Today's guest is Kalika Bali, Senior Principal Researcher atMicrosoft Research India. In the episode, Kalika talks about her intriguing journey and impactful work, as well as peeling back the layers of how accidental moments can shape careers and how language technologies are transforming lives worldwide.

Topics include:

0:00 Her unconventional journey into the world oflinguistics

2:11 Her role as researcher at Microsoft with a focus onmultilingual, inclusive tech

6:19 Making tech accessible across languages, cultures andbiases

12:56 Promoting gender-aware AI, not gender-neutral blindspots

15:43 Using AI for idea generation, emails and feedback inher daily life

18:25 How AI speeds up research, especially literaturereviews

20:36 Why language tech preserves identity, not just ensuresaccess

23:41 Advice to focus on meaningful problems, not fleetingAI trends