VentureBeat launches new podcast on enterprise AI in production.

2 hours ago7 min read

VentureBeat is launching a new flagship podcast, 'Beyond the Pilot: Enterprise AI in Action,' premiering November 19 with sponsorship from Outshift by Cisco, marking a significant evolution in the discourse surrounding artificial intelligence as it transitions from theoretical potential to tangible, operational reality within corporate infrastructures. This shift represents a critical inflection point, reminiscent of the early days of cloud computing or the initial deployment of large-scale data analytics, where the fundamental challenge for technical leaders is no longer understanding the transformative promise of large language models and agentic systems but navigating the intricate, often unglamorous work of ensuring these technologies run reliably, securely, and at a scale that delivers measurable business value.The podcast, hosted by Matt Marshall and Sam Witteveen, is designed to cut through the pervasive hype cycle by featuring candid, technically rigorous conversations with executives from companies like Notion, LinkedIn, Booking. com, JPMorgan, Mastercard, and LexisNexis, who have moved beyond controlled experiments and are now scaling AI in production environments, dealing with the hard constraints of model governance, infrastructure choices, security protocols, and the relentless pursuit of return on investment.As an AI researcher, this focus on the 'how' rather than the 'what if' is a refreshing and necessary development; it echoes the maturation phases of other foundational technologies, where the initial wave of excitement gives way to the complex engineering required for stable deployment, a process that involves not just technological stack decisions but profound organizational changes, from retraining teams to re-architecting data pipelines and establishing new ethical guidelines. The involvement of a sponsor like Outshift by Cisco, with its focus on taking emerging technologies to production readiness, underscores the industrial-strength requirements now coming to the fore, signaling that enterprise AI is entering a phase where robustness, scalability, and integration with existing IT ecosystems are paramount, a stark contrast to the isolated proof-of-concepts that have dominated the conversation until recently.The debut episode featuring Notion's VP AI Ryan Nystrom, discussing the creation of an 'AI-native' product within a platform used by millions, offers a fascinating case study in product philosophy and architectural design, raising questions about the future of human-computer interaction and the very definition of software in an age of pervasive intelligence. For senior managers, directors, and lead engineers, this podcast promises to be a vital resource, providing not just blueprints but also honest post-mortems and lessons learned from the frontlines, a collective intelligence repository that could accelerate best practices and help avoid common pitfalls, ultimately shaping the competitive landscape as enterprises that successfully operationalize AI gain significant advantages in efficiency, innovation, and customer experience. The broader context here is the global race for AI supremacy not just at the national level, but at the corporate level, with every major industry from finance to travel seeking to leverage these tools, making the insights from 'Beyond the Pilot' immediately relevant to a international audience of practitioners determined to turn ambitious AI roadmaps into deployed, functioning systems that work day in and day out.

#Beyond the Pilot

#VentureBeat

#podcast

#enterprise AI

#production

#Outshift by Cisco

#featured