if the future of AI runs on living brain cells instead of silicon chips? 🧠⚡

In this mind-bending episode of AI to Go, I sit down with Dr. Ewelina Kurtys, a neuroscientist and strategic advisor at FinalSpark — a Swiss research lab building biocomputers from living human neurons. Yes, you read that right: LIVING neurons!

Discover how FinalSpark is creating computers that could be 1 MILLION times more energy-efficient than today's digital processors, why biocomputing might be the key to sustainable AI, and what it means to program cells that actually think.

Plus, we play "Can I Use AI for That?" and test Ewelina's knowledge of cutting-edge AI applications.

Whether you're an AI enthusiast, tech professional, or just curious about the future, this conversation will change how you think about computing forever.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Ewelina and Her Background
00:33 From Childhood Dreams to Industry: Evelina's Journey
01:47 Embracing Scientific Curiosity and Complex Systems
03:22 Transitioning from Academia to Business
06:34 How do you build habits effectively?
10:40 Do you think we as a society are ready to openly talk about mental health?
14:21 How do we ensure that AI makes us smarter and enhances our thinking rather than eliminating or decreasing it?
17:47 FinalSpark's Vision: Energy-Efficient Biocomputing
24:39 Why is biocomputing considered a key enabler towards a more powerful AI in the future, and what are the key benefits for companies and end users?
28:46 Leading Startups in Biocomputing
31:05 What are your thoughts as a society and as a neuroscientist on how we can prepare ourselves for an AI-first world?
39:24 Outro

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AI To Go Podcast - Bringing you the humans behind AI!

Don't be shy and come say hi: 👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/ Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x ✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/ ✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Connect with Ewelina: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ewelinakurtys/
https://www.ewelinakurtys.com/
Check out FinalSpark: https://finalspark.com/live

Meet Christian Byza, CEO at the AI-powered learning platform Learn.xyz.

Discover why San Francisco's AI scene is so unique, how crazy the "talent war" currently is, and tap into the incredible hustle mindset that all founders in Christian's "House of AI" community (and beyond) share.

Moreover, we talk about Learn.xyz where Christian reimagines micro learnings with AI and Duolingo like gamification. He argues for a (much needed!) fresh perspective on learning with his habit-forming app delivering clear outcomes for individuals and businesses. Point in case: 40% of his users learn a new lesson every week!

With Christian, I talked about:
00:10 – Podcast Announcement
00:38 – Introducing Christian Byza
00:59 – Christian’s podcast on Germans in Silicon Valley
01:42 – What kind of people are moving to the US West Coast?
02:50 – Germany vs Silicon Valley
03:27 – Hustle Mindset in San Francisco
03:53 – There is no “move fast & break things” culture anymore
05:21 – If you want to work in AI, you should move to San Francisco
06:32 – Christian’s Personal Story starting in San Francisco
08:12 – The Advantages of Living in SF
09:00 – Public Perception vs. Reality of SF
13:00 – Why the SF AI Ecosystem is Unique
15:00 – The crazy AI Talent “War” and US TV Shows on AI
17:29 – Tech Giants Race in AI, Apple losing ground
20:06 – Why Christian wanted to build in education
21:28 – Pivoting from Crypto consumers to Corporate Learning
22:29 – The basic problem in Corporate Learning
23:00 – Building a fun and engaging Learning Experience for Employees
24:48 – The Challenge of finding the Ideal Customer Profile
26:06 – How User Feedback led to Certifications for AI Topics
27:41 – Founder Lessons on Consumer vs B2B
30:16 – New Trend: Don’t sell the AI tool, sell the outcome!
32:30 – So, what is Learn.xyz’s Ideal Customer Profile?
34:40 – What Christian thinks about the future of learning
37:08 – Closing Remarks
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Don't be shy and come say hi:
👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/

Follow us on:
✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Connect with Christian:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/christianbyza/

Check out Christian's products:
AI powered learning platform https://www.learn.xyz/
OMR Festival https://omr.com/en
OMR Silicon Valley Update (German Podcast)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqmNJDl8UhJ8fL6110T4EBl6AzcHHK5J3

In this episode, Tony Beltramelli, head of AI at Miro, shares his journey from researcher to tech entrepreneur to leading AI initiatives in a major collaboration platform. He discusses the cultural influences that shaped his career, the current state of AI in Europe, and the transformative potential of AI in product development and collaboration. The conversation also touches on the challenges and opportunities presented by AI, the importance of understanding data, and the future of work in an AI-driven landscape.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Background
02:17 Cultural Influences and Personal Interests
05:05 The European AI Landscape
07:45 The Journey of Uizard and AI Development
10:27 Transitioning from Research to Entrepreneurship
13:08 Acquisition by Miro and New Role
15:45 AI's Impact on Collaboration and Product Development
18:17 Innovative Features of Miro's AI Integration
20:49 Canvas as a Prompt: Redefining User Interaction
23:23 The Future of Product Management with AI
26:16 Challenges and Opportunities in AI Adoption
28:38 The Role of AI in Innovation
31:37 Preparing for an AI-Driven Workforce
34:06 The Future of AI Agents
36:56 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

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Don't be shy and come say hi: 👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/ Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Connect with Tony:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-beltramelli-513b1219/
https://tonybeltramelli.com/

Check out Miro AI: https://miro.com/ai/ai-overview/

Meet Lauren Kunze, the fascinating co-founder of Celeste—an AI that delivers personalized tarot readings and astrology insights trained by celebrity astrologers.

In this captivating episode, Lauren takes us through her extraordinary journey from building chatbots at 15 to publishing books with HarperCollins and founding two groundbreaking AI companies (Pandorabots and ICONIQ) that have redefined how humans interact with AI. Now, she's tackling one of humanity's oldest questions: How do we find meaning and guidance in our lives?

With Lauren, we talked about:

00:04 Intro

56:12 SHARE SOME LOVE: Subscribe, like, comment, and share!
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AI To Go Podcast - Bringing you the humans behind AI!

Don't be shy and come say hi:

👋 Lucia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamluciapiseddu/
👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/

Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Connect with Lauren:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lkunze/
https://www.laurenkunze.com/

Check out Lauren's products:
https://textceleste.com/
https://www.iconiq.ai/
https://home.pandorabots.com/home.html

Agathe Balayn is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Microsoft Research in the FATE group, that’s Fairness, Accountability, Transparency, and Ethics in AI, based in New York City.

Agathe’s work examines the interactions between machine learning systems and the real world, highlighting instances where these systems can cause unintended harm.

She looks beyond the algorithms to examine the social, organizational, and policy ecosystems surrounding AI.

With Agathe, we talked about:

00:04 Intro
01:04 Agathe’s international journey
03:20 Where did Agathe's love for science begin?
06:16 Craziest robot at the French Cup
09:46 What receiving the L’Oréal-UNESCO award meant to Agathe
12:24 Why are there still fewer women in STEM, and how would Agathe convince more women to enter science
19:00 Agathe's research work at Microsoft
20:22 AI Governance
22:56 AI Regulation and Policy
23:53 Risks and Potential Harms of AI
26:34 Agathe's work in Bias and Inequality in AI
31:22 Examples of Bias in AI: Google Lens Problems, Police, Dutch Benefits Scandal
35:20 How private companies like Microsoft, OpenAI, Google balance Commercial Needs vs Ethics in AI
39:04 How does the Political Landscape influence AI Development?
43:30 What are the top Risks related to AI as of Today?
46:48 The most exciting AI Development that will help Humanity move forward
50:16 AI vs Human: True or Not?
56:12 SHARE SOME LOVE: Subscribe, like, comment, and share!
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AI To Go Podcast - Bringing you the humans behind AI!

Don't be shy and come say hi:

👋 Lucia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamluciapiseddu/
👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/

Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Connect with Agathe:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/agathe-balayn-4bb365111/

Agathe's recommendations:

👉 Agathe's profile https://agathe-balayn.github.io/
👉 Agathe's publications https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=6St85n0AAAAJ&hl=en

👉 The FATE team https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/theme/fate/
👉 The robot competition: HEBOCON: https://hebocon.org/
👉 https://www.unige.ch/fapse/grire/equipe/isabelle-collet

Marc Zao-Sanders is a guest author at the Harvard Business Review and the co-founder of Filtered, a learning tech company helping organizations upskill intelligently.

Marc is also the author of the bestselling book Timeboxing – The Power of Doing One Thing at a Time, now translated into 33 languages.

His recent article in HBR, "How People Are Really Using GenAI in 2025", went viral for mapping out the top 100 generative AI use cases based on real user behavior.

With Marc, we talked about:

00:04 Intro
01:03 How was Marc as a child?
02:52 Marc's background in Philosophy and Math and how they shaped his life
04:33 Building Filtered.com: 12 Years of Lessons as Entrepreneur
06:37 Marc's work on Time Boxing and how to manage your time intentionally
08:09 Practical tips to time box your time efficiently
10:16 What would Marc improve in his time management...spoiler...PROCRASTINATION!
11:51 How will AI change our perception of time and value
16:49 Post-Work Society and Universal Basic Income
18:26 Top 100 AI Use Cases of 2025 - Marc's Harvard Business Review Article
21:28 AI as Mirror of Society
25:37 AI Literacy Gap and Digital Inequality
28:24 AI for Therapy and Companionship
32:17 Risks of Outsourcing Thinking to AI
35:44 How do we balance AI enhancing our cognitive ability vs making us dependent on it?
39:48 Finding Purpose with AI Assistance
45:01 The use case that surprised Marc the most
50:43 Game Time: Can I use AI for that?
57:03 SHARE SOME LOVE: Subscribe, Like, Comment, and Share!

--------------------------------------------------------------

AI To Go Podcast - Bringing you the humans behind AI!

Don't be shy and come say hi:

👋 Lucia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamluciapiseddu/
👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/

Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Connect with Marc:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/marczaosanders/

Reading recommendations:

👉 Timeboxing by Marc Zao-Sanders https://www.amazon.com/Timeboxing-Power-Doing-Thing-Time/dp/1250340152
👉 Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2025/04/how-people-are-really-using-gen-ai-in-2025

Mariano Kostelec is a serial entrepreneur who lived in 10 different countries and raised over EUR 75M in funding across his many ventures.

Among which Uniplaces one of the leading housing platforms in Europe and StudentFinance and Mydra - an AI powered career mobility platform, facilitating the reskilling of the global workforce, mainly focusing on the digital and green transitions.

With Mariano we talked about:

00:04 Intros
01:01 Mariano's passion for changing countries
03:00 What's the place Mariano considers home and how did it shape his view of the World
06:59 How did Mariano survive the banking sector and switched to startups
12:41 Mariano's startups: Uniplaces, StudentFinance
21:35 Mariano's top 3 core values
23:37 How does Mydra help its customers
29:24 What's the biggest mistake companies make when up-skilling their teams?
32:29 How does Mariano think AI will change the workplace?
38:24 Mariano's advice to people who need to start working and upskilling in the age of AI
43:39 What Mariano hopes Mydra accomplishes in the next 10 years
44:50 AI vs Human: Jobsolete!
51:08 SHARE SOME LOVE: Subscribe, like, comment and share!
--------------------------------------------------------------

AI To Go Podcast - Bringing you the humans behind AI!

Don't be shy and come say hi:

👋 Lucia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamluciapiseddu/
👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/

Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Visit: https://www.mydra.io/
Connect with Mariano: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianokostelec/

Rokas Stankevičius is the co-founder of WhyAI a training company empowering hundreds of individuals and companies with practical AI knowledge.

Rokas teaching philosophy is 99% practice, 1% theory and he lived up to this philosophy in this episode.

00:04 Intros
00:53 Rapid-fire questions for Rokas
01:30 What's special about Lithuania
03:56 How Rokas started his AI journey
06:20 How his work in PR and political science helped Rokas in AI
07:59 The tech scene in Lithuania
10:50 How Rokas learned AI
16:33 The inception of WhyAI
20:27 What are the advanced possibilities of ChatGPT?
22:54 Tips for effective AI prompt engineering
31:56 Sales and Marketing automation examples
35:46 What are Rokas's hopes for the future of AI
39:21 AI vs Human: True or False!
44:46 Get in touch with Rokas
46:08 ❤️ SHARE THE LOVE: Like, comment subscribe and share!

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AI To Go Podcast - Bringing you the humans behind AI!

Don't be shy and come say hi:

👋 Lucia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamluciapiseddu/
👋 Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johannesdeubener/

Follow us on:

✨ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/135tavsp8mEBYftLGOv02x
✨ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ai-to-go-podcast/
✨ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aitogopodcast/

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Book a call with Rokas and say you come from the AI to Go Podcast:
https://cal.com/rokas-stankevicius-xgl5ge/30min?overlayCalendar=true

Connect with Rokas: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanrokas/