Magnified with Matt Cooper

Shane Kenny is a well-known Irish journalist and broadcaster, primarily associated with RTÉ Radio 1.

Kenny is notable for launching and being the first editor of RTÉ's flagship radio news program, Morning Ireland. He also served as a news anchor for News at One and This Week, and was RTÉ's US correspondent for ABC network.

In addition to his journalism career, Kenny served as the press secretary for the Irish government from 1994 to 1997. .

His latest book is titled "Under the Rainbow: Inside John Bruton's Coalition Government" and in this episode he discusses how the book provides an insider account of the Fine Gael, Labour, and Democratic Left coalition government led by John Bruton from late 1994 to June 1997. The book covers significant events such as the Northern Ireland peace process, the Veronica Guerin murder, the 'payments to politicians' tribunal, and the divorce referendum.

Shane also opens up about his personal health struggles, particularly with chronic pain and the side effects of benzodiazepines

This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Eoghan Murphy, the former Fine Gael Housing Minister, has recently published a memoir titled "Running From Office: Confessions of Ambition and Failure in Politics". The book, provides an unflinching insight into his time in office, detailing the personal and political challenges he faced.

Murphy's memoir is described as brutally honest and sometimes harrowing, yet surprisingly funny, offering a deeply personal view of the life of a modern politician12. It covers his tenure as Ireland's Minister for Housing, a role marked by significant criticism and controversy

In this week's episode Eoghan joins Matt to discuss the book, his turbulent time in politics and the impact it's had on his life since.

This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Gavin Friday's latest album, "Ecce Homo," has just been realesed. This album marks his first solo release in 13 years and features a mix of thundering electronics and exquisite acoustics. Produced by Dave Ball of Soft Cell and Michael Heffernan, the album explores themes of loss, nostalgia, unity, and defiance.

In this week's episode of Magnified, Matt invited Gavin on to discuss the inspiration for the album, the bullying in and outside the classroom that shaped him, the life changing experience of seeing Bowie at the peak of his Ziggy Stardust powers as a teen and the formation of The Virgin Prunes. Bono gets a look in too of course.

This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Series 5 of Magnified with Matt Cooper is back and for the first episode Matt is joined by two of the greatest hurlers to ever do it, Joe Canning and Richie Hogan both of whom have two excellent autobiographies out at the moment.

In a chat fittingly recorded in front of a live audience in Croke Park, the two greats discuss their remarkable careers, just some of their many historic moments and who THEY think rank amongst the best hurlers of all time.

This series is brought to you by Close Brothers Motor Finance.

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper , a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland.

For the fifth and special bonus episode of this AI Magnified series, we're going live from A.I.B on Molesworth St to hear from an expert panel and their perspectives on leveraging AI to drive innovation, improve efficiency, and enhance decision making within SMEs.

On the panel:

Stuart Fitzgerald is Chief Executive of Fitzgerald Power, which is a firm focused on accountancy services with a commitment to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic informed decisions. And as an established leader, he can provide insights into how AI is impacting traditional industries, such as accounting and finance, and share practical steps for other businesses to begin integrating AI.

Tariq Zaki is CTO of Shopbox AI, which is an AI driven e commerce solution focused on customer experience and personalization. He has a deep understanding of the retail sector and he's going to offer us insights into how AI is revolutionizing retail. Customer engagement and sales processes.

Jane Tolan is head of AI at AIB, responsible for designing and implementation of an AI strategy within a major financial institution. She's going to bring us her perspective on how AI can support transformation in large scale regulated industries.

Igor Kochajkiewicz is the head of product design at Nori, and he designed a hospitality OS that helps its users make better business decisions every day. He was previously lead product designer at Glowfox, a B2B SaaS serving the fitness industry worldwide, and head of design at Kuhaba, an award winning digital agency in Dublin and Berlin.

And finally, Michael Corcoran is co founder of Frankly, a social media agency. He has extensive experience in digital and social media, places like Paddy Power and Reiner, and he's going to share his insights on how AI is transforming customer interactions and marketing.

This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper , a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland.

Joining Matt this week are:

Kieran McCorry is the National Technology Officer for Microsoft Ireland. With over 29 years of experience in the technology industry, he plays a key role in representing Microsoft to various audiences in Ireland, focusing on technology leadership, AI, trust, technology vision, strategic alignment, and policy.

Feargal O’Rourke retired from professional services firm PwC in October 2023 after 37 years there,  the last 8 of which he was Managing Partner. He has worked in the Foreign Direct Investment area for almost all of his professional career, focussing mainly, but not exclusively, on companies from the West Coast of the US setting up in Ireland and Europe. He was appointed as chairperson of the I.D.A earlier this year.

In the spiode we hear from Kieran about Microsoft's approach and investment in AI here in ireland, the role of proper data governance and working with Chat GPT. Feargal offers insights into the investment opportunities for Irish companies with A.I, how politicians are using it and whether Ireland is being too complacent in keeping up with developments.

This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper, a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland. From business, education, the legal system and health, AI is set to revolutionise so many aspects of our lives and in the series Matt will be speaking to some of the leading experts to get their unique insight and analysis.

This week's guests are: Elaine Coughlan, Elaine is a co-Founder and General Partner of Atlantic Bridge Capital a Global Growth Equity Technology Fund with over $450 million of assets under management, and over $300m of co-investment from Limited Partners. Elaine has over 20 year’s operational experience as CFO/COO in scaling technology companies with extensive operational and M&A experience.

Sean Mitchell is the Chairman and Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Ubotica Technologies. He has over 25 years of experience in senior executive management, marketing, and technical roles, particularly in designing imaging, graphics, and DSP processors, as well as AI and computer vision technologies

Patrick McNally is the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Equal1, a company focused on democratizing quantum computing. Equal1 is known for its innovative approach to quantum computing, particularly through their UnityQ chip, which integrates quantum and classical computing components on a single silicon chip. This technology aims to make quantum computing more accessible and scalable, leveraging existing semiconductor technology to achieve significant advancements.

Here they discuss how ireland can compete in the AI market, what areas need the most strategic investment and the role can Quantum Computing can play.

This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper, a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland. From business, education, the legal system and health, AI is set to revolutionise so many aspects of our lives and in the series Matt will be speaking to some of the leading experts to get their unique insight and analysis.

In this week's episode Matt is joined by Bronagh Riordan, a notable figure in the field of data and analytics. She previously served as the Head of Data and Analytics at Primark and has been appointed as the chair of CeADAR, Ireland's Centre for Applied AI. This appointment makes her the first female chair of any technology centre in Ireland.

Lawrence Vesey is a prominent figure in the consulting industry, currently serving as a Partner at Sia Partners in the UK and Ireland. He has over 25 years of experience in business transformation practice and has significant experience delivering major technology and transformation programs across various industries such as Financial Services, Healthcare, Agribusiness, Transport, and Utilities. Lawrence was one of the founders of Pathfinder, which became a leading independent consulting firm in Ireland before merging with Sia Partners in 2020.

Here they discuss the 'demystification' of AI, issues around data protection and security and what is the best approach for businesses to navigate their journey into AI.

This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Welcome to AI - Magnified with Matt Cooper, a Magnified Plus series that looks to examine the present possibilities and future impact of AI here in Ireland. From business, education, the legal system and health, AI is set to revolutionise so many aspects of our lives and in the series Matt will be speaking to some of the leading experts to get their unique insight and analysis.

Our first two guests on the Magnify Plus series definitely suit the criteria. Patricia Scanlon is the country's AI ambassador, the objective of which is to develop, build and facilitate strong public trust in AI as a force for societal good. The role of the AI Ambassador includes leading a national conversation on the role of AI in our lives, emphasising Ireland’s commitment to an ethical approach to the use of the technology and in particular its adoption by enterprise.

Also with us, John Clancy from Galvia, a Galway company that has an innovative AI programme to provide businesses of any size with easy-to-use AI tools. He also has fascinating opinions as to where we're going in Ireland with AI in businesses.

This series is proudly sponsored by Fitzgerald Power. More than just accountants, Fitzgerald Power is a trusted partner for its clients. The firm is committed to empowering businesses with deeper financial insights, helping them make strategic, informed decisions

Daniel McConnell is one of Ireland's most respected and forward thinking journalists. Prior to being appointed editor of the Business Post, he was political editor of the Irish Examiner since 2015, and is the recipient of Newsbrands Ireland national journalist of the year and political journalist of the year.

He previously worked as group political correspondent and chief reporter at Independent News and Media, now Mediahuis Ireland, between 2006 and 2015, as well as at the Irish Times and the Sunday Times.

His 2016 book Hell At the Gates, published by Mercier Press, covered the downfall of the Brian Cowen government and was a national best seller.

In this week's episode Matt joines his boss to discuss the state of play of journalism in ireland, the role of RTE and how newspapers can futureproof themselves in an ever changing market.

We also hear how he could have been the next Thom Yorke. Enjoy!