I speak with Dr. Kevin J. Jones, Associate Professor of Management and AI Strategist at Indiana University Columbus, about the competencies we should be developing the AI age. Kevin and I met at World Summit AI in Amsterdam in October 2024, while speaking on the panel "Beyond the hype: Navigating the AI ecosystem to ensure best value for business" together.

We cover the importance of discernment in the AI age, the "age of accelerated transformation", the impact of AI on the undergraduate experience, the potential negative impact of AI on creativity, systems thinking, design thinking, and more.

After I posted this viral TikTok about Tin Can (landlines for kids), I reached out to founder Chet Kittleson to learn more about the company. In this episode, we chat all things Tin Can, landlines, and what changes parents have reported in their children as a result of landline use.

In this mini episode, I detail my four principles of sociotechnical design. Sociotechnical design works to improve the relationship between people and technology, prioritizing joint optimization. I speak about psychogeography (the effect of place on our emotions and behavior), non-places, hypercommunication, and more.

I developed these four principles over the last nine years, and presented them at the 7th Nordic Science and Technology Studies conference at Stockholm University in June (the week before my wedding!). These principles can be used to improve organizations, as well as everyday life more generally.

Whipsmart Media and Get Started With AI founder Jonathan McCrea and I speak about the future of AI, how to close the gap in AI knowledge between big businesses and small enterprises, technology and communication, AI transformation and facilitated brainstorns, situated learning, tools like Stanford's STORM, ethical implications of AI, tips on making your way through the overwhelming digital world, and more.

Jonathan is also the host of Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea, a weekly science podcast.

Steve Rathje, Incoming Assistant Professor of Human Computer Interaction at Carnegie Mellon University, joins us to kick off season three of Progression to Analog! You may know Steve from his TikTok @stevepsychology (1M+ followers). We discuss the psychology of virality and why info spreads offline and online, the paradox of virality and why people share negative content online even though they claim to not want negative content, smartphone bans, cross-cultural social media trends, and more.

I came across Swipe: Being Online 24/7 at McNally Jackson in lower Manhattan a few months ago and was drawn by the unique nature of the book. Swipe presents questions about the smartphone that the users may not have asked themselves, with a unique collection of images, phrases, and stories. The book is divided into five sections: SURVIVAL, SENSE OF SELF, HABITS, RESOURCES, and EXISTENTIAL CRISIS.

In this episode of Progression to Analog, I interview Amsterdam-based Ieva Jakusa, one of the authors of Swipe. Swipe was co-authored with Mieke Gerritzen, with Next Nature. We speak about the book, smartphone habits, and the smartphone's influence on everyday life.

More about Ieva: Ieva Jakusa is an Amsterdam-based Latvian artist, researcher and and graphic designer, a graduate of Design Academy Eindhoven, and currently completing her MA at the Royal Academy of Arts, The Hague, with a focus on research-driven artistic practices. Her work has been supported by Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst, Stimuleringsfonds, and the Latvian State Culture Capital Foundation. She is the author of SWIPE. Your World in the Pocket (BIS Publishers) and I Grew Up in the Blockhouse (Zuzeum) have collaborated with institutions such as Next Nature and Hamburg University City Science Lab. Her work has been exhibited at the Nationaal Archief, Van Abbemuseum, Kim Contemporary Art Centre, and Milan Design Week.

"I think we have a listening problem" -Stephanie from NYC (name changed)

I interview six people, explore expert opinions (and share my own) re: why it can be tough to have difficult conversations today.

Can scrolling be good for you? Yes, if you take out the doom. I explore different perspectives on scrolling, based on Harvard Medical School research, and a perspective from a UVA Professor on 'hope scrolling'.

From a ⁠Baudrillardian (versus ⁠Bostrum-esque)⁠ angle of simulation theory, I discuss why we live in a simulation, what that means in terms of everyday life, and how we can deal with it.

"THE SIMULACRUM IS NEVER WHAT HIDES THE TRUTH—IT IS TRUTH THAT HIDES THE FACT THAT THERE IS NONE. THE SIMULACRUM IS TRUE."

-Jean Baudrillard, Simulacra and Simulation (1981)

A year ago today, I launched the trailer for Progression to Analog. Twelve months later, I'm reflecting on what a year it was—speaking about Progression to Analog at conferences and universities across the United States and Europe.

From Columbia University and keynoting AESC in New York; to re:publica and Tech Open Air in Berlin; to MOME and Brain Bar in Budapest; to World Summit AI in Amsterdam, I shared the core tenants of Progression to Analog and sociotechnical design with thousands live, as well as listeners across 39 countries. I can't wait for what's ahead! Tune in next Wednesday for more.