The Tech Humanist Show

where data and technology meet humanity

The Tech Humanist Show is a business podcast hosted by Kate O'Neill, with 82 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Kate O'Neill hosts The Tech Humanist Show, a business show with 82 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  The Tech Humanist Show

  Why Mission Matters

  Oct 1, 202642 min

  Can mission-driven technology and AI truly work hand-in-hand to better serve humanity? Join Kate O’Neill as she brings The Tech Humanist Show live to the SAFe & AI Summit with a compelling conversation featuring Lindsay Ann Wirthlin, who leads enterprise agile transformation at the American Red Cross. Lindsay shares powerful stories about weaving technology into mission-driven work when every minute counts. Discover how the American Red Cross uses SAFe patterns and agile practices as the backbone for AI adoption and organizational change. Topics Covered Mission-driven technology at the Red Cross The role of SAFe patterns in AI adoption Prioritization in high-urgency organizations Tackling change and adoption fatigue Overcoming the human barriers to AI Partnerships between Agile and AI teams Measuring business value in technology transformation Practical workshops for AI intake and adoption Building trust and conflict resolution between teams Success stories and the importance of scaffolding The core of agile: people and relationships Connect with Lindsay Ann Wirthlin The American Red Cross Lindsay Ann’s Instagram Connect with Scaled Agile on LinkedIn SAFe by Scaled Agile, Inc   AI-Native Training by Scaled Agile, Inc.    Episode Chapters 00:04 Introduction and context at the AI Summit 01:13 Mission-driven technology in action 02:17 Technology and the human experience at the Red Cross 03:34 What is SAFe and why it matters for leaders 04:06 Prioritization in urgent, mission-critical settings 05:21 Integrating AI: fears, realities, and professional impact 07:01 Navigating AI and Agile priorities 08:38 Signals & strategies for closing collaboration loops 09:42 Adoption fatigue and the human side of new tech 12:01 Bridging AI and organizational change management 13:17 Agile transformation as scaffolding for AI 15:28 From idea to outcome: real-world application of agile + AI 17:40 Forging practical partnerships between Agile COE and AI 19:11 Team linkages, intake models, and coaching 22:02 Decision-making boundaries and conflict resolution 24:23 Measuring effectiveness across teams 26:10 The AI intake problem-solving workshop 29:03 Lowering the adoption threshold: demos and use cases 32:15 AI coaches and bridging team learning 34:17 Tooling innovations for backlog management 35:55 Practices for Monday: inspect, adapt, and connect 38:04 The heart of transformation: people as scaffolding 39:39 Sources of hope and looking ahead 41:23 Closing remarks & credits #SAFeSummitSanDiego #AINativeSAFe #SAFe

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  The Tech Humanist Show

  Building For The Bottom Billion

  Sep 24, 202641 min

  What if true digital inclusion started by listening to those most often left out? In this episode of The Tech Humanist Show, Anu Bhardwaj—founder of Sheqonomi and The State of Women—joins Kate O’Neill to reveal how low-connectivity tech innovations and radically inclusive design can help unlock women’s economic power for the “bottom billion.” Discover stories, solutions, and a powerful new lens on the future of tech and equity. Don’t miss this inspiring, actionable conversation! Topics covered: Digital inclusion and access for the bottom billion Designing tech for low-connectivity and basic devices The importance of listening to marginalized voices Data attribution vs. data extraction Indigenous wisdom and oral traditions Measuring prosperity beyond GDP: Gross National Happiness The role of language and localization in tech platforms The importance of men in supporting women’s economic power Aligning philanthropy, startups, and government for sustainable impact Lessons in resilience and adaptation as a social entrepreneur Personal practices for hope and perseverance Connect with Anu Bhardwaj SHEQONOMI STATE OF WOMEN INSTITUTE LinkedIn Episode Chapters: [00:00:04] Introduction to The Tech Humanist Show [00:00:37] Meet Anu Bhardwaj: Origin story and Sheqonomi’s mission [00:02:06] Homeschooling during COVID sparks global digital access questions [00:05:16] Designing technology for low-connectivity realities [00:07:10] Misconceptions about the “bottom billion” and true listening [00:08:44] Practical approaches to digital inclusivity [00:11:38] From data extraction to data attribution [00:12:45] Advancing women’s economic power and global policymaking [00:13:22] The difference between access and agency [00:14:39] Rethinking prosperity: From GDP to Gross National Happiness [00:16:19] Smartphone access as a default—and its pitfalls [00:17:41] Language, localization, and the global reach of tech [00:20:13] The crucial role of men in women’s economic empowerment [00:23:14] How organizations can audit AI for inclusion [00:27:27] Philanthropy, startups, government: Moving from aid to sustainability [00:30:38] Lessons from the social entrepreneurship journey [00:34:07] Staying grounded and hopeful in challenging times [00:36:43] Where to find more about Anu Bhardwaj and Sheqonomi [00:38:14] What keeps Anu hopeful and inspired [00:40:01] Closing and show credits

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  The Tech Humanist Show

  Say What They Can’t Unhear

  Sep 17, 202645 min

  Are you struggling to make complex ideas clear and drive real adoption in a world full of noise and rapid change? Tamsen Webster and Kate O’Neill dive deep to discover how leaders can design understanding, foster sensemaking, and communicate authentically—especially in the age of AI and cognitive overload. Topics Covered Designing understanding vs. leaving it to chance Avoiding manipulation and supporting agency Sensemaking vs. persuasion Communicating complexity and change in organizations Framing messages for genuine adoption Human information processing and the role of curiosity AI-mediated communication: risks, opportunities, and bell curves Cognitive overload and capturing productive attention Transfer of ideas and the importance of commonly-held beliefs Transparency, uncertainty, and the power of theory-based communication Sensemaking vs. meaning-making What keeps us hopeful about the future of human connection Connect with Tamsen Webster Website ”Say What They Can’t Unhear” (book page) LinkedIn Instagram Episode Chapters 00:04 Introduction: The Tech Humanist Show and today’s challenge for leaders 02:15 Tamsen Webster’s journey into message design 05:48 Alignment and complexity in communication 07:01 Where leaders go wrong with complexity 09:18 Avoiding oversimplification—layering information 12:28 Persuasion vs. genuine sensemaking and learning 16:15 The cost of coercive persuasion and non-coercive approaches 21:00 Communicating in the age of AI: leaders’ new challenges 27:06 Human brains, AI, and the limits of insight 29:06 Coping with fragmented attention and cognitive overload 33:59 Building curiosity and harnessing reciprocity 34:20 Communicating uncertainty and theory-based leadership 38:44 Juxtaposition, innovation, and clarity 39:16 Where to find Tamsen’s work 40:00 Lightning round: favorite questions, books, and hope for the future 44:10 Closing and show credits

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  The Tech Humanist Show

  Two Kates, One Future: Managing Humanity in the Age of AI

  Sep 10, 202649 min

  What if AI could help managers see the whole human, not just the numbers? Discover how technology is reshaping performance management to be more personalized, supportive, and genuinely human-focused in this conversation between two Kate O’Neills (O’Neil and O’Neill). Topics covered: The confusion and connection of sharing a nearly identical name The mission and approach of Opre in performance management The challenges and insights from building an AI-powered HR tool How AI can complement (not replace) human judgment in management The pitfalls of traditional performance reviews Identifying and using the right signals for employee growth Addressing bias and ensuring fairness with AI in the workplace The impact of local culture (Nashville) on tech company building Dimensionalizing the human experience at work The importance of patience and hope in the future of work and AI Connect with Kate O’Neil Website LinkedIn Episode Chapters: 00:04 Introduction: The Two Kate O’Neills 03:07 Opre ’s Mission and Origins 05:36 Personal Story: Management Firsts and Professional Growth 07:41 What Software Hasn’t Helped With & Insights from Management Practice 10:09 Reimagining the Performance Review 12:10 What Signals Matter in Evaluating Performance? 14:14 Where Humans Must Take the Lead Over AI 17:09 Skills, Systems, Culture & Human Judgment 20:32 Addressing Power Dynamics and Bias in Performance Management 23:09 Improving Performance Without Flattening People 25:19 Dimensionality, Data, and Learning from Knowledge Graphs 29:51 Platform-Mediated Identity & Selfhood 36:00 Nashville’s Influence and the Power of Collaboration 42:10 The Future of Opre and What’s Still Hard at Work 46:24 What This Moment in Work and AI Asks of Us 48:19 Where to Connect with Opre 48:45 Credits and Closing

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  The Tech Humanist Show

  When Weird Becomes Normal with Kate Marshall

  Jul 23, 202642 min

  What can weird fiction teach us about navigating a reality shaped by technology, environmental crisis, and the shifting boundaries between human and non-human perspectives? In this episode of the Tech Humanist Show, the conversation focused on the power of “weirdness” as both a signal from the future and a way to make sense of our rapidly changing world. Special guest Kate Marshall, professor of English at the University of Notre Dame and author of Novels by Weird: Tales and the 21st Century, joins to explore how weird fiction, genre hybridity, and non-human narration can offer unique insights into technology, scale, and what it means to stay human as reality grows stranger. Dive into how stories, genres, and the unexpected “weird” help us make sense of complex systems and imagine better futures. Topics Covere d Weirdness as a lens for the future The evolution of “weird fiction” and its historical context Non-human narration and narrative experiments Genre’s role in conceptual thinking Scale and the challenge of representing catastrophe The reading crisis and cultural shifts in reading AI, storytelling, and the transformation of narrative Speculative fiction as a thinking tool Weirdness as data and a signal from the future Balancing melancholy and optimism for the future Connect with Kate Marshall Website Linkedin Novels by Aliens: Weird Tales and the Twenty-First Century Episode Chapters 00:00: Introduction to the Tech Humanist Show and the concept of weirdness 01:55: Kate Marshall on taking weirdness seriously 04:40: How 21st-century novels are getting weirder 06:09: The rise of non-human perspectives in contemporary fiction 09:48: Genre as a space for novelists to wrestle with scale 13:54: Genre fragments as creative encounters with societal wreckage 16:00: Scale: Representing catastrophe and individual experience 20:27: Tension between decentering the human and human narration 23:18: How non-human perspectives shift agency and responsibility 25:50: The contemporary crisis in reading and criticism 28:03: AI, large language models, and the future of reading/writing 31:32: Genre, language models, and the future of literary creativity 36:16: Story moves for imagining and building better futures 38:56: Treating weirdness as data, not doom 40:46: Optimism, storytelling, and hope for the future 43:22: Outro and thanks

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