The Future of AI and Corporate Innovation with Taylor Black

What happens when one of the world’s biggest tech companies leans into the AI boom - while staying connected to the scrappy, risk-taking energy of startups?

In this episode of Sound Investments, Ed Barker sits down with Taylor Black, Director of AI and Venture Ecosystems at Microsoft, to explore the shifting landscape of artificial intelligence, corporate innovation, and venture creation.

Taylor shares his journey from developer in Seattle to a key figure shaping Microsoft’s approach to AI and startups. Along the way, he offers a candid look at the challenges of driving innovation inside a global enterprise, the opportunities for founders building alongside tech giants, and how AI is rewriting the rules of work and strategy.

From portfolio theory to vertical AI plays, design choices in model evolution to the unique strengths of the Pacific Northwest ecosystem, this conversation maps where the next wave of AI-powered companies might emerge. Whether you’re a founder, investor, or technologist, you’ll come away with new perspectives on the bets worth making - and the future being built right now.

Chapters

00:00 - Cold Open | Taylor Black, Microsoft

01:32 - Introduction & Background

02:05 - From Developer to AI Venture Leader

04:36 - Inside Microsoft’s Venture Studio & the AI Shift

06:55 - Innovation Challenges in Large Enterprises

11:41 - AI as a Fundamental Shift in Computing

13:16 - Startups in Microsoft’s Ecosystem

16:36 - Strategic Bet-Making & Portfolio Theory

20:08 - Competing with Platform Giants

24:55 - Vertical AI Solutions & Market Opportunities

27:49 - AI Thought Partners & Cognitive Collaboration

30:56 - Design Choices & Model Evolution

34:53 - New Startup Categories & Bootstrap Models

36:33 - The Pacific Northwest Tech Ecosystem

40:55 - The Future of AI: Optimism & Challenges

About Your Host

Ed Barker has enjoyed a weird and varied career. Ed is a Brit now resident in Seattle and has founded three startups, enjoyed a long career in corporate strategy, and most recently as a VC. He's now building a podcast production company, Studio 1878. Sound Investments is a modest attempt to shine some light on the fantastic work being done in the Pacific Northwest entrepreneurial community.

Taylor Black, Director of AI & Venture Ecosystems, Microsoft

Taylor works in Microsoft’s Office of the CTO, where he leads cross-company innovation, internal venture studio efforts, and strategic startup partnerships. He earned a BA in philosophy & classics at Gonzaga University, and both an MA in philosophy and a JD from Boston College. Early in graduate school, he co-founded a web development and product business and never practiced law. Since joining Microsoft in 2021, he has focused on scaling internal incubation models and mentoring founders. Taylor is also the founding director of a new interdisciplinary AI institute at The Catholic University of America, and serves as a deacon candidate and foster/adoptive parent. 

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