
Episode #10
Numeracy, Probability, and Business – Embracing Randomness for Better Decisions
In this episode, host Andy Leonard sits down with Ilan Man, founder and CEO of Paradox Machines, a full-stack data and AI company based in Brooklyn. Ilan shares his fascinating journey from an actuarial career to the dynamic field of data science, exploring the rise of big data, the art of translating complex mathematics into code, and the importance of numeracy in society. Together, they discuss the paradoxes at the heart of data and AI, the challenges of decision-making under uncertainty, and why intuition, risk management, and storytelling remain critical in a world driven by data. Whether you're a data enthusiast, decision-maker, or just curious about how numbers shape our lives, this conversation delivers valuable insights and a healthy dose of skepticism about the limits, and possibilities, of analytics. Links https://www.linkedin.com/in/ilanman/ Time Stamps 00:00 Starting a career in data science 03:34 Discovering a career in actuarial science 08:17 Learning coding and joining Squarespace 11:40 Understanding Probability in Code 15:36 Questioning Confidence in Decision-Making 20:06 Discussing COVID vaccine effectiveness 21:09 Understanding vaccine effectiveness 24:41 Consumers interacting with unpredictable AI 29:35 Discussing disease perception and interpretation 33:01 Casino audiobook and extra details 35:41 Balancing data-driven decisions 40:07 Career journey to founding Paradox 40:49 Building a data platform with AI 46:41 Data's Role in Decision Making 47:30 Value and limits of data-driven decisions






