AI models can win math olympiads… but still struggle to read an analog clock. In this fully connected episode, Dan and Chris break down the latest Stanford AI Index Report and explore what it reveals about the current state of AI. They discuss AI adoption and safety, disappearing junior tech jobs, robotics, AI’s “jagged frontier” of intelligence, and the growing race between the U.S. and China. Along the way, they debate whether AI should optimize everything, or if some things are better left human.

Featuring:

• Chris Benson – Website, LinkedIn, Bluesky, GitHub, X
• Daniel Whitenack – Website, GitHub, X

Links:

• The 2026 AI Index Report

Sponsors:

• Prediction Guard: A self-hosted AI control plane for running agents in high impact environments. predictionguard.com/practicalai

Upcoming Events:

• Register for upcoming webinars here!
• Midwest AI Summit 2026

What happens when AI agents start acting less like chatbots and more like coworkers? In this episode, Dan and Chris sit down with Craig McLuckie, CEO of Stacklok to explore MCP, Kubernetes, ToolHive, enterprise AI, and the emerging infrastructure powering AI-native applications. From identity management to agent orchestration and system architecture, this conversation dives into how organizations may soon manage entire fleets of AI agents working behind the scenes.

Featuring:

• Craig McLuckie – LinkedIn
• Chris Benson – Website, LinkedIn, Bluesky, GitHub, X
• Daniel Whitenack – Website, GitHub, X

Links:

• Stacklok
• Toolhive

Sponsors:

• Prediction Guard: A self-hosted AI control plane for running agents in high impact environments. predictionguard.com/practicalai

Upcoming Events:

• Register for upcoming webinars here!
• Midwest AI Summit 2026

Open Source AI is entering a new era, one shaped by self-improving AI Agents, recursive learning systems, and rapidly evolving AI Tools that blur the line between software and autonomous collaborators. In this episode, Daniel and Chris sit down with Nous Research co-founder and CTO Jeffrey Quesnelle to explore Hermes Agent. Along the way, they discuss models vs. harnesses, the changing role of developers, and one of the biggest questions facing the AI Future: what remains uniquely human as AI capabilities continue to accelerate?

Featuring:

• Jeffrey Quesnelle – Website, LinkedIn
• Chris Benson – Website, LinkedIn, Bluesky, GitHub, X
• Daniel Whitenack – Website, GitHub, X

Links:

• Nous Research
• Hermes Agent

Sponsors:

• Framer: The enterprise-grade website builder that lets your team ship faster. Get 30% off at framer.com/practicalai
• Prediction Guard: A self-hosted AI control plane for running agents in high impact environments. predictionguard.com/practicalai

Upcoming Events:

• Register for upcoming webinars here!
• Midwest AI Summit 2026