On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Marinela Profi, a leading expert in AI and the Global AI and Generative AI Marketing Strategy Lead at SAS.

Marinela has a wealth of experience at the intersection of data science, artificial intelligence, and strategic marketing. At SAS, she has been instrumental in crafting global marketing strategies for cutting-edge AI solutions, helping organizations worldwide leverage AI to drive innovation, enhance productivity, and achieve operational efficiencies.

Today, Marinela will share insights from the recent SAS Generative AI Global Research Report, and we will both delve into how organizations are approaching generative AI, the benefits they're seeing, and the challenges they're facing in areas like governance, compliance, and skill gaps.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The SAS Generative AI Global Research Report interviewed 1600 organisations from 16 different countries from all continents so the data would be as diverse and include as many voices as possible. The results found that the top 2 players are China and the US. China leads the world with usage (83% said they have adopted the technology and are experimenting with it) while the US leads in implementation and maturity.

Generative AI truly allows organisations to enhance operational efficiency while improving employees’ experience through more personalise, streamlined, accessible resources. Ultimately what generative AI is doing, at a high level, is creating a more agile, responsive and engaging workplace for employees. However, there are things we need to think about.

Generative AI is not delivering the same value to all employees, from business users to business analysts, data scientists, IT people, marketers. They each see different kinds of benefits, but at the same time they need to be aware that there are different kinds if risks and they are asking themselves different kinds of questions.

Having governance in place is one of the top challenges between winning and failing with generative AI. When you don’t have governance frameworks in place (and the report shows that the majority of organisations are not thinking about this), there are a lot of risks that you could incur. Ethical risks, compliance and legal issues, intellectual property risks, and security vulnerabilities.

BEST MOMENTS

‘Higher adoption and implementation doesn’t necessarily equate to effective implementation and effective returns.’

‘Banking is one of the top markets for generative AI implementation even though you may think it would face the most challenges because of being a highly regulated industry.’

‘AI’s answers may sound convincing, but how do users ensure accuracy? By prompting more effectively.’

‘Generative AI is being used worldwide in either sharing information that is right or creating positive engagement, or misinformation. Governance allows to make sure that we are not incurring any ethical concerns.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Marinela Profi helps organizations move from AI hype to trusted impact. As Global Market Strategy Lead for AI, GenAI, and Agentic AI at SAS, she works with enterprises in financial services, healthcare, and government to build AI systems that don’t just act fast—but act responsibly.

With an MBA and a Master’s in Statistics and AI, Marinela bridges two worlds: translating complex data science into clear business strategy. Her work focuses on how agentic AI—intelligent systems that perceive, reason, and act autonomously—can deliver governed, explainable decisions instead of black-box predictions.

A frequent keynote speaker at international AI and analytics events, she shares insights on the evolution from generative to agentic AI and the new frontier of AI governance, trust, and human-AI collaboration. Marinela is also an Advisory Board Member for Wake Technical Community College’s Data Science Program, helping shape future-ready curricula that connect classroom learning with real-world AI innovation.

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Adrian Mendoza, founder and general partner of Mendoza Ventures, whose inspirational journey sees him go from a first-generation Mexican-American to a tech-exit success who turned it into a platform for empowering others. He’s a living embodiment of the power of perseverance and vision.

On this episode, Adrian shares his insights on everything from pitfalls to how to deal with corporate life, and building a corporate innovation lab to the art of securing strategic investments.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

It was very rare to find an operator/founder who was also an investor in 2015, but we had a lot of experience meeting people with domain expertise who would come to us because they’d invested in us through funds. VC was a black box that would never connect to founders. We theorised there was significant potential to break that black box open and connect founders with investors who had operational and domain expertise.

Venture has been very localised. When we first looked at the landscape, we realised there was an opportunity to find incredible talent that wasn’t the kids that went to Oxford or Stanford, because you’re missing out on everything in between. One of our first investments was two Latinos who were working at RSA security and left because they had an idea, they didn’t have Ivy League educations, they were domain experts. That company returned 10x to us in 5 months.

For us, DE&I is not just about black, brown, and female identities, but also about age diversity, veterans, and people from rural areas. If you’re going to look at equity and inclusion, it can just be within a sub-segment because then it’s incredibly hard to find talent. We want to find talent no matter where it is and what it looks like.

To achieve the best outcomes, you cannot be a passive investor; you have to help find customers and investors, mentor these individuals because they’ve never run a company with 80-100 people before, and help them find the talent and ways into mainstream financial institutions or corporates. 

BEST MOMENTS

‘No one looked like us, there were no women or Latinos writing venture cheques, we didn’t know that we were one of the first Latinx Venture Funds on the East Coast until individuals in private equity told us.’

There are incredible talents in corporations in rural areas of the Midwest that no one’s touching, out there having ideas and building companies. We invest in this talent because we look like that talent.’

‘60% of California is Latino, if we’re looking at being representative of that area, then 60% of the capital should be going to Latinos. Most states are 50% women, 50% ofthe  capital should be going to women.’

‘Our references aren’t just the investors, they’re the founders that we backed and those that we’ve had exits with.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Adrian Mendoza is the founder and general partner at Mendoza Ventures, a Latinx- and woman-owned VC fund that is the first Latinx-founded VC fund on the East Coast. His firm focuses on investments in Fintech, AI, and Cybersecurity, with diversity playing an important role in their investment decisions—about 80% of their portfolio consists of startups led by immigrants, people of colour, and women. Since its founding seven years ago, Mendoza Ventures has raised two funds and had two successful exits. The firm is currently raising its third fund, a $100M fintech fund anchored by Bank of America, focused on early growth funding rounds. In 2022, Axios Magazine listed Adrian as one of the five most influential people in Boston, and the LA Times honoured Adrian as a DEI visionary as one of California’s most prominent game-changers and thought leaders in the business world today. Adrian is also a regular contributor on CNBC on the state of Venture capital in the US, and the firm has recently been covered in Forbes, Bloomberg, and The Boston Globe.

Mendoza Ventures and Mendoza Impact

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Marcy Axelrod, a bestselling and award-winning author, TV contributor, two-time TEDx speaker, and renowned management consultant. Her latest book, "How We Choose to Show Up," has recently been honoured with the prestigious Hayakawa Book Prize.

In today's conversation, we'll dive deep into the concepts from her book: The idea of "Showing Up"—the invisible system connecting us to our society, our situations, ourselves, and each other, how understanding and embracing the way we choose to show up can lead to a happier, more effective, and balanced life – whether we're parenting, coaching, playing, empowering others, or steering a global company.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

At 6 years old we moved from Baltimore to Boston, my older sibling wanted nothing to do with me and I needed something I wasn’t getting. There was no one making me feel felt, which is what all humans need, and rather than act out I acted in and took it out on myself, I developed a stutter which led to me losing the ability to speak.

Back through time to when we lived in caves we were never just in one role. We were always individuals distinct from, but also we were always a member of a family, a tribe, and we were at the whim of the environment. My book says that we were not designed to show up as inward facing individuals, we’re designed in 3 roles: We’re a discreet self (but not separate from), we’re a situation member, and we’re defined by a society there that creates who we are, and we create it as part of the collective.

The model of how we can show up is easy for anyone to intuit, I’ve just put it on paper. Level one is burned out, stressed, not engaged, you can’t show up in a meaningful way – and there are valid reasons for this that we all go through as part of life. Level 2 is just showing up, just getting stuff done – this isn’t bad, we have to be there some of the time with a narrow, deep focus that is tactical and practical. Level 3 is truly showing up.

There’s a believe system behind how humans are designed to show up, and it’s an important one because it gets us back into the flow of how nature designed us. There’s nothing cultish, woo-woo, or mystical, it simply recognises you can’t have up without down, left without right, or some version of individual without there being a society collective.

BEST MOMENTS

‘I became a natural and deeply driven observer of how other are showing up, and I saw that they can show up as they choose, and yet they are not choosing.’

‘Our bodies are sensing flow systems, the skin exists because we can feel the world; temperature, pressure, motion, movement, the granularity and nuance of what we can perceive is awe inspiring.’

‘A big part of the ‘showing up continuum’, and what it means to be a level 3, is recognising what and who we truly are.’

‘Some people wake up at 5am and get more done before 8am than some of us do in a day, but sometimes they can burn out and stress about things. We all dance along the continuum.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Marcy Axelrod is a bestselling and award-winning author, esteemed TV contributor, and dynamic 2X TEDx speaker. With a robust career as a management consultant, she has earned recognition and accolades, including the prestigious Hayakawa Book Prize for her latest work, "How We Choose to Show Up." This groundbreaking book is the culmination of over 20 years of research, offering a revolutionary 3-D model of human thriving that has transformed the lives of thousands.

Website

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Theodora (Theo) Lau, the founder of Unconventional Ventures, where she spearheads efforts to create an ecosystem that brings financial institutions, startups, and venture capitalists to meet the diverse needs of consumers, particularly older adults and gig economy workers.

In today's conversation, we'll delve into the evolving landscape of fintech, exploring the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Theo will share her insights on fostering corporate-startup collaborations, now called Venture Clienting, leveraging technology for social good, and building a more inclusive financial ecosystem. We'll also touch on her recent work, including her books "Beyond Good" and "Metaverse Economy," which explore the future of finance and the role of technology in shaping it.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The world of FinTech is about money movement and how we get people from point A to point B. You got to a bank or online lender for a loan for a house, or saving up for your children for retirement, these are both moving from A to B. There are more player in this space over the last few years using technology and “super-apps” to allow access to micro-loans, access to insurance, saving money and paying people.

What gets me really excited about AI isn’t the ChatGPTs of the world, it’s how we apply it and how we can change how we do things. For example, how do we use that to help small businesses? How can we create a connection between financial institutions and the people that they serve? Those are more interesting use cases that I’d like to see more.  

A lot of people in the industry are very hung up on whether it is or isn’t a bank. From a consumer perspective, they simply need a means to save or do ‘x’. From their perspective they’re interfacing with an app, not a specific bank. The most important thing is that consumers are protected and not exposed to predatory measures/practices.

Do I trust the entity that is giving me advice? Do I trust a faceless algorithm? How do I know they’re acting on my best interests? For it to work I need to expose all of my financial interests to this tool, which goes back to trust.

BEST MOMENTS

‘With things like Apple’s savings account, why would people need a regular bank account?’

‘We need to focus on why consumers go a specific route and have the tools to help them spend responsibly.’

‘We all need information, and we need to be more informed on where we are from a financial well-being perspective.’

‘It’s really hard to create an AI to be a CFO in your pocket, autopiloting your finances. We’re not there yet, but hopefully we will be.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Theodora (Theo) Lau is a dynamic public speaker, writer, and startup advisor who is dedicated to inspiring innovation and enhancing consumer financial well-being. As the founder of Unconventional Ventures, Theo focuses on building and nurturing an ecosystem that includes financial institutions, corporations, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists, all united to address the unmet needs of consumers, particularly older adults and gig economy workers. She has a strong commitment to supporting women and minority founders and regularly mentors and advises FinTech startups.

LinkedIn

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Ian Chamandy, a truly inspiring guest who has mastered the art of helping businesses and individuals unlock their unique potential.

In today's conversation, we'll explore:

The importance of a clear and concise purpose statement for startups seeking investment and corporate clients.

How to uncover and articulate the unique value proposition that sets your business apart in a crowded market.

The role of storytelling in attracting investors and fostering strong client relationships.

Practical steps startups can take to align all parts of their business towards a common goal.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

I was originally a copywriter, and I found it all so generic, banal, and cliché-driven. I was frustrated because I wanted to get to the true authenticity of the company/brand/product/service. I asked an art director to make me a sign that says: “Is that true?” and I taped it to the wall behind my typewriter. It didn’t improve my copywriting, but it did begin a journey to get to the root of authenticity.

Once you have an expression of what makes you uniquely remarkable, you can use it to define the 2 broad activities of the organisation: What is everything that it does (operations, product development, service/product delivery), and everything it says (branding, marketing, sales)?

Step 1 is to find your gift; the one thing that makes you uniquely remarkable. Once you define what that is you’ve really got to the root and the true authenticity of who you are. Because you’ve articulated that you can use it as a guide for how you live, it’s a tool that helps you make decisions when faced with a problem or challenge, and how to deal with or avoid it, depending on how it aligns with your purpose.

The reason organisations struggle to be clear about what makes them unique to their customer segment annoys me immensely. I believe the single most important strategic asset of any organisation is knowing what makes it uniquely remarkable. That’s your basis for differentiation, but 98% of companies around the world don’t know what that is. 

BEST MOMENTS

‘We define the one thing at the essence of the organisation that makes it uniquely remarkable, there’s always one thing, in 7 words or less.’

‘My definition of purpose is: Your purpose in life is to find your gift and share it with the world.’

‘If you dig deep enough, figure out what it is, and articulate it in a clear, concise, and compelling way, then you can live that life for your business by design, actively, intentionally, rather than having it working in the background without knowing it’s exerting its influence.’

‘We’re so focused on short-term gains that we forget that the short-term gains happen because of our long-term planning and our understanding of who our company is.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Ian Chamandy is an author, speaker, coach, and strategist with over 20 years of experience helping organizations define their purpose and become uniquely remarkable. Through his proprietary Blueprint process, Ian has assisted more than 400 CEOs and organizations in transitioning from traditional management to purpose-driven approaches, resulting in enhanced focus, increased employee motivation and retention, and boosted sales.

The Blueprint process involves identifying the one thing that makes an organization uniquely remarkable—in seven words or less—and leveraging it to design how the organization operates and communicates. This distilled purpose becomes the foundation for making a company consistently and sustainably remarkable. By knowing their root superpower, companies can align all parts of the business toward a common goal and effectively communicate their full value.

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Dawn Herndon, a visionary leader at the forefront of artificial intelligence innovation. With a profound passion for technology and its transformative impact on society, Dawn is spearheading IBM's efforts in embeddable AI and the groundbreaking watsonx platform. 

Her work is revolutionizing how organizations across industries integrate AI into their products and services, enabling real-time data processing, decision-making, and automation directly within applications and devices. Dawn will share her insights on the challenges and opportunities organizations face when integrating AI, the importance of trustworthy and responsible AI, and her vision for the future trends in our rapidly evolving landscape.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

BEST MOMENTS

‘What is your company trying to solve and how can we work together to leverage technology that helps you solve that initiative and helps you drive that outcome you’re trying to achieve?’

‘We want to make sure it’s tangible for an organisation and we do that by using an AI assistant, which doesn’t just provide a conversational AI-based interface but integrations to back-end systems.’

‘Once a person joins an organisation and becomes an employee, watsonx orchestrate provides that ability for a manager to take action on anything to do with employee relations, like processing a salary increase.’

‘Productivity is an ambiguous word that can be applied to so many different situations within companies, AI can improve that productivity across your enterprise.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Dawn Herndon is an experienced global business leader with over 25 years at IBM, demonstrating expertise across functional areas, general management, and strategic partnerships. Currently serving as the IBM Vice President of EMEA Build Ecosystem and AI Partnerships, Dawn is at the forefront of the evolution of AI, focusing on embedding AI and watsonx. She spearheads the development of strategic partnerships that drive innovation and deliver value for organizations across industries and market segments.

LinkedIn

IBM PartnerPlus

IBM Watsonx

IBM Embeddable AI

IBM Podcast

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Ola Jacob, Business Development Director for the UK & Ireland at Descartes Underwriting, a specialist Parametric Insurance MGA and Insurer.

On today's episode, Ola will provide an educational deep dive into the world of parametric insurance. He'll explain what parametric insurance is, how it differs from traditional insurance, and why it is gaining traction as a data-driven solution to cover risks like natural catastrophes. 

Ola will share real-world examples of how parametric insurance has provided significant value to corporate clients and industries adopting this innovative approach as part of their risk management strategies.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

BEST MOMENTS

‘If you add parametric to indemnity, it could really be a game changer that could change the face of how we do insurance forever.’

‘I’ve always wanted to come in and do something to help change insurance for the better with technology.’

‘In parametric products, the parameters must be measurable and independent, something that’s not controllable by somebody else, like weather.’

‘Clients recover, using parametric insurance, with 10X less limit than they’d previously because of the speed of payout. And they’d planned how they would use that payout because they already knew what they were going to get if this event happened.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

When recording this podcast, Ola Jacob was the Business Development Director for the UK & Ireland at Descartes Underwriting, a specialist Parametric Insurance MGA and Insurer covering Natural Catastrophe exposure globally. He is today the Business Development Director at Global Parametrics.

With over 13 years of experience in the London Market Insurance Sector, Ola has worked on UK Retail, Product Recall, Terrorism, Onshore Energy, and Parametric insurance.

Ola's background in Human-Computer Interaction and Psychology has fueled his passion for developing new approaches to risk transfer and managing risk for clients. As one of the pioneers of parametric insurance, Ola helped build a distribution strategy for one of the first successful parametric solutions in the London Market. In 2024, he was named Insurance Times Technology Champion of the Year for his innovative work.

LinkedIn

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Barbara Maheshwari, CEO and co-founder of Remote Bob, a game-changing virtual assistance hub that's redefining how entrepreneurs and businesses operate in our increasingly fast-moving digital world. Barbara is not just a successful founder; she's a go-to-market consultant, a sought-after speaker, and a startup scout for ABC Accelerator.

With her finger on the pulse of the future of work, Barbara has helped countless businesses navigate the complexities of remote staff augmentation and achieve remarkable growth. Today, we'll be diving deep into Barbara's expertise, exploring the trends shaping the future of work, and uncovering valuable insights for scaleup ventures.

KEY TAKEAWAYS                                                                                                                                        

The gig economy is characterised by an increasing preference for flexible, project-based work arrangements. This trend is driven by both workers seeking more autonomy and employers looking for cost-effective, on-demand talent. The gig economy allows individuals to work on multiple projects for different clients, often remotely, which can lead to a more diversified skill set and work experience

BEST MOMENTS

‘The global gig economy has seen substantial growth, with the World Bank estimating that there are approximately 435 million gig workers worldwide.’

‘The number of gig workers has increased dramatically, with a 170% rise between 2019 and 2021. This growth is driven by various factors, including economic pressures such as inflation, which has led 63% of workers to turn to gig work.’

‘The digital nomad community is also expanding rapidly. Estimates for 2023 indicate that there are around 40 million digital nomads globally.’

‘Digital nomads are a diverse group, with no single generation, profession, or socio-economic class dominating. While they tend to skew young and male, one-third are female, and 54% are over the age of 38.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Barbara Maheshwari is the CEO and co-founder of Remote Bob, a virtual assistance hub that connects entrepreneurs with skilled virtual assistants. With an MBA from COTRUGLI Business School, Barbara brings a wealth of experience as a business consultant and go-to-market strategist. Her expertise lies in helping business owners solve their most pressing challenges and scale their operations efficiently. As a speaker and startup scout for ABC Accelerator, Barbara is deeply embedded in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, constantly seeking innovative solutions to the evolving landscape of work.

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Sri Ramaswamy, the founder and CEO of Charlee.ai, with over 22 years of experience in advanced analytics and artificial intelligence. Sri has emerged as a formidable leader in the insurance technology landscape.

But Sri's story goes beyond her professional accomplishments. As a thought leader and mentor in the InsurTech community, she is breaking barriers in our traditionally male-dominated industry, championing diversity, and inspiring the next generation of female entrepreneurs. 

Join us as we delve into Sri's remarkable journey, exploring the challenges she faced, the triumphs she achieved, and her unwavering vision for Charlee.ai's future and the broader tech landscape.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

BEST MOMENTS

‘I owe my career in the technology space to data.’

‘Claims are the promise of the insurance contract. It’s here you get to know how the exposures you priced at the beginning are performing at the end.’

‘Some exposures that are beyond your control, like the weather and climate, but the exposures and severity behind that are huge.’

‘Attorneys being brought into the process are third parties that nobody benefits from.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Sri Ramaswamy: Over 22+ years of experience in advanced analytics and artificial intelligence.

Founder and CEO of Charlee.ai, the insurance industry's first NLP-based predictive analytics solution. What makes Charlee unique is our patented, proprietary, and pre-trained claim language model. It adds context to the predictions, provides deep, insight-based alerts, reveals patterns and prior trends, and prioritises claim lists for enhanced claim workflows. 

As a certified associate in risk management, I have a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the P&C insurance sector, and I am passionate about leveraging unstructured data to drive financial outcomes and innovation.

I have architected and launched data analytics solutions for underwriting and claims, and have patented Charlee.ai's AI, NLP, and ML-based technology that can extract and analyse data from all sources, including documents, files, third-party data, and social media. Charlee.ai helps insurers lower claim costs, manage reserves efficiently, and improve risk selection through individual claim insights and an aggregate claims analytics dashboard. I am a thought leader and speaker on operational use of unstructured data, and a mentor for the InsurTech community. I also enjoy learning about astronomy, hiking, and yoga.

Read the article on Claims Litigation Management 

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Amrit Santhirasenan, Co-founder and CEO of hyperexponential (hx). With a unique blend of actuarial expertise and software engineering, Amrit has spent over a decade in the Lloyd’s of London market, shaping the future of insurance analytics.

We'll delve into the world of insurance pricing for complex risk decisions and explore the transformative potential of decision intelligence. 

Amrit will share insights on how hx Renew is revolutionising how pricing models are built and deployed, offering an unparalleled user experience.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

BEST MOMENTS

‘I tell everyone who comes to work at hx that they have to love insurance: Come for the fun opportunities, stay for the insurance.’

‘We’ve crafted the technology to take away the boring database manipulation or building algorithm container and webforms to let our clients focus on the problem they actually care about.’

‘The past isn’t meaningfully a guide to the future for emerging risks in the same way that it has been for more established risks, like fire.’

‘In a competitive landscape, the best thing you can do is increase the amount of information to make the decision, that’ how markets become fairer, more effective, and more efficient.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Amrit Santhirasenan is the Co-founder and CEO of hyperexponential (hx), a pioneering analytical technology firm revolutionizing decision-making within the financial sector, particularly in specialty insurance pricing. 

With a background as a qualified actuary and computer science graduate, Amrit brings extensive expertise in reserving and capital modelling, specialising in pricing and integrating modern techniques and technology to create practical, impactful pricing systems. 

Amrit remains deeply engaged with the insurance community, addressing the broader challenges of developing superior pricing solutions in an increasingly data-centric, technology-driven landscape.

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights.

And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at [email protected]