Spark of Ages

The Spark of Ages podcast is about the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence through a marketing lens. We are living in the middle of the most important "spark for the ages". Our episodes are either about looking back to teach us what we can learn for this moment, or looking forward for where the next spark might be. We highlight the stories from business leaders at the intersection of marketing, technology and innovation.

Spark of Ages is a business podcast hosted by Rajiv Parikh, with 69 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Rajiv Parikh hosts Spark of Ages, a business show with 69 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Spark of Ages

  The AI With 160,000 Friends That Networks For You/Andrew D'Souza - Boardy.ai, Cold Start, Team ~ Spark of Ages Ep 69

  Aug 7, 202642 min

  Rajiv Parikh talks with Andrew D’Souza about building Boardy, an AI superconnector that scales warm introductions while protecting its own reputation and the network’s goodwill. We dig into why Boardy rejects SaaS norms, how the team trains an autonomous AI to say no, and what it takes to hire imaginative builders for an AI-native company. Boardy.ai: https://www.boardy.ai/ • why reputation-weighted introductions beat open messaging • how Boardy works through phone calls, WhatsApp, and email instead of dashboards • using the film Her as a model for shared AI presence • go-to-market lessons from cold start growth and a crafted personality • training Boardy to preserve goodwill and push back on bad asks • combining ML engineers with character design to make the persona feel real • hiring framework focused on imagination, agency, and ambiguous problem solving • monetization paths through Boardy Pro and deeper funnel support beyond intros • managing disagreement when an autonomous AI brings data-backed recommendations Your next breakthrough might be one introduction away, but most networking platforms confuse access with trust. We sit down with Andrew D’Souza, founder and CEO of Boardy, to unpack what it looks like to build an AI superconnector that behaves less like software and more like a principled relationship driven matchmaker. Boardy operates through live phone calls, WhatsApp, and email, making double opt-in warm introductions across a massive professional network while putting its own reputation on the line. We get specific on product design and go-to-market: why Andrew rejects the usual SaaS playbook, why he thinks the “agentic AI” label misses the point, and how the movie Her helped shape a shared AI that can be deeply present with thousands of people at once. From the cold start grind of getting the first 1,000 users to the craft of an Australian-accented persona, this conversation breaks down what actually creates adoption when the interface is simply a conversation. Then we dig into the hard problem: network goodwill. Andrew explains how Boardy learns to say no without alienating users, how it reasons about mutually beneficial outcomes, and how Boardy Pro pushes beyond introductions into real follow-through like scheduling, prep, and closing the loop. We also talk hiring for imagination over pedigree, treating AI like a teammate in standups, and what a symbiotic future with “a new species” could require from all of us. Subscribe, share this with a builder who cares about real connection, and leave a review so more founders can find the show. Andrew D'Souza: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewdsouza/ Andrew D'Souza, the Founder and CEO of Boardy, an AI "super-connector" which recently raised its own $8 million seed round through autonomous pitching and even launched its own AI-led venture fund, Boardy Ventures. A serial entrepreneur, Andrew is perhaps best known as the former Co-Founder and CEO of the fintech unicorn Clearco. Before building his own unicorn, he served as the COO and CRO of Top Hat, President of Nymi, and an advisor to major tech players like Wealthsimple and Kik. Born in India before moving to Chicago and eventually the Toronto area, Andrew began his career as a Business Analyst at McKinsey & Company after earning his degree in Systems Design Engineering from the University of Waterloo. #ai #professionalgrowth #networking #entrepreneur #growth #sales #technology #innovatorsmindset #innovator #product #revenue #revenuegrowth #management #founder #entrepreneurship #company #process #processimprovement #value #valuecreation Website: https://www.position2.com/podcast/ Rajiv Parikh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajivparikh/ Email us with any feedback for the show: sparkofages.podcast@position2.com

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  Episode #68

  How the Air Force Is Cracking Silicon Valley/Jason Hansberger, John Alora - Ukraine, Drones, Computer Vision ~ Spark of Ages Ep 68

  Jul 24, 20261h 9mS1

  Cheap drones and bounded autonomy are rewriting the economics of warfare and forcing the US military and DefenseTech startups to rethink how we buy, build, and field capability at speed. Our host, Rajiv Parikh, is joined by Jason Hansberger and John Alora, the director and co-director at the Department of the Air Force Stanford AI Studio, who talk through what they're learning by bridging operators, academics, and founders, and what it will take to compete in GPS-denied, production-constrained reality. • character of war shifting toward scale • why legacy procurement and exquisite logistics break under cheap mass • how the DAF-Standford AI Studio picks problems by first principles and physics • why early funding is not enough without a program of record pathway • government equity stakes, upside and crowding-out risk • edge computing and on-device inference as the default for autonomy • what “autonomy” really means, bounded mission boxes and confidence gates • why data pipelines and fleet instrumentation block modern machine learning • manufacturing capacity limits, plus modular design to solve last-mile logistics • visual navigation for GPS-denied operations using computer vision A $500 drone can change a battlefield faster than a $100M platform can be replaced, and that single fact is forcing a hard rethink across defense technology, autonomy, and procurement. We sit down with Jason Hansberger and Dr. John Alora, the leaders behind the Department of the Air Force Stanford AI Studio, to talk about what the Ukraine war reveals about the “cheap kill” paradigm and why the character of warfare is shifting toward scale, attritable systems, and rapid iteration. We dig into what that shift means for defense startups and investors: why the government may fund more experiments than ever, yet still struggle to provide a clear demand signal, and why SBIR-style wins don’t automatically translate into durable outcomes without a program of record. Jason and John walk us through how they start from first principles, define the real operational problem, and then connect academia, operators, and founders to de-risk solutions using defense-unique test infrastructure. From edge AI to manufacturing, the constraints get real fast. We talk about compute at the edge where connectivity is a luxury, the practical meaning of autonomy (bounded mission boxes, confidence thresholds, and comms-degraded behaviors), and the data problems baked into legacy sensors and platforms. We also explore production bottlenecks and why modularity may beat “factory in the field,” plus a capability that feels like science fiction but is quickly becoming standard: GPS-denied navigation using computer vision and visual-based navigation. Jason Hansberger: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-hansberger-b1b15374/ Jason Hansberger is a leader in technology and strategy currently serving as the Director of the DAF-Stanford AI Studio & Director of Technology Capability Development for the United States Air Force. He has also served as a Commander of the 1st Airlift Squadron. Jason holds a Master of Arts in Regional Studies with a Southeast Asia concentration from the Naval Postgraduate School and got his Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Air Force Academy. He is focused on applying state-of-the-art solutions in AI and autonomy to solve Air Force problems. John Alora: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnalora/ John Alora is an Air Force pilot and robotics expert currently serving as the Deputy Director for the DAF-Stanford AI Studio and Assistant Dean of Research for the United States Air Force Test Pilot School. He has also served as a B-52 Aircraft Commander and Weapons and Tactics Officer. John holds a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University, a Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and got his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the United States Air Force Academy. He is focused on developing physics-based machine learning techniques and leveraging AI to maximize human cognition in complex aerospace and defense environments Website: https://www.position2.com/podcast/ Rajiv Parikh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajivparikh/ Email us with any feedback for the show: sparkofages.podcast@position2.com

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  Episode #67

  The Career Move That Survives AI/Geoff McQueen - Vibecoding, Revealed Preference, Coaches ~ Spark of Ages Ep 67

  Jul 10, 20261h 2mS1

  Rajiv Parikh talks with four-time founder Geoff McQueen about how AI is inverting the business pyramid and forcing everyone, not just executives, to act more entrepreneurially. We dig into why demos are easier than trust, how revealed preference drives better pivots than surveys, and what AI-first operations look like when context beats dashboards. • AI flipping high-cognitive work and raising the bar for every role • Why entrepreneurship matters more than traditional management • Speedy vibe-coded prototypes versus enterprise-grade products • Security, permissions, governance, and the real cost of trust • The limits of AI for creativity and naming despite strong research output • Revealed preference as a founder discipline driven by user behavior • The analytics trap and how dashboards can fossilize workflows • AI in the middle of the business with a shared context graph • Observer agents that investigate quietly and escalate only when needed • Coaching culture versus invasive surveillance approaches • A practical path toward $10M ARR with fewer than 10 employees • Openness, trade, and the societal risks of turning inward AI just made execution cheap, and that changes what founders should obsess over. Rajiv sits down with Geoff McQueen, founder and CEO of WorksightsAI, to unpack what happens when the “business pyramid” flips upside down and high-level cognitive work gets accelerated by frontier models while culture, alignment, and conflict stay deeply human. The result is uncomfortable and exciting: less room for business-as-usual management and a lot more demand for entrepreneurial judgment at every level. We get concrete about the gap between a vibe-coded demo and a product an enterprise can actually trust. Geoff walks through the unglamorous realities that decide whether AI-built software is real or risky: security, access control, permissions, privilege escalation, reliability, and governance. If you’ve ever watched an agent claim it “did the work” while quietly failing, this part will sharpen how you evaluate prototypes, MVPs, and production systems. Then we go deeper on product strategy and go-to-market. Geoff explains why revealed preference beats stated preference, why surveys can mislead founders, and how the “analytics trap” shows up when dashboards fossilize workflows instead of explaining what’s truly going on. We also explore AI-first operations and continuous performance intelligence built around corporate context across Slack, calendars, docs, tickets, CRM, and code, plus how observer agents can help leaders coach instead of police. If you’re building with AI, leading a team through change, or trying to scale efficiently, you’ll leave with a clearer playbook for direction, trust, and leverage. Subscribe, share this with a founder friend, and leave a review. What’s the first workflow you’d redesign if context became instantly searchable? Geoff McQueen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffmcqueen/ Geoff McQueen, the Founder and CEO of WorkSightsAI, a continuous performance intelligence platform that helps modern leaders run their businesses with AI. A four-time founder with over 20 years of experience building and investing in tech startups, Geoff was formerly the CEO and Co-Founder of Accelo, which he scaled to over $14 million in annual recurring revenue before a successful exit to private equity in early 2024. Armed with an MBA from the Sydney Business School at the University of Wollongong, today, he also serves as an Executive Director of the Aussie Founders Network and has spent over 13 years as an investor and mentor at Startmate, Australia's equivalent to Y-Combinator. Website: https://www.position2.com/podcast/ Rajiv Parikh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajivparikh/ Email us with any feedback for the show: sparkofages.podcast@position2.com

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  Episode #66

  Why Buyers Say Yes/Dr. Christophe Morin - Neuromarketing, Psychedelics, Hawaii ~ Spark of Ages Ep 66

  Jun 26, 20261h 1mS1

  Rajiv Parikh talks with Dr. Christophe Morin about why AI can be deceptively convincing, how to use custom GPT guardrails to make it safer, and what synthetic consciousness might actually mean. We also explore neurospirituality and neuroplasticity as practical tools for founders who want to scale without letting stress, anxiety, or savior patterns run their lives. • AI as a persuasive mirror that can hallucinate and mislead • Synthetic consciousness versus consciousness claims • Custom GPTs as curated knowledge containers with guardrails • Synthetic personas for market research and messaging tests • COVID as a catalyst for depression and a deeper pivot into wellness • Stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, and trauma as nervous system signals • 26 balance-restoring practices including nature, prayer, and meditation • Psychedelics as an emerging neuroplasticity conversation • Savior complex leadership patterns and how neuroplasticity rewires them • Why talk-only approaches can be slow and inaccessible for many people • Flow state as hypofrontality and trusted performance under pressure AI is getting better at sounding right, and that’s exactly what makes it risky. We sit down with Dr. Christophe Morin, bestselling author of "The Persuasion Code", "Neuromarketing AI", and "Open", to unpack why generative AI can be deceptively persuasive, how hallucinations turn into “trusted” advice, and why using chatbots for emotional support can create a dangerous feedback loop for vulnerable people. From there, we get concrete. Christophe explains how custom GPTs and curated LLM setups can act like safer containers for vetted, proprietary knowledge, instead of a grab bag of blended theories and fabricated citations. We also explore how AI can help marketing teams through synthetic personas and pattern detection, not to emotionally “sell” the machine, but to test and sharpen messaging meant for real humans whose decisions start in the primal, emotional brain. The conversation turns personal and practical for founders and CEOs: stress is not always bad, but toxic stress spreads fast and can hijack leadership. Christophe shares how neuroplasticity enables real rewiring of long-held beliefs, why savior-complex leadership can quietly fuel anxiety and addiction patterns, and how neurospiritual practices like meditation, nature exposure, prayer, and emerging psychedelic research fit into a grounded self-healing framework. We close with flow state science, plus a fun Spark Tank detour into feline behavior that somehow reinforces the point: nervous systems need real release valves. Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of AI, persuasion, and human performance, and if this one helps you, share it with a founder friend and leave a review. Christope Morin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophemorinphd/ Dr. Christophe Morin is the bestselling author of multiple books, including The Persuasion Code, Neuromarketing AI, and OPEN: A Neurospiritual Exploration of the Self-Healing Power of Your Brain. Christophe is the co-architect of the NeuroMap® model of persuasion and the creator of the OPEN™ framework, and the CEO and Co-Founder of SalesBrain, the world's first neuromarketing agency, and more recently the Founder of the Institute for Soul. Christophe holds an MBA from Bowling Green State University and a Ph.D. in Media Psychology from Fielding Graduate University, where he serves as adjunct faculty alongside his role as an AI lecturer at Johns Hopkins University. Website: https://www.position2.com/podcast/ Rajiv Parikh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajivparikh/ Email us with any feedback for the show: sparkofages.podcast@position2.com

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  Episode #65

  The Real Reason Your Revenue Team Is Failing/Bridget Winston - Metrics, Cheetahs, B2B+B2C ~ Spark of Ages Ep 65

  Jun 5, 20261h 1mS1

  We sit down with Bridget Winston to unpack what separates a real Chief Revenue Officer from a bookings-focused sales leader, and why the org chart tells you the truth faster than the job title. We get practical about SaaS metrics, AI-driven go-to-market, and the leadership habits that keep teams performing as the playbook keeps changing. • Evaluating a CRO remit by reporting lines and revenue accountability • Using GRR and NRR to diagnose product-market fit and ICP clarity • Treating revenue as a lagging indicator of customer centricity • Preparing for LLM-driven discovery with brand, PR, and earned media • Testing AI tools that shrink territory and quota planning cycles • Shifting budget from paid ads to community-led growth and local events • Turning customer testimonials into repeatable social proof loops • Managing humans and AI agents with specific, camera-ready feedback • Fixing incentives and systems before blaming the team • Creating urgency with day-five impact expectations instead of tired 30-60-90 plans Your org chart can tell you whether you’re hiring a true Chief Revenue Officer or just renaming a VP of Sales. We sit down with Bridget Winston, CRO at Patient Now and a three-time CRO, to get brutally clear on what revenue ownership actually means and why “bookings” is a dangerous north star when retention and expansion are what compound. We dig into the SaaS metrics that expose reality fast: GRR, NRR, LTV to CAC, and how boards interpret dashboards when product-market fit and ideal customer profile are still shaky. Bridget shares a sharp reframing that stuck with us: revenue is a lagging indicator of customer centricity. From there, we zoom out to the “SaaS-pocalypse” conversation and what happens to pricing, planning cycles, and revenue per employee as AI turns some companies into dinosaurs and others into cheetahs. Then we get tactical about the LLM era of B2B discovery. If buyers are finding software through ChatGPT-style answers, Reddit threads, G2-style reviews, and YouTube, we need consumer-grade brand building, PR, and community-led growth that creates earned media AI can’t ignore. Bridget also breaks down AI tools she’s used to compress territory planning and quota work from months to weeks, plus AI coaching that improves call quality and handoffs without blowing up day-to-day operations. We even take a fun detour into Spark Tank wine trivia, then bring it back to leadership: how to give feedback with real specificity, fix systems before blaming people, and set expectations for day-one impact. Subscribe, share this with a revenue leader, and leave a review so more builders can find the show. Bridget Winston: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bridgetwinston/ Bridget Winston is the Chief Revenue Officer at PatientNow, leading go-to-market and customer-facing teams across a rapidly growing vertical SaaS platform in the fast-expanding $20 billion aesthetics and wellness industry. A three-time CRO with over 20 years of experience, Bridget was formerly the CRO at Chief, where she led membership growth and helped the company reach a $1.1 billion valuation. During her tenure, Chief was recognized by TIME as one of the 100 Most Influential Companies and by Fast Company as one of the Most Innovative Companies. Before that, Bridget served as the CRO at Shutterstock, growing revenue to $300 million. Website: https://www.position2.com/podcast/ Rajiv Parikh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajivparikh/ Email us with any feedback for the show: sparkofages.podcast@position2.com

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