Mala's Podcast

In this episode of Mala’s Podcast, Mala sits down with Duncan Grazier, a seasoned technology leader who has helped scale companies from early-stage teams to major exits, including ShopKeep’s $550M sale to Lightspeed Commerce and Weedmaps’ public-market journey. Duncan is now Chief AI Officer at BuildOps, a unicorn transforming the commercial contracting industry with software and AI.  This conversation goes deep into what it actually takes to scale engineering teams, build trust in AI, and bring automation into industries that still rely heavily on paper-based workflows. Duncan shares how BuildOps is helping electricians, HVAC technicians, contractors, hospitals, data centers, and large commercial operators move toward smarter, faster, AI-enabled operations.Mala and Duncan also explore the future of the Chief AI Officer role, why every leader will eventually need to become AI-native, how AI can improve billable hours and reduce operational errors, and why small language models and edge AI may be the next major shift.This is a practical, honest conversation for founders, operators, product leaders, CTOs, AI builders, and anyone thinking about how AI will reshape the physical world._______________________________________________Timestamps00:05 Duncan Grazier’s startup journey00:40 Scaling ShopKeep to a $550M exit00:51 Taking Weedmaps public01:27 Becoming Chief AI Officer at BuildOps01:44 What BuildOps does03:00 Internal vs external AI transformation03:18 Getting traditional industries to trust AI04:09 AI product opportunities in commercial contracting05:19 BuildOps as CRM, dispatch, invoicing, logistics, and compliance06:28 Selling AI through outcomes07:25 Proving AI ROI through the bottom line08:39 What breaks when teams scale09:31 Hiring, trust, and growing leaders internally13:04 The future of the Chief AI Officer role17:12 Agents, small language models, and the future of AI at the edge_______________________________________________🔗 Connect with Duncan Grazier → https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsmeduncan/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org#AI #ArtificialIntelligence #StartupScaling #Leadership #EngineeringLeadership #BuildInPublic #AITransformation #FutureOfWork #EnterpriseAI #Founders #ProductLeadership #TechLeadership #Automation #Startups #Innovation

Shannon Power started in a bunny suit doing semiconductor manufacturing at Motorola and Intel. An industrial engineer turned finance executive, today she's a fractional CFO and COO who gets called in at inflection points — when companies are changing business models, scaling after a big raise, or preparing for an exit.In this fireside chat with Mala Ramakrishnan, Shannon breaks down why CFO turnover has doubled in the last year, why finance and operations roles are merging at companies like Salesforce, and how she actually evaluates AI tools — including her honest take on why most companies are getting AI investment wrong. Spoiler: cutting headcount to fund AI infrastructure isn't growth. It's something else entirely.If you're a founder selling into finance teams, an operator thinking about how AI is reshaping the C-suite, or anyone curious about what real business turnarounds look like, this one's worth your time._________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Meet Shannon — from semiconductor engineer to fractional CFO01:07 Getting tapped for strategy and finance projects at Intel02:08 The MBA pivot and finding her niche in operational finance03:11 Why finance is the story of the business, not just the books04:56 Why the engineer-to-CFO jump isn't as drastic as it sounds06:29 What it takes to be a CFO today07:32 Why CFO turnover has doubled in the past year09:24 Measuring CFO performance beyond the numbers10:48 The CFO as risk owner in the age of AI12:27 How AI is reshaping the CFO role globally14:09 Balancing guardrails without killing innovation15:24 The AI tools Shannon is actually using17:05 Advice for founders pitching enterprise CFOs18:48 The real reason companies are cutting headcount for AI20:42 Is the CFO role industry-specific?23:28 Why CFO and COO roles are merging25:38 Where governance, data, and AI fit in the org chart27:31 When a company actually needs a CFO — full-time vs fractional_________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Shannon Power → https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonlynnpower/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org#CFO #Finance #Founders #AI #BusinessTurnaround

Scott Sundvor is a three-time founder with a path most people don't take. He started Nima at MIT — a sensor that lets you test food for allergens in under two minutes — built it, scaled it, sold it. Then he pivoted into cannabis, ran that company through a regulated landscape with no banking access, and exited again. Now he's the Chief Product Officer at Instrumental, a Series C company helping NVIDIA, Meta, and others detect manufacturing defects in real time.In this fireside chat with Mala Ramakrishnan, Scott talks about why hardware is still hard even with AI, what's actually driving the current robotics and physical-AI boom, and why he made the call to sell his cannabis company instead of grinding through a decade of pain waiting for federal change.He's also direct about AI-native company building. His worry isn't big competitors. It's the two-year-old startup that's AI-native from day one and moving three times faster. Instrumental is restructuring entire teams around that reality — fewer product managers, tighter pods, every engineer working in an AI-orchestrated environment.If you're a founder evaluating hardware ideas, a leader thinking about how to actually rebuild your team for the AI era, or just curious what it takes to start three companies and keep going, this one's worth your time._______________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Meet Scott — MIT, three companies, immigrant founder00:32 Nima — building food allergen sensors from a personal need01:42 First principles thinking when every expert says no03:03 Selling Nima and how users keep bringing it back to market04:21 Why hardware is still hard, even with AI05:22 Evaluating hardware startups as an investor07:20 The current hardware boom — GPUs, defense, robotics08:33 Pivoting from MIT engineer to cannabis founder09:46 Marketing a product you're legally forbidden from advertising11:12 The federal bet that didn't pay off and the call to exit14:04 Joining Instrumental as Chief Product Officer14:48 Improving manufacturing yields by 10–20 points17:13 What it actually costs to deploy on a manufacturing line20:31 Why GPU compute servers became the focus22:25 Rebuilding teams to be AI-native, not AI-bolted-on26:09 Founder mindset advice — ambiguity and chewing glass28:15 The leadership lessons that stuck — focus and never lie_______________________________________________🔗 Connect with Scott Sundvor → https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssundvor/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org#Founders #Hardware #AINative #Manufacturing #StartupLessons

Tammy Schuring is a fourth-generation Bay Area native whose great-grandfather pushed a wheelbarrow from South Dakota to help build the Golden Gate Bridge. She was the first in her family to go to college, and went on to become a math major and a CRO who's generated hundreds of millions in revenue for cybersecurity and enterprise companies.In this fireside chat, Tammy sits down with Mala Ramakrishnan to talk about the moments that shaped her — the professor who assumed she was lost in her own advanced math class, the temp job at a two-guys-and-a-dog startup that turned into a 32-year career, and the research-backed sales philosophy that actually works (hint: it's not what your slick sales training taught you).She also breaks down what founders get wrong about selling, why vulnerability is the only real source of connection, and how she jumped into cybersecurity in 2003 when nobody thought it mattered. Plus her pivot into Polymatic and why she's still chasing disruptive early-stage problems after three decades.If you're a founder trying to figure out how to sell, a woman navigating a male-dominated field, or anyone who loves a good origin story, this one delivers.____________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Meet Tammy — four generations Bay Area, math major, CRO00:36 The wheelbarrow story — how her family got to San Francisco03:53 Rethinking privilege and what "underrepresented" really means05:00 Being a blonde math major in the 80s and the bias that came with it08:10 From math doctorate plans to a temp job at a startup09:05 Two guys and a dog in the NeXT ecosystem10:59 Why curiosity turned her into a sales person13:09 Leaving a PhD at Berkeley for a career that actually fit16:34 The three things top sales people actually do18:00 Why story beats pitch every time20:42 Advice for founders on the first enterprise sale22:00 Why struggle sells better than shine24:16 Brené Brown, vulnerability, and the source of real connection25:42 Jumping into cybersecurity in 2003 before anyone cared28:00 Pioneering data-centric encryption and format preserving encryption29:01 The Heartland breach and why data protection became her obsession____________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Tammy Schuring → https://www.linkedin.com/in/tammyschuring/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org

Phil Taylor, CTO ⁨@CDW⁩ , built a 250-person services company from the ground up, sold it to CDW, and now runs their Digital Velocity business unit. But what makes his story compelling isn't the exit — it's how he got there.At 21, he was distributing half a billion dollars in checks. One error could've bankrupted the company. Years later, he learned the hard way that being right matters less than helping your team win. He'll tell you about the Silverlight bet that taught him to ship imperfect products fast, the founders he picked wrong, and why his best business came from investing in people he let go.He's also refreshingly honest about AI hype, why most services companies miss the obvious, and how to actually scale when you can't touch the code your teams are shipping.If you're building a company, leading engineers, or trying to figure out how to compete without a shiny product, this one's worth your time.________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Meet Phil — from software engineer to CTO at CDW01:51 The builder mindset, started at age 1302:30 Distributing $500M in checks at 2104:38 The team rebellion that humbled him as a leader05:37 Choosing to win with your team, not be right06:56 Ship value fast — perfect is the enemy of good07:19 Listen to customers, don't sell them09:09 The honest manager who told him to go start something10:11 Building serverless before AWS Lambda11:06 Pivoting to services, betting on Kubernetes12:44 Exiting to CDW during the pandemic13:28 Investing in people — your best network effect15:32 The jump to enterprise — processes and structure18:40 Running services like a product with real standards19:08 AI quality control — why manual testing still matters21:18 Staying on top of innovation24:13 Zero to one in consulting — partnerships first26:04 Building your portfolio of capabilities28:40 AI is overhyped, cloud is a journey ________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Phil Taylor → https://www.linkedin.com/in/ptaylor1/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org

Ash Parikh, CMO @Absolute Security, 3x B2B CMO (Informatica, Druva, Trellix), sits down with Mala Ramakrishnan to talk about what most marketers get wrong — and what the best ones obsess over. Spoiler: it's not MQLs.Ash breaks down the "dark funnel" — the invisible buying journey where 70% of decisions are made before a vendor even knows a prospect exists. He walks through how pre-intent signals, reverse IP lookups, and tools like ShiftUp are changing the way pipeline actually gets built.The conversation gets real about the CMO gig — why most people don't last, how Ash accidentally fell into the role from product management, and why he thinks of himself as a business owner first, marketer second. He also shares a killer practice: every marketer on his team spends 10% of their time each month piloting new tools and ideas. That's how you stay ahead.For founders, Ash has pointed advice: hire a data-obsessed marketer before a brand person, know your ICP cold, and don't touch AI until your data foundation is solid.If you're building a startup, running marketing at a growth-stage company, or just trying to figure out how modern B2B buying actually works, this one's worth your time.__________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Meet Ash Parikh: 3x CMO, accidental marketer01:00 From bad coder to product manager to CMO02:55 Starting in product marketing because he knew the product04:23 Getting over the "marketing is fluff" mindset06:14 The stat that changes everything, 70% of buying happens invisible07:08 What the dark funnel actually is08:46 Pre-intent vs. intent, and why the difference matters10:06 Reading signals from buyers who never raise their hand11:56 Too many tools, how to cut through the noise13:35 The 10% rule his whole team lives by14:44 Why CISOs are the hardest buyers to reach16:09 Don't touch AI until your data house is in order17:06 The CMO job is about growth19:00 What founders get wrong when hiring their first marketer21:07 ChatGPT killed the website visit. Now what?23:01 Why he abolished MQLs and what replaced them__________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Ash Parikh → https://www.linkedin.com/in/aysha-khan-77ba9014/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org

Ravi Shankar, CMO & SVP at Denodo, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to unpack how enterprise go-to-market has evolved in the age of AI—and why differentiation is no longer about deep tech, but about how you take it to market.With over a decade at Denodo and prior experience at Oracle and Informatica, Ravi shares how he scaled a global data company across 25+ countries and why product marketing sits at the core of every successful GTM strategy.The conversation dives into master data management (MDM), data virtualization, and the critical role of real-time, contextual, and governed data in making AI actually work. Ravi also breaks down how AI is reshaping marketing teams, from content generation to personalization, while reinforcing the importance of human judgment.If you’re a founder, CMO, or operator building in data, AI, or enterprise software, this episode is a practical guide to positioning, scaling, and winning in crowded markets._________________________________________00:00 Intro and why GTM is the new differentiation01:00 Ravi Shankar’s journey from engineer to CMO03:00 Transition from engineering to product marketing05:00 Scaling Denodo into a global company06:30 Why product marketing is the core of GTM08:00 Translating products into business value09:30 AI era: crowded markets and differentiation11:00 Core competency as the foundation of positioning12:30 Using AI in marketing: content and scale14:00 Human + AI vs autonomous marketing15:30 One-to-one marketing and personalization17:00 Data as the foundation for AI systems18:30 Real-time data, context, and governance20:00 AI-driven experimentation and A/B testing22:00 Enterprise GTM stack, tools, and team evolution_____________________________________________🔗 Connect with Ravi Shankar → https://www.linkedin.com/in/ravishankardevaraj/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/malas-podcast/id1848618438Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Sunzay Passari, Director and Global Head of AI and Innovation at UPS, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to unpack what it really means to drive AI inside a 118-year-old global enterprise operating in 200 countries.From route optimization and warehouse automation to AI-driven pricing models generating measurable ROI, Sunzay explains how UPS applies both operational AI (“physical AI”) and business AI at enormous scale. With 26 million packages moving daily in the U.S. alone, even a one-cent optimization per package becomes transformational.The conversation explores intrapreneurship inside legacy organizations, how to build cross-functional AI task forces, measuring ROI across hundreds of use cases, and when agentic AI can make real decisions versus keeping humans in the loop.If you're a founder, enterprise leader, or AI operator wondering how large organizations actually implement AI beyond pilots, this episode offers practical insight at global scale._______________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and leading AI innovation at UPS01:20 From eBay product leadership to UPS02:30 Why UPS hired externally for innovation03:10 118 years of legacy meets AI transformation04:10 Operational AI: route optimization & “no left turns”05:30 6,000 warehouses, 150,000 trucks, 300 planes06:30 Business AI: optimizing complex pricing models08:00 AI for product portfolio recommendations09:10 Building the AI task force and org structure10:20 ROI-first mindset: how UPS prioritizes use cases11:30 Dashboarding initiatives and GTM tracking12:30 Working with hyperscalers and enterprise platforms13:00 What it takes for startups to work with UPS14:20 Why UPS is the most reliable (and most expensive) carrier15:30 Profitable volume vs pure growth strategy16:20 Scale math: 26M packages per day in the U.S.17:10 Agentic AI: low-risk autonomous decisions18:10 Physical AI: drones, humanoids & warehouse robotics19:10 Happy Returns acquisition & No Box No Label20:30 Measuring AI adoption internally21:00 Killer use case: pricing, pricing, pricing22:00 Advice on AI adoption and resilience23:00 “There is no failure in technology” mindset_______________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Sunzay Passari → https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunzaypassari/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/malas-podcast/id1848618438Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Michael Avrahamov, VP of Engineering at ServiceNow, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to discuss what it really takes to lead large engineering teams in the age of AI.From early startup work building developer platforms to leadership roles at Siebel, Oracle, and now ServiceNow, Michael shares how he built a niche in observability and reliability engineering—and why falling in love with hard technical problems shaped his career.The conversation dives deep into AI-assisted coding, the risks of auto-generated code, IP concerns, and whether locking down engineers slows innovation. Michael also unpacks how ServiceNow infused AI into discovery, CMDB, and ITSM workflows—and what it means to scale responsibly with 170+ engineers.If you’re a founder, engineering leader, or developer navigating AI productivity tools, governance, and code quality, this episode is packed with practical insight.___________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Michael’s journey into tech01:00 Early startup days and developer platforms02:20 Discoverability, observability, and reliability focus03:40 From Siebel to Oracle to ServiceNow05:00 Reverse engineering the JVM and deep debugging06:40 ServiceNow’s early AI efforts before GenAI08:00 The ChatGPT pivot and accelerating product development09:30 Infusing AI as a co-pilot into product workflows10:50 Automating ITSM tickets with AI agents12:00 Managing a 170-engineer organization13:00 AI adoption vs locking down engineers14:30 Preparing internal systems for AI usefulness15:50 Where AI actually improved productivity17:00 The 2 million lines of AI-generated code problem18:30 Code quality, review discipline, and verification risks19:40 Should AI intentionally inject errors to test humans?20:30 Freedom vs governance in AI usage21:40 Prioritizing roadmap vs one-off customer demands23:00 Startup advice: protect focus and your moat24:00 Final thoughts on leadership in the AI era___________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Michael Avrahamov → https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelavr/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/malas-podcast/id1848618438Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Abhinav Asthana, CTO of Redwood Trust, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to share his unconventional journey from early data science in Formula 1 to leading technology at a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT).In this candid conversation, Abhinav breaks down how technology drives real business outcomes in financial services, how private credit and non-qualified mortgages work, and why AI must tie directly to return on equity—not just automation metrics.He also shares insights from investing in early-stage AI startups through Redwood’s corporate venture arm, what founders get wrong when selling to financial institutions, and why solving “hard, boring problems” can create lasting economic moats.This episode is a must-watch for founders building in fintech, AI infrastructure, real estate tech, and regulated markets.____________________________________________________Timestamps:00:00 Intro and Abhinav’s background01:00 Early data science in Formula 102:30 From engineering to M&A at Wipro03:40 Transition into product leadership05:00 Building zero-to-one product strategy06:10 Joining Redwood Trust as CTO07:20 Understanding non-QM and jumbo mortgages08:40 The evolution of private credit in housing10:00 Corporate venture investing in AI startups11:20 Check sizes and early-stage investment strategy12:40 How REIT economics shape tech decisions14:00 Why partial automation doesn’t cut costs15:30 Moving humans up the value chain16:40 Advice for founders selling into real estate18:00 Homogeneity doesn’t exist in customers19:20 Design partners and industry networks20:40 Solve hard problems with economic moats22:00 Why pricing power comes after market capture23:20 Books that shaped Abhinav’s thinking24:30 Growth mindset and lifelong learning____________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Abhinav Asthana → https://www.linkedin.com/in/abhiasthana/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Puneet Gupta, Founder & CEO of Amberflo, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to unpack one of the biggest blind spots in AI adoption: cost, governance, and tying LLM usage to real business value.A former General Manager at Amazon Web Services and founding member of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, Puneet brings deep cloud infrastructure experience to the AI era. In this conversation, he explains why token usage is exploding, why experiments don’t translate cleanly into production, and why enterprises must “get ahead of the bill” with AI governance.The episode dives into AI gateways, attribution models, multi-cloud realities, usage-based pricing, and the leadership discipline required to scale startups without chasing false momentum.If you're a founder, CIO, or operator deploying AI at scale, this episode is a practical guide to managing cost, governance, and long-term strategy.________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Puneet’s background01:00 Early days at AWS and cloud lessons02:00 The origin story of Amberflo03:00 Inside AWS metering and billing systems04:30 Usage-based business models in the cloud era06:00 From billing to AI governance and FinOps07:30 Moving from AI experiments to production09:00 Why LLM token usage explodes with agents10:30 Tying AI spend to business outcomes11:45 Why parsing vendor bills isn’t enough12:30 The rise of AI gateways14:00 CIO use cases: cost control and developer tooling15:30 Product-facing AI attribution challenges16:30 Context windows and unpredictable token costs17:30 Founder advice: don’t confuse momentum with progress19:00 Choosing the right design partners20:30 Why founders must focus on a niche22:00 Lessons from building metering before billing24:00 Is AI overhyped? What will last25:30 Multi-cloud strategy and competing with hyperscalers27:00 Final thoughts on AI infrastructure opportunity________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Puneet Gupta → https://www.linkedin.com/in/puneetguptausa/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Rajeev Sethi, SVP of Emerging Technologies at ServiceNow, joins Mala Ramakrishnan for a candid conversation on how large enterprises actually adopt AI, automation, and agentic systems.With nearly four decades across engineering, IT, consulting, and enterprise platforms, Rajeev shares how ServiceNow evolved from a workflow engine into a category-defining company, why automation matters more than AI buzzwords, and where agentic AI is genuinely useful versus overblown.The episode dives deep into consumerizing enterprise software, working with early-stage startups, pitching to CIOs, embedding AI responsibly, and why autonomous enterprises are closer than we think—but still hard to build.A practical, grounded discussion for founders, product leaders, and operators building enterprise and AI-first products.___________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Rajeev Sethi’s background01:10 From engineer to enterprise leader02:30 Designing systems for the future, not today03:50 Early customer deployment and consulting lessons05:10 Why ServiceNow created the Emerging Tech group06:30 Learning from 200+ early-stage startups08:00 How ServiceNow works with founders and VCs09:20 What ServiceNow got right early on10:40 Pivoting from platform to ITSM12:00 Embedding AI before GenAI hype13:30 LLMs, Hugging Face, and frontier models15:00 From generative AI to agentic workflows16:40 Why AI agents need guardrails18:10 AI is not autonomous without workflows19:40 The limits of AI accuracy in enterprises21:10 Why unstructured data is the real bottleneck22:40 Autonomous enterprise vs autonomous vehicles24:10 Where AI will create real enterprise value25:40 Final thoughts on automation and opportunity___________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Rajeev Sethi → https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajeevsethi1/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org

Parisa Naseralavi, COO of XOPS, joins Mala Ramakrishnan for a candid conversation on operations, leadership, and what it really takes to scale companies from early traction to enterprise adoption.Starting her career as a chemical engineer, Parisa shares how thinking in process and scale shaped her journey across Monsanto, Cisco, VMware, ServiceNow, and now a fast-growing startup. She explains why operations is the operating system of a company, why startups underestimate go-to-market discipline, and how autonomous workflows can remove human friction across IT, HR, and finance.The episode also dives into selling to Fortune 100 companies, achieving fast time-to-value, building trust early with customers, and why founders must obsess over outcomes, not just features. A practical, no-hype conversation for founders, operators, and executives building enterprise software.____________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Parisa’s journey to COO01:00 From chemical engineering to operations02:20 Learning scale and quality at Monsanto03:30 Joining Cisco during hypergrowth04:40 Why operations is the company’s operating system05:50 Moving from hardware to software leadership07:00 Scaling global operations at VMware08:10 Lessons from ServiceNow’s growth phase09:30 Why Parisa joined an early-stage startup10:50 The reality of building from Series A to B12:10 What XOps does and autonomous workflows13:30 Outcome-driven automation vs task automation14:50 Removing humans from broken workflows16:10 How startups land Fortune 100 customers17:40 Fast deployment and time-to-value19:10 Why early customers take bets on people20:40 Founder involvement in early enterprise deals22:00 AI adoption: cost, productivity, and revenue23:30 Advice for women leaders and sponsors25:00 Mentorship, giving back, and leadership values26:40 Books, travel, and closing reflections____________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Parisa Naseralavi → https://www.linkedin.com/in/parisanaseralavi/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Pankaj Garg, Corporate Vice President at Microsoft, joins Mala Ramakrishnan for a deep, candid conversation on how Azure was built, how infrastructure innovation really happens at scale, and why AI represents the biggest platform shift of our lifetime.From writing kernel code and building Hyper-V to helping grow Azure from an early internal project into a global cloud platform, Pankaj shares firsthand lessons on execution speed, enterprise go-to-market advantage, and where startups still have room to innovate alongside hyperscalers.The episode also explores how AI workloads are reshaping cloud networking, security, and developer productivity—plus what founders should focus on when building in an era of hyper-productivity.A must-watch for founders, infrastructure builders, and leaders navigating cloud, AI, and platform-scale systems.______________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Pankaj Garg’s background01:40 Building Hyper-V and low-level systems03:10 The early days of Azure (Project Red Dog)04:40 Competing with AWS in the early cloud era06:10 Why enterprise trust gave Azure an edge07:30 Azure’s startup-like speed and execution09:00 From hands-on engineer to leader12:10 Where innovation still exists: cost and efficiency13:40 Security and multi-cloud opportunities15:00 Azure’s platform-first strategy18:00 AI as a once-in-a-generation platform shift21:10 Developer productivity in the AI era22:30 Advice for founders: ideas, speed, and focus23:50 Final inspiration and closing thoughts______________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Pankaj Garg → https://www.linkedin.com/in/ipankajg/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Shanti Iyer, CIO of DocuSign, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to share a candid, inside look at how large enterprises adopt AI with discipline, responsibility, and real business impact.From growing up in Chennai to spending two decades at Cisco and now leading technology at DocuSign, Shanti explains why great CIOs think business first, technology second. She breaks down how DocuSign approaches AI adoption, tool sprawl, governance, developer productivity, and responsible AI—without slowing the company down.This episode goes deep into how enterprises actually deploy AI in production: from rolling out “birthright” AI tools, to building agent-based systems with humans in the loop, to securing budget, managing risk, and earning trust across the organization.A must-watch for CIOs, CTOs, founders, and operators building AI inside complex, regulated environments.________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Shanti Iyer’s background01:30 Growing up in Chennai and early independence03:00 Early career, consulting, and joining Cisco04:40 Finding advocates and asking for bigger roles06:20 Learning business-first leadership at Cisco08:00 Running data and gaining a 360° company view10:00 Cloud, Snowflake, and modern data stacks12:30 Moving from Cisco to DocuSign14:00 The CIO challenge: AI tool sprawl15:40 “Birthright” AI tools for every employee17:30 Design discovery workshops and prioritization19:00 Building agent-based AI with humans in the loop21:00 Measuring AI impact and securing budget23:00 Developer tools, code quality, and IP risk25:00 Governance, AI education, and guardrails27:00 Advice for founders selling to enterprises29:00 Final lessons on responsible AI and leadership________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Shanthi Iyer → https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanthiiyer/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Allen Taylor, Managing Director at Endeavor, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to unpack how Endeavor has spent nearly three decades building high-impact entrepreneurs across emerging and underserved markets.From Latin America to Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, Allen explains why talent is evenly distributed but access to networks, capital, and trust is not. He shares how Endeavor identifies the top 1% of scale-up founders, why peer networks matter more than mentors, and how long-term thinking creates compounding impact in entrepreneurship.The conversation also dives into Endeavor Catalyst, its global venture fund, what makes great founders stand out, and why economic empowerment through entrepreneurship can change entire regions over time.A thoughtful episode for founders, investors, and leaders interested in global entrepreneurship, venture capital, and building long-term impact beyond Silicon Valley.____________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Allen Taylor’s journey01:10 Why Endeavor was founded03:20 Building a global network of trust04:30 How Endeavor expanded beyond Latin America05:40 Startups vs scale-ups: Endeavor’s focus06:50 The International Selection Panel and the top 1%08:00 Why peer networks matter more than mentors09:10 From nonprofit to venture fund: Endeavor Catalyst10:20 How Endeavor funds and LPs work globally11:30 Patterns in emerging market entrepreneurship13:50 What makes great founders stand out15:00 Resilience as the defining founder trait16:10 Investing through volatility and instability17:30 Long-term thinking and compounding impact18:50 Entrepreneurship as economic empowerment21:30 Luck, skill, and betting on the long term24:00 Final advice on playing the long game__________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Allen Taylor → https://www.linkedin.com/in/aktaylor/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Aysha Khan, CIO and CISO of Treasure Data, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to share a deeply practical view on leadership, cybersecurity, and using AI as a business accelerator—not a distraction.From growing up across Pakistan, Canada, and the US to leading global security and technology transformations at Oracle, Symantec, and major financial institutions, Aysha explains why exposure builds resilience, why security must be a business enabler, and how AI amplifies either strategy or chaos.This episode breaks down how modern CIOs and CISOs align with go-to-market teams, unlock new revenue through trust, and build simple, secure systems that scale. A must-watch for enterprise leaders navigating AI, risk, and growth at the same time.______________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and Aysha Khan’s global journey01:00 Growing up across cultures and building resilience02:10 Why exposure shapes leadership early03:20 Curiosity, questions, and career growth04:30 Emotional mastery and the inner journey05:40 Choosing engineering to create impact06:50 Learning from great and difficult managers08:00 Early cybersecurity and online banking09:10 Cloud transformation and compliance shifts10:20 Security vs compliance: why they’re not the same11:30 AI as an amplifier of strategy or chaos12:40 Aligning security with go-to-market teams14:10 Security as a revenue and trust enabler15:40 Simplifying compliance to unlock new markets17:20 Leading without titles and focusing on value18:50 Secure innovation and the “simple and secure” framework20:30 Measuring AI value: revenue, trust, efficiency, cost22:00 Risk management committees and decision-making23:40 Trust, empathy, and collaborative leadership24:50 Books, mentors, and final advice25:40 Courage as a muscle and closing thoughts______________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Aysha Khan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/aysha-khan-77ba9014/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Rohit Jain, CIO and Chief AI Officer, challenges one of the most common fears about AI. That it will eliminate jobs.In this clip, Rohit explains why history tells a different story. From the Industrial Revolution to the digital era, roles evolve but responsibility remains. AI doesn’t erase human work. It reshapes how work gets done and where humans add the most value.His message to leaders is clear.Stop framing AI as job destruction.Start framing it as job transformation. _____________________________________________________________About Rohit JainRohit Jain is a technology executive with 20+ years of experience leading enterprise IT, data, and AI transformations across growth-stage and scaled organizations. He partners closely with CEOs, Boards, and executive teams to ensure technology drives business growth, operational efficiency, and organizational resilience.Rohit has built and led global IT organizations spanning enterprise applications, cloud infrastructure, data platforms, and cybersecurity, managing multi-million-dollar budgets and mission-critical systems in complex, regulated environments.In recent years, his work has focused on moving AI from experimentation to production. He helps organizations establish strong data foundations, governance models, and operating frameworks that enable responsible, scalable AI adoption integrated into core business workflows.Beyond his executive roles, Rohit is an active investor, advisor, and board member supporting startups across North America, Asia-Pacific, India, Estonia, and South Africa. He is also a frequent speaker at institutions including Harvard Business School and the United Nations. 🔗 Connect with Rohit Jain on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jainr_____________________________________________________________About the eventThe AI Innovators Forum is a monthly gathering that brings together 300+ founders, executives, product leaders, engineers, and operators shaping how AI is built, deployed, and scaled in the real world.Each forum blends executive insight with hands-on execution through live demos, practical frameworks, and candid conversations on what it actually takes to operationalize AI responsibly inside modern organizations.👉 Want to pitch, speak, or join a future forum?Apply here: https://forms.gle/mUNH1f8H5ED3pBJe9👉 Stay in the loop for upcoming forums:https://lu.ma/founderscreative📩 Contact: [email protected] or [email protected]

Shibani Sanan, veteran engineering leader and CTO, shares a grounded take on how leaders should approach AI without losing focus on the business.In this clip, Shibani explains why small and mid-sized companies can’t afford to chase AI trends blindly. With limited bandwidth, revenue goals, and product roadmaps to manage, AI must earn its place. It should strengthen the company’s mission, unlock real use cases, or create leverage that didn’t exist before.Her principle is simple.Don’t do AI for the sake of AI.Do it only when it meaningfully moves the product and the business forward.________________________________________________About Shibani SananShibani Sanan is a versatile engineering leader with 25+ years of experience building scalable, high-impact products across fintech and digital advertising. She combines deep technical expertise with strong product intuition and is known for building high-performing teams in complex, fast-moving environments.She is currently Chief Technology Officer at Ladder, and previously served as Head of Engineering at Plaid. Prior to that, Shibani spent nearly 16 years at Google, including as Vice President of Engineering, where she led global teams building large-scale advertising platforms and AI-driven products.Shibani believes in creating environments that empower individuals, encourage cross-functional collaboration, and prioritize engineering excellence over hype. 🔗 Connect with Shibani Sanan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shibanisanan/________________________________________________About the EventThe AI Innovators Forum is a monthly gathering that brings together 300+ founders, executives, product leaders, engineers, and operators shaping the future of AI in the real world.Each forum blends sharp executive perspectives with hands-on building. Live demos, practical frameworks, and candid conversations on what it actually takes to ship, scale, and govern AI inside modern organizations.👉 Want to pitch, speak, or join a future forum?Apply here: https://forms.gle/mUNH1f8H5ED3pBJe9👉 Stay in the loop for future events:https://lu.ma/founderscreative📩 Contact: [email protected] or [email protected]#FoundersCreative #AILeadership #FutureOfWork #AIProduct #ExecutiveAI

Aysha Khan, technology executive and strategic advisor, explains why AI transformation without security-first thinking is a leadership blind spot.With AI accelerating across enterprises, Aysha breaks down why cybersecurity can’t be an afterthought. It must be built into strategy, governance, and operating models from day one. From compliance to trust frameworks, she shares what leaders must get right as AI reshapes how companies scale, innovate, and protect value.This is about building AI systems that are not just powerful, but resilient, trusted, and ready for the real world._______________________________________________About Aysha KhanAysha Khan is a technology executive, CISO, CIO, and strategic advisor with over 20 years of experience spanning cybersecurity, AI, fintech, healthcare, and enterprise software. She has led transformational initiatives across billion-dollar enterprises and high-growth startups, including IPO and spinoff readiness, operating model redesign, and AI-driven value creation.Most recently, as CISO and CIO at Treasure Data, Aysha led security and technology strategy for a $170M global customer data platform, securing 450 enterprise customers while positioning the company for profitability and IPO readiness.Her leadership journey includes senior roles at Oracle, Symantec, HP, Bank of Montreal, and CIBC Mellon, where she built trust frameworks and compliance programs across FedRAMP, HIPAA, SOC 2, and ISO standards.Named Cybersecurity Leader of the Year 2024, Aysha is also an active angel investor and advisor to security, data, AI, and infrastructure startups, and a frequent speaker on AI transformation, next-generation cybersecurity, and conscious technology leadership.She holds a Bachelor of Applied Information Sciences from Centennial College and executive certifications from Stanford University. Fluent in five languages, she brings a global lens to leadership in AI and security.🔗 Connect with Aysha Khan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aysha-khan-77ba9014/_______________________________________________About the EventThe AI Innovators Forum, 2025 brought together executives, builders, and operators to combine strategic thinking with hands-on AI building through live workshops, cross-functional collaboration, and real-time prototyping.👉 Want to pitch, speak, or join a future forum?Apply here: https://forms.gle/mUNH1f8H5ED3pBJe9👉 Stay in the loop for future events:https://lu.ma/founderscreative📩 Contact: [email protected] or [email protected]

Sriram Chakravarthy, Founder & CTO of Avaamo, explains why modern leaders shouldn’t spend time chasing updates like AWS spend, hiring numbers, or operational metrics.Instead, he’s building an AI-powered dashboard and personal agent. A system that surfaces real-time insights across spend, resources, and operations.So leadership energy goes into decisions, not status checks.____________________________About Sriram ChakravarthySriram is the Founder and CTO of Avaamo, a deep learning enterprise software company focused on conversational AI for high-impact enterprise use cases. Founded in 2014, Avaamo builds proprietary AI systems across neural networks, speech synthesis, and deep domain machine learning to enable multi-turn, judgment-intensive conversations at scale.As CTO, Sriram leads product and engineering with a focus on building systems that work in the real world, not just demos.🔗 Connect with Sriram Chakravarthy on LinkedIn:⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/sriramvc/⁠__________________________________________About the EventThe AI Vibe Coding Summit, 2025 combined executive-level thinking with hands-on AI building through live workshops, cross-functional collaboration, and real-time prototyping.👉 Want to pitch, speak, or join a future forum?Apply here: https://forms.gle/mUNH1f8H5ED3pBJe9👉 Stay in the loop for future events:https://lu.ma/founderscreative📩 Contact: [email protected] or [email protected]

Amr Awadallah, Former Founder & CEO of Vectara, explains why he uses two AI agents in parallel, to compare results, catch hallucinations, and make better decisions.Amr shares a practical mindset for working with AI today: don’t treat it as magic. Learn the tools deeply, understand their limits, and use structure to get more reliable outcomes.A simple tactic with big implications for leaders, builders, and anyone working with AI systems.This clip was recorded at a recent Founders Creative AI Vibe-Coding Summit, 2025.______________________________________________About Amr AwadallahAmr Awadallah is a tech entrepreneur and AI builder with 30 years of experience across large-scale systems, big data, machine learning, and AI. Most recently, Amr was the founding CEO of Vectara, where he took the company from 0 to 1. He led the development of the Vectara Trusted Agent Operating System, raised $54M, earned Gartner recognition in two Emerging Market Quadrants, and built a high-performing team of ~50. Vectara’s open-weights hallucination detection model reached 5.5M downloads on Hugging Face.Previously, Amr served as VP of Developer Relations at Google Cloud, was founder and global CTO of Cloudera, VP of Engineering at Yahoo!, and founder/CTO of Aptivia, later acquired by Yahoo.He holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University and remains deeply involved in building practical, trustworthy AI systems.🔗 Connect with Amr Awadallah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/awadallah/______________________________________________👉 Stay in the loop and join us at future events: https://lu.ma/founderscreative📩 Reach out to us at [email protected]#AIVibeCoding #FoundersCreative #AILeadership #FutureOfWork #InsideTheRoom #AIProduct

Mala Ramakrishnan sits down with Abhijit Kakhandiki, SVP & GM, Digital Business Automation at BMC Software and former EVP, Product & Engineering, Automation Anywhere, to unpack what it really takes to build AI-powered products that work in production — not just in demos.Drawing from years of experience creating the RPA category, scaling to thousands of enterprise customers, and shipping early AI products before GenAI was mainstream, Abhijit shares hard-won lessons on product leadership, AI misconceptions, customer-first design, and why most AI products fail after the POC stage.____________________________________________________00:00 Intro and Abhijit’s product leadership background01:10 Early AI and RPA before GenAI hype02:20 Common misconceptions about AI in products03:20 Why AI is not a magic bullet04:20 Starting with user personas and pain points05:30 Builders vs operators and scaling insights06:40 When GenAI ideas fail without context07:40 Learning from Automation Anywhere’s document AI08:50 Partner vs compete with cloud providers09:50 Why UX matters more than AI accuracy early10:50 Thin AI veneers vs deep product differentiation11:50 How AI changes the PM role12:50 New responsibilities: bias, ethics, and accuracy14:00 Why original thinking beats AI-generated content15:10 Removing the AI “wow factor” from strategy16:20 Gross margins, OpenAI costs, and real value17:30 Revenue funnels and when AI actually helps18:50 Retention, expansion, and customer readiness20:10 Why production-grade AI is hard21:20 Measuring AI success with business metrics22:40 Why most AI POCs fail in production24:00 Selling AI to CIOs, not just users26:00 Automation as the gateway to enterprise AI28:30 Business outcomes over model metrics30:00 Closing thoughts on AI product leadership____________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Abhijeet Kakhandiki → https://www.linkedin.com/in/abhijit-kakhandiki/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Mala Ramakrishnan — founder of Progressive Ventures, serial entrepreneur, and investor — joins Indian Tech Icon Spotlight to share her journey from growing up in India to building companies, leading exits, and backing underrepresented founders in Silicon Valley.In this candid conversation, Mala reflects on starting her first company at 21, the power of belief and sponsorship, why women must think bigger when building startups, and how venture capital shapes economic outcomes. She also shares her vision for 50% representation in leadership, boardrooms, and venture-backed companies, along with practical advice for founders who want to build venture-scale businesses.A powerful episode on leadership, courage, ambition, and building long-term impact.__________________________________________________________Timestamps00:00 Intro and welcome to the spotlight01:00 Starting a company at 2102:10 The role of belief and early supporters03:10 Building first startups and early exits04:00 Why Mala started Progressive Ventures05:00 Barriers women face in leadership06:00 Rejecting the victim mindset07:00 Why women must step up and lead08:00 The vision for 50% representation09:10 Why venture capital drives real change10:00 Family, support systems, and balance11:00 Raising independent children while building companies12:20 Bay Area vs India startup ecosystems15:30 Why continuous learning matters17:40 Advice for women founders to think bigger19:00 What makes an idea venture-scale20:30 Working backward from big outcomes21:20 Rapid-fire23:30 Personal reflections and closing thoughts__________________________________________________________🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Meera Rajavel, CIO at Palo Alto Networks, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to share a candid journey from a small town in India to the C-suite of global technology companies.Meera breaks down what it really takes to build a long-term career in engineering, IT, and cybersecurity. She shares lessons from startups and large enterprises, how CIOs think about outcomes, why security must be frictionless, and how AI is reshaping the speed and risk of cyber threats. The conversation also covers leadership, risk-taking, and what founders must get right to sell into the enterprise.-----------------------------------------------Timestamps:00:00 Intro 01:00 Growing up in India and early barriers02:20 Discovering computer science03:30 Teaching while learning programming04:30 Early engineering career and startups05:30 Learning foundations at large companies06:40 Moving beyond engineering into IT07:40 Why outcomes matter more than roles08:40 Entering cybersecurity and cloud transformation10:00 Becoming a CIO and taking risks11:30 Myths about cybersecurity and risk13:00 Why security must be frictionless14:30 How cyber threats evolved over time16:20 How AI changed attack speed18:20 AI as a force multiplier in security20:00 Using AI for business outcomes22:00 Advice for women aiming for the C-suite24:40 What enterprises expect from startups----------------------------------------------- 🔗 Connect with Meerah Rajavel → https://www.linkedin.com/in/meerah-rajavel/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai

Miriam Daniel, VP and General Manager of Google Maps, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to discuss building and scaling one of the world’s most used consumer platforms in the age of AI.From her early engineering career in India to leading Google Maps with over 2 billion monthly users, Miriam shares lessons on career pivots, the power of sponsors, learning from failure at Amazon’s Fire Phone, and helping build Alexa from the ground up. She also explains how Google Maps is evolving with Gemini, voice, and generative AI—while maintaining accuracy, trust, and privacy at planetary scale.This episode covers product-market fit, platform leadership, AI in consumer products, and what it takes to operate and innovate at global scale.-----------------------------------------------Timestamps:00:00 Intro and background01:00 Growing up in India and engineering at BITS Pilani02:00 Early career and move to the US03:00 From engineering to product leadership04:10 Why sponsors matter in big companies05:20 Platform and mobility work at Intel06:30 Taking a risk and joining Amazon07:15 Fire Phone failure and leadership lessons08:40 Building Alexa from the early days10:10 Finding product-market fit with voice11:40 How users shaped Alexa’s evolution13:20 Ecosystems, developers, and scale15:00 Why Google Maps and its mission16:40 Gemini, AI, and the future of Maps18:40 Accuracy, data, and trust at scale21:00 Operating and innovating for 2B+ users23:00 Personal inspiration and final advice----------------------------------------------- 🔗 Connect with Miriam → https://www.linkedin.com/in/miriam-daniel-38596b/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai 

Dave McJannet, CEO of HashiCorp, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to break down how real infrastructure companies are built across cloud, open source, and now AI.From starting his career as a chartered accountant to leading multiple platform shifts, Dave explains how cloud, open source, and AI follow repeatable patterns. He shares why HashiCorp bet early on multi-cloud, how open source businesses actually monetize, what IPOs really change, and why AI represents a shift from deterministic to probabilistic software.-----------------------------------------------Timestamps:00:00 Intro01:00 From accounting to technology02:10 Why learning matters more than degrees03:30 Discovering middleware and infrastructure04:30 Startups vs big tech companies05:40 Cloud Foundry and platform shifts06:50 Why Dave joined HashiCorp08:00 Market, model, and team framework09:20 Open source business models explained11:10 Monetization challenges in open source12:40 How HashiCorp’s model works14:30 What going public really changes16:50 AI as a platform transition19:30 Deterministic vs probabilistic software22:30 AI, cloud power, and independence----------------------------------------------- 🔗 Connect with Dave McJannet → https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmcjannet/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai 

Cheong Ang, Field CTO at IBM, joins Mala Ramakrishnan to break down what it really takes to innovate in healthcare. From saving healthcare systems $90M annually, Cheong explains why healthcare is a people-and-process business, where AI helps, where it fails, and how founders can survive regulation, monetization, and scale. A clear look at startups vs incumbents, and what actually moves patient outcomes.-----------------------------------------------Timestamps:00:00 Intro and guest background01:10 Early career and entry into healthcare02:40 From pre-med to bioengineering04:20 First healthcare roles and IBM roots06:10 Healthcare digitization over the years08:10 What hasn’t changed in healthcare10:00 Innovating in a regulated industry12:10 Founding LucidAct and the problem14:10 Care pathways and workflow gaps16:10 Competing with incumbents as a startup18:00 Monetization and Medicare CCM19:50 Lessons for healthcare founders21:10 Transition from startup to IBM22:20 Where AI helps and where it doesn’t23:30 Personal habits and final advice----------------------------------------------- 🔗 Connect with Cheong Ang → https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheongang🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4AApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: www.malaramakrishnan.com | www.founderscreative.ai 

In the first episode of Mala’s podcast, Mala sits down with Jeff Wang, CEO of Windsurf (formerly Codeium). When a big tech bidding war erupts, Jeff unexpectedly finds himself stepping into the CEO role overnight.He opens up about building Windsurf’s enterprise wedge, surviving Anthropic’s API shutdown, and keeping an $82M ARR business alive — all while navigating a merger with Cognition to launch the world’s first dual-agent AI coding platform.We get a deep insight into the pros and cons of AI-powered code acceleration vs advanced agent-based code automation — and a raw, unfiltered look at startup survival, leadership under pressure, and the evolving future of developer tools in the AI era, from Silicon Valley’s frontlines to the next wave of intelligent code._______________________________Chapters00:00 Introduction & Guest Welcome00:06 Jeff’s Origin Story01:00 Joining Codeium: The “do-everything” role before revenue02:20 Building the First On-Prem Copilot Competitor03:20 Expanding Surface Area04:00 Competing with Copilot, Cursor & Claude05:55 The 72-Hour Crisis06:50 Inside the War Room08:45 Becoming CEO Overnight09:30 Retaining Engineers & $82M ARR10:40 Why Merge with Cognition12:00 Going All-In on Enterprise13:10 Partner-Led Distribution14:00 Future of Developer Work15:00 Market Dynamics16:00 Leadership Lessons17:20 AI Economics & Sustainability18:00 Avoiding Key-Person Risk19:20 Audience Q&A22:10 Closing Reflections______________________________🔗 Connect with Jeff Wang → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jefflinwang/🔗 Connect with Mala Ramakrishnan → https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaramakrishnan🎧 Subscribe to the podcast:Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnL3D6aI60R-cCvypFIkh4ASpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NIDE4cT5fuVjC3HaGbCDK?si=eoSTNmhqQNKHQl9d1Jx0UQApple Podcast: https://podcastsconnect.apple.com/my-podcasts/show/talking-to-the-leaders-of-ai-the-ceo-series-with-mala/22ad2bae-502b-4eb1-aa74-53bc79754db7Visit our Website: https://malaramakrishnan.com | https://founderscreative.org