting is dramatically improving the ability to answer tough questions about technology, industry disruption, and the timeline for true superintelligence.

Dan shares FutureSearch’s methodology, the importance of track records in making credible predictions, and why the next wave of AI revenue is likely to come from “agents” rather than traditional products like ChatGPT.

Throughout the episode, you'll get insights into the challenges and opportunities facing foundational model companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, the impact of disruptive new technologies, and why positive feedback loops could make AI’s evolution much faster—and more surprising—than most expect.

Whether you’re an investor, technologist, or just fascinated by AI’s rapid progress, this episode is loaded with expert analysis, real-world examples, and forward-looking ideas to keep you ahead of the curve.

• Costs and Investment: OpenAI is burning through far more capital than previous tech companies due to the enormous compute costs required for their models. The money they’ve raised is more about meeting these high operating expenses than signaling runaway revenue success.

• Competition and Technological Disruption: Key risks include rivals (like Anthropic, Google) overtaking OpenAI in model quality. There’s also the ever-present possibility that a left-field technology breakthrough could upset current leaders.

• Forecasting Superintelligence: Future Search contributed to AI 2027, a collaborative forecast about the path to superintelligence. Dan sees the automation of coding, followed by automated AI research, as critical “dominoes” that could lead to an intelligence explosion—though he’s skeptical about this all happening extremely soon.

• Limits to Forecasting: There are fundamental, probabilistic limits to what either humans or AI can forecast—some things simply can’t be known in advance due to inherent uncertainty (like specific “black swan” events), but much of the world is more predictable than people expect when approached rigorously.

Dan's Links

(Linkedin)

futuresearch.ai

02:00 – Establishing Credibility Through Track Records: Why past performance and reputation matter when building trust in AI leadership.

06:22 – ChatGPT as OpenAI’s Revenue Engine: A look at how ChatGPT has become a central monetization tool for OpenAI.

07:06 – The $100B Vision: OpenAI’s Agent Strategy: Exploring how autonomous AI agents could be the key to OpenAI's next major growth phase.

13:06 – AI in 2027: The Road to Superintelligence: Predictions and pathways leading toward artificial general intelligence in the next few years.

15:54 – The Human Edge in Forecasting: Why human intuition still holds value against algorithmic predictions—at least for now.

17:29 – AI and the Rise of Superhuman Forecasting: How advanced AI models are already beginning to outperform human experts in prediction accuracy.

23:18 – Strategic Insights for AI Investors: Key considerations and principles when evaluating long-term AI investments.

Welcome to exhilarating episode of AI Innovators with Rob May!

In this episode, we explore the transformative power of AI in marketing and branding with our distinguished guests: Catherine Perloff, a journalist focused on the advertising business of big tech platforms, and Noah Brier, an entrepreneur passionate about integrating AI into marketing strategies.

Catherine and Noah delve into how AI is reshaping the advertising landscape by enabling creativity and accelerating content creation. They discuss the challenges marketers face with AI adoption, such as the slow integration within large enterprises and concerns over data privacy and brand safety.

Rob, Catherine, and Noah also consider the future role of AI in branding and marketing, emphasizing the importance of maintaining strong brand identities in a rapidly evolving technological environment. Whether you're a marketer, technologist, or simply curious about AI's influence, this episode is packed with valuable insights to help you keep pace in the AI-driven world. Tune in to discover how AI experts are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in marketing!

• AI in Marketing: Explore how AI is driving innovation in marketing by streamlining the creation of ads and enabling more dynamic advertising strategies.
• Challenges in AI Adoption: Learn about the hurdles large brands face in adopting AI, from legal barriers to cultural resistance within organizations.
• Branding and AI's Future: Gain insights into the evolving role of branding in an AI-centric world and how brands can position themselves for success amidst changing media landscapes.

Catherine's Links

(Linkedin)

Noah's Links

(Linkedin)

(brxnd.ai)

04:43 – AI in Advertising: How the advertising industry is embracing AI for creativity, targeting, and efficiency.

07:45 – Brand Renewal Through Experimentation: The role of AI in driving brand reinvention and creative risk-taking.

12:49 – AI Tools & Brand Identity: Balancing AI-generated content with quality control and brand authenticity.

14:22 – Data Sharing Dilemmas: Navigating the privacy, trust, and security challenges of AI data sharing.

19:45 – Rethinking Branding Fundamentals: Examining how AI is reshaping the core principles of branding.

20:49 – Global Brand Consistency: Leveraging AI to ensure cohesive brand experiences across international markets.

Welcome to another exciting episode of AI Innovators with Rob May! In this episode, we dive deep into the intersection of artificial intelligence and risk analysis with Scott Weller, co-founder of Enfi AI.

• Scott shares his insights on how AI is transforming the credit industry by streamlining the underwriting process, making commercial lending more efficient, and, ultimately, boosting economic growth.
• Rob and Scott discuss the challenges and solutions surrounding AI's role in financial services, including dealing with LLM hallucinations and building agent-based systems.
• Scott also reflects on the evolution of digital coworkers and their role in the future workforce.
• Whether you're an entrepreneur, technologist, or simply curious about AI's impact, this episode is packed with valuable insights on staying ahead in the AI-driven world. Tune in to explore the future possibilities with AI experts leading the charge!

Episode Highlights:

• Efficient Credit Analysis: Scott highlights how AI can streamline credit risk assessment by automating mundane tasks, allowing analysts to focus on more complex decision-making, ultimately enabling banks to lend more efficiently.
• Agent-Based Systems: He discusses the development of agentic systems that are fine-tuned to specific tasks, helping reduce errors like hallucinations and improving overall system reliability in data-heavy environments like finance.
• Future of Digital Workforces: Scott envisions a future where digital coworkers, empowered by natural language processing, work alongside humans to enhance productivity and drive innovation in various industries.

Scott's Links

(Linkedin)

(enfi.ai)

01:00 - Streamlining Credit Risk Assessment.

03:53 - "Agent Systems for Controlled AI Tasks."

08:12 - Future: Human-AI Workforce Collaboration.

13:19 - "Automate Mundane for Success."

16:16 - Trustworthy AI Models for Financial Services.

19:32 - Challenges in Agent Planning Accuracy.

21:34 - Optimizing Task Execution Plans.

24:05 - Join ENFI AI: AI Partnerships Invited.

Welcome to another episode of AI Innovators with Rob May, where we explore the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on various industries.

In this episode, we're joined by the insightful Karen Hao, a freelance journalist known for her expertise in AI and technology reporting.

Karen shares her unique journey from a mechanical engineering background to becoming a leading journalist covering AI advancements, initially at MIT Technology Review.

Together, Rob and Karen dive into pressing topics such as the current landscape of AI ethics, the rapid developments in AI capabilities, and the ongoing global competition in the AI space, particularly between the US and China.

Karen also provides a sneak peek into her forthcoming book on OpenAI, promising an in-depth look at one of the most influential companies in AI today.

Tune in to hear their thought-provoking discussion on the societal impacts of AI, the challenges of maintaining ethical standards in an ever-evolving field, and the importance of fostering international collaboration for the benefit of all.

00:42 - Karen Hao's career and unexpected start in AI journalism.

01:11 - Karen Hao's initial reluctance to cover AI and eventual realization of its significance.

02:31 - Exploration of AI research and its societal impacts.

03:31 - Society's preparedness to handle AI's ethical dilemmas.

03:59 - Complex world challenges ethical AI development.

05:33 - Race against time in AI development versus ethical consideration.

05:39 - Deep Seek's impact and reflection on AI industry's scaling beliefs.

07:45 - Thoughts on hardware as the only moat in AI development.

09:07 - Public market reactions and AI defensibility concerns.

10:30 - Discussion on AI hardware innovation and talent.

12:01 - Societal costs demand efficient AI hardware and software.

13:02 - Ethical concerns in AI development supply chains.

13:34 - Hope for innovative solutions to AI's power consumption.

14:30 - Silicon Valley's AGI obsession and skepticism.

15:29 - AGI's shifting definition and its relevance in AI development.

17:12 - Concerns over ideological divides hampering AI dialogue.

17:50 - US-China AI competition narrative's incorrectness.

19:37 - Importance of international collaboration in AI research.

20:20 - Shift from competition to cooperation for global AI progress.

20:42 - Book recommendation: "Non Zero" by Robert Wright.

20:49 - Karen Hao's book announcement and its focus on OpenAI.

21:18 - Inside story of OpenAI and future AI implications.

Karen Hao's Links

(Linkedin)