Prototypes, Pilots, and Polymers: Cooper Standard’s Chris Couch

Chris Couch has a unique role, serving as senior vice president and CTO of automotive supplier Cooper Standard as well as CEO of Liveline Technologies, a startup born from the CS Open Innovation initiative. Both organizations use AI to manufacture products the average consumer likely never thinks twice about, such as brake fluid and polymer seals for car doors. In this episode, we talk with Chris about open innovation, automating rote processes without displacing human workers, and attracting talent by fostering a startup culture. Read the episode transcript here. For more on how humans and machines can collaborate successfully, read the 2020 Artificial Intelligence and Business Strategy report, “Expanding AI’s Impact With Organizational Learning." Read more about our show and follow along with the series at https://sloanreview.mit.edu/aipodcast. Me, Myself, and AI is a collaborative podcast from MIT Sloan Management Review and Boston Consulting Group and is hosted by Sam Ransbotham and Shervin Khodabandeh. Our engineer is David Lishansky, and the coordinating producers are Allison Ryder and Sophie Rüdinger. Your reviews are essential to the success of Me, Myself, and AI. For a limited time, we’re offering a free download of MIT SMR’s best articles on artificial intelligence to listeners who review the show. Send a screenshot of your review to [email protected] to receive the download. Guest bio: With more than 21 years of global automotive manufacturing experience, Christopher Couch serves as senior vice president and CTO for Cooper Standard, where he leads R&D, product development and engineering, product strategy, and program management. He also has P&L responsibility for Applied Materials Science, a venture business unit focused on the commercialization of unique materials developed by the company. Couch also leads the CS Open Innovation initiative, which aims to position Cooper Standard as the partner of choice for open innovation with startups, universities, and other suppliers. Me, Myself, and AI is a collaborative podcast from MIT Sloan Management Review and Boston Consulting Group and is hosted by Sam Ransbotham and Shervin Khodabandeh. Our engineer is David Lishansky, and the coordinating producers are Allison Ryder and Sophie Rüdinger. We encourage you to rate and review our show. Your comments may be used in Me, Myself, and AI materials. We want to know how you feel about Me, Myself, and AI. Please take a short, two-question survey.