#4 Harley Davis: Combining LLMs with OR and Business Rules for Mission Critical Applications

In this podcast episode, Michael Watson & Vijay Mehrotra interviews Harley Davis, Founder and CEO of Athena Decision Systems. They discuss the rise of generative AI and its integration with business rules, emphasizing the importance of reliable decision-making in mission-critical applications. Harley explains the limitations of LLMs, referring to them as 'stochastic parrots,' and highlights the challenges of scaling these technologies while ensuring privacy and compliance. The conversation also covers the role of RAG in enhancing LLM performance and shares real-world use cases where AI can improve administrative processes.Chapters0:00 - Introduction & Preview 1:19 - Meet Harley Davis & Athena Decision Systems4:30 - Business Rules in Mission-Critical Applications9:23 - Understanding LLMs and Their Limitations12:05 - Integrating LLMs with Business Rules14:12 - Challenges in Scaling LLMs and Privacy Concerns17:34 - The Role of RAG in Enhancing LLM Performance20:15 - Deploying LLMs in Real-World Applications24:24 - Improving Administrative Processes with AI27:10 - Final Thoughts and RecommendationsFollow the showApple: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-decision-intelligence-lab/id1811085064⁠Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/0lFoAVKqJHTYSZNpeN61ou?si=0ae973aab0174b3b⁠Connect with guestHarley Davis: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harleydavis/Athena Decision Systems: https://athenadecisions.com/Connect with hostsProf. Vijay Mehrotra (University of San Francisco): ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vijay-mehrotra-ba9498/⁠Prof. Michael Watson (Northwestern University): ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-watson-07600a1⁠About the podcastThe Decision Intelligence Lab podcast delivers real-world insights for data professionals, business leaders, and anyone seeking to leverage data & AI for smarter decision-making & successful business outcomes. For business inquiries, email at ⁠[email protected]⁠