The Michael Peres Podcast

The Michael Peres Podcast

By Michael PeresBusinessEntrepreneurshipScienceTechnologyNatural Sciences
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The Michael Peres Podcast episodes

  • A Conversation with Craig Guarraci

    Michael Peres sits down with Craig Guarraci, a veteran product leader with 30+ years in tech spanning Microsoft, Amazon, startups, and his own coaching firm, Tech PM Career Path. In this episode, Craig breaks down the human side of AI product leadership and shares lessons from his new book, Beyond AI Models, on what strong product managers still need to do even as AI rapidly changes the landscape.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • How Craig’s path from a college programming class to Microsoft shaped his product leadership mindset
    • Why AI needs its own leadership playbook, even if core product principles still matter
    • Why “customer first, why first” remains essential in a world obsessed with AI features
    • How product teams should think about AI governance, monitoring, security, and privacy
    • Where Craig believes AI product management is heading over the next three to five years

    16 min
  • A Conversation with Yoon Auh

    Michael Peres speaks with Yoon Auh, founder of Nuts and Bolts Technologies and holder of 37 patents in applied cryptography. Drawing from a background in physics, engineering, Wall Street trading systems, and privacy tech, Yoon explains how his work evolved toward building more resilient, flexible, and user-controlled digital systems for a post-quantum future.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • How Yoon went from physics and engineering into Wall Street trading systems and algorithmic problem-solving
    • Why he became obsessed with privacy, data control, and the limits of Web 2.0 architecture
    • How DNA and biological systems inspired his thinking about redundancy, resilience, and self-describing encrypted data
    • Why he believes post-quantum cryptography will force a major rethink of blockchain security
    • How his QFlex approach could give users more control over how their assets are protected in a future-proof crypto environment

    28 min
  • A Conversation with Dr. Jeffrey (Jeff) Bennett

    Michael Peres speaks with Dr. Jeffrey Bennett, astrophysicist, author, and science educator, about the scale of the universe, the search for life beyond Earth, and why helping kids stay curious may be one of the most important jobs in science. Drawing on a career that spans bestselling textbooks, award-winning children’s books, NASA work, and public science outreach, Jeff shares how Carl Sagan helped shape his path and why understanding our place in the cosmos matters so much. The uploaded transcript centers on science education, cosmic scale, the Fermi paradox, space exploration, and Jeff’s new book The Scale of the Universe.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • How Jeff’s path shifted from biophysics to astrophysics and science education after being inspired by Carl Sagan
    • Why people consistently misunderstand the scale of space and time, and why that matters
    • What the Fermi paradox, great filters, and the search for extraterrestrial life can teach us about humanity
    • Why Jeff believes science curiosity begins naturally in childhood, and how schools too often push it out
    • How his books ended up being read aloud by astronauts from the International Space Station

    36 min
  • A Conversation with Noah Kenney

    Michael Peres with Noah Kenney, Founder and Principal Consultant of Digital 520, about the real-world challenges of AI governance, privacy, and secure systems design. As a fractional CTO, global advisor, author of Governing Intelligence, and leader across multiple organizations focused on responsible AI, Noah brings a rare mix of technical depth, policy thinking, and economic insight to one of the most urgent issues in technology today.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • Why Noah built a five-layer AI Governance Stack and which layer he believes the industry is dangerously overlooking
    • Whether “regulation can’t keep up” is a real problem or a convenient excuse for companies that do not want oversight
    • How he thinks through the tension between moving fast, protecting privacy, and building AI products responsibly
    • What advising real clients taught him about AI governance that writing a book alone never could
    • Why he built a career across consulting, research, education, and policy instead of staying in just one lane
    • How he would design AI regulation from the ground up

    24 min
  • A Conversation with Thomas Gaffney

    Michael Peres sits down with Thomas Gaffney, COO of OFA Group, to unpack the future of tokenization, real-world assets, and blockchain infrastructure in finance and real estate. A former attorney turned technology strategist, Thomas brings a rare mix of legal, operational, and emerging tech experience to questions around AI, machine learning, and on-chain ownership systems. The uploaded transcript focuses heavily on his path from ROTC and law into crypto and blockchain, plus how tokenized real-world assets could reshape transparency, liquidity, and access in financial markets.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • How Thomas went from ROTC and political science to law, blockchain, and technology strategy
    • Why tokenized real-world assets could make finance and real estate more transparent, liquid, and efficient
    • How blockchain can reduce intermediaries and open access to investment products that were once limited to institutions
    • What a future of mass tokenization could look like for real estate, lending, and capital markets
    • Why Thomas believes blockchain will eventually become invisible infrastructure that people use without thinking about it

    24 min
  • A Conversation with Jesse Berezovsky

    Michael Peres sits down with Jesse Berezovsky, professor of physics at Case Western Reserve University, to explore quantum mechanics, music, intelligence, and the strange foundations of reality. From building room-temperature quantum systems to creating CatLand and even developing a physics-based approach to music theory, Jesse brings an unusually wide lens to some of science’s deepest questions. The uploaded transcript focuses on his path into lab physics, his many-worlds view of quantum mechanics, room-temperature quantum technology, AGI, and the surprising overlap between physics and music.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • How Jesse fell in love with physics by working hands-on in a lab and learning quantum mechanics through building
    • Why he sees many-worlds as a compelling interpretation of quantum mechanics and what that means for reality
    • What makes scalable room-temperature quantum technology so hard, and why new platforms still matter
    • How music, phase transitions, and human cognition overlap in ways most people never consider
    • Why Jesse is skeptical that current LLMs are the right path to AGI, despite rapid progress

    37 min
  • A Conversation with Karen Leos

    Michael Peres with Karen Leos, Vice President of Global Sales and Professional Services at Tellabs, about why network infrastructure deserves a bigger place in conversations around sustainability, cost, and long-term building strategy. With more than 20 years at Tellabs and a career spanning IT, global support, technical services, and customer success, Karen brings a practical, customer-first perspective to how organizations can rethink connectivity from the ground up.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • What Optical LAN is and how it differs from traditional copper-based enterprise networks
    • Why network infrastructure is often overlooked in “green building” conversations
    • The sustainability and operational advantages Optical LAN can offer in large environments like airports, hotels, campuses, and government facilities
    • How Optical LAN can lower total cost of ownership beyond just the environmental benefits
    • What CIOs and facilities leaders should consider when planning long-term infrastructure for new builds

    22 min
  • A Conversation with Cheryl Stauffer

    Michael Peres speaks with Cheryl Stauffer, founder and CEO of Crimson Design Group, a nationally recognized, WBENC-certified interior design firm based in Columbus, Ohio. Born in Paraguay and shaped by both South American warmth and Midwestern groundedness, Cheryl has spent more than 22 years building a design practice rooted in spaces that feel layered, intentional, and lived in.

    In this episode:

    • Cheryl’s design philosophy and how she thinks about creating spaces that connect past, present, and future
    • Why Crimson’s residential roots give the firm an edge when designing for commercial clients
    • The kinds of spaces Cheryl most loves to design and what draws her to them
    • How her role as a founder has evolved over 22 years and what excites her as Crimson approaches its 25 year mark
    • The contrarian belief she holds about design, plus her advice for younger professionals entering the field
    • Where she finds inspiration and how she protects her creativity over the long term

    16 min
  • A Conversation with Art Abal

    Michael Peres sits down with Art Abal, co-founder of Vana and a leading thinker at the intersection of data systems, AI, and governance. With experience ranging from advising the Prime Minister of Timor-Leste to running global data sourcing at Appen for products like Google Search, Facebook Feed, and ChatGPT, Art has spent his career figuring out how human data is collected, valued, and used – and what a fairer AI economy could look like. Now at Vana, he’s working on user-owned data networks that put people, not platforms, in control.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • What Vana is building and how user-owned data networks could reshape how AI is trained
    • How Art’s path from law and public policy to Appen and Vana shaped his views on human data and power
    • The biggest problems with traditional AI training models and centralized data scraping
    • How user-focused, consent-based data can reduce compute needs, improve accuracy, and align with emerging privacy laws
    • How decentralized, user-owned data networks could let people control and monetize their data in a fairer AI economy

    26 min
  • A Conversation with Lee Hyde

    Michael Peres sits down with Lee Hyde, North American Esports Specialist at Lenovo, about how schools are building meaningful esports programs that go far beyond gaming. With experience leading initiatives at Lenovo and previously helping create the Carolina Gaming Arena at UNC Chapel Hill, Lee brings a practical view of how esports, technology, and education are starting to intersect in powerful ways.

    In this episode, you’ll learn:

    • What “esports solutions for education” really means and why Lenovo is investing in the space
    • The biggest challenges schools face when launching esports programs
    • How K-12 and higher education esports differ, and what they can learn from each other
    • The role of AI, immersive technology, and hybrid learning in the future of student engagement
    • Why esports can open up real educational, social, and career opportunities for students

    20 min

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