Don’t Fear the Regulator: Marilyn McDonald on Turning Constraints into AI Strategy

In this episode of AI Trailblazers, we sit down with ⁠Marilyn McDonald⁠—product leader, Moderna alum, and co-founder of ⁠Yokai Labs⁠—to unpack how the best AI strategies in healthcare are often born from tight regulatory constraints.Key takeaways:✅ How Moderna scaled its COVID response✅ Why compliance isn’t a blocker—it’s a design opportunity✅ How to build AI that solves “the stuff that sucks”✅ The magic wand test: why every AI project should start with a real human problemMarilyn brings a rare blend of product discipline, AI insight, and real-world healthcare experience. If you work at the intersection of innovation and regulation, this episode is for you.🔗 Learn more about Marilyn’s work:🎧 Podcast: ⁠Practical Product Management⁠💼 LinkedIn: ⁠Marilyn McDonald⁠🌐 Company: ⁠Yokai Labs⁠Episode Chapters:00:00 – Intro: AI, Product Thinking & Regulated Innovation02:05 – Scaling Moderna’s COVID Response06:50 – Starting with the Problem (The Magic Wand Test)10:30 – Don’t Fear the Regulator: Turning Constraints into Strategy14:45 – AI and Product Design: Solving the Stuff That Sucks19:10 – Building with Unstructured Data vs. Data Warehouses22:00 – Final Takeaways: Design, Trust & Human-Centered AI24:40 – Outro: Where to Find Marilyn McDonald