Tech Talks Daily
Neil C. Hughes
If every company is now a tech company and digital transformation is a journey rather than a destination, how do you keep up with the relentless pace of technological change?
Every day, Tech Talks Daily brings you insights from the brightest minds in tech, business, and innovation, breaking down complex ideas into clear, actionable takeaways.
Hosted by Neil C. Hughes, Tech Talks Daily explores how emerging technologies such as AI, cybersecurity, cloud computing, fintech, quantum computing, Web3, and more are shaping industries and solving real-world challenges in modern businesses.
Through candid conversations with industry leaders, CEOs, Fortune 500 executives, startup founders, and even the occasional celebrity, Tech Talks Daily uncovers the trends driving digital transformation and the strategies behind successful tech adoption. But this isn't just about buzzwords.
We go beyond the hype to demystify the biggest tech trends and determine their real-world impact. From cybersecurity and blockchain to AI sovereignty, robotics, and post-quantum cryptography, we explore the measurable difference these innovations can make.
Whether improving security, enhancing customer experiences, or driving business growth, we also investigate the ROI of cutting-edge tech projects, asking the tough questions about what works, what doesn't, and how businesses can maximize their investments.
Whether you're a business leader, IT professional, or simply curious about technology's role in our lives, you'll find engaging discussions that challenge perspectives, share diverse viewpoints, and spark new ideas.
New episodes are released daily, 365 days a year, breaking down complex ideas into clear, actionable takeaways around technology and the future of business.
Every day, Tech Talks Daily brings you insights from the brightest minds in tech, business, and innovation, breaking down complex ideas into clear, actionable takeaways.
Hosted by Neil C. Hughes, Tech Talks Daily explores how emerging technologies such as AI, cybersecurity, cloud computing, fintech, quantum computing, Web3, and more are shaping industries and solving real-world challenges in modern businesses.
Through candid conversations with industry leaders, CEOs, Fortune 500 executives, startup founders, and even the occasional celebrity, Tech Talks Daily uncovers the trends driving digital transformation and the strategies behind successful tech adoption. But this isn't just about buzzwords.
We go beyond the hype to demystify the biggest tech trends and determine their real-world impact. From cybersecurity and blockchain to AI sovereignty, robotics, and post-quantum cryptography, we explore the measurable difference these innovations can make.
Whether improving security, enhancing customer experiences, or driving business growth, we also investigate the ROI of cutting-edge tech projects, asking the tough questions about what works, what doesn't, and how businesses can maximize their investments.
Whether you're a business leader, IT professional, or simply curious about technology's role in our lives, you'll find engaging discussions that challenge perspectives, share diverse viewpoints, and spark new ideas.
New episodes are released daily, 365 days a year, breaking down complex ideas into clear, actionable takeaways around technology and the future of business.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Oct 17, 2022 • 29min
2143: Bitwarden - The Open Source Password Manager
Bitwarden's CEO, Michael Crandell joins me on Tech Talks Daily to share Bitwarden's origin story from side hustle to business used by millions and discuss the role of the password in today's digital sphere. We also explore why many believe the recent growth in biometric-based security and MFA methods will be the final nail in the coffin for the password. Still, much like the paperless office, a truly passwordless world has yet to appear. Together we discuss the future of the password and the role of biometrics and MFA methods. We also discuss the impacts of remote work, increased reliance on cloud services, and what that means for businesses as social engineering hacks continue to grow. We also discuss passwords in the increasing number of IoT and smart devices and the problems password management can solve.
Oct 16, 2022 • 24min
2142: AND Digital - Creating a Culture of Creativity to Drive Innovation
AND Digital is on a mission to close the world's digital skills gap. They believe in empowering people with the knowledge they need to unlock the full potential of technology. So I invited Mairead O'Connor on the Tech Talks Daily podcast to discuss creating a culture of creativity to drive innovation. We discuss how many are approaching digital transformation wrongly by focusing too much on technology and not enough on the people. But how a ''culture of creativity'' where people are at the centre of all innovation could make a massive difference to businesses. We also talk about how the key to upskilling is making technology easier. Most enterprises don't want people with obscure technology skills and if we focus on making the tech infrastructure in an organisation simpler for the people, the tech integration will come easier as well. I also learn more about AND Digital worked with an airline to build a culture of creativity and keep re-evaluating what their people want.
Oct 15, 2022 • 29min
2141: The Biotech Company Transforming Lab Automation
Mostafa ElSayed, CEO of lab automation start up Automata joins me on the Tech Talks Daily Podcast. Spending the first half of his career working for top architecture firms, Mostafa is not your typical biotech CEO. With the initial intent to make building structures easier with robots and automation, Automata was born from an observation that automation was not taking off in a range of markets. We've seen the world of automotive manufacturing get transformed through automation, but others like pharmaceuticals and life sciences were staying behind. This is what sparked Mostafa to launch Automata, which now provides software and hardware lab-automation solutions to enable efficiencies and scale in labs, working with customers including the NHS, Novartis and Imperial College London. A recent partnership with the University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust aims to develop a strategy and plan to bring the benefits of automation to a number of disease areas, including prostate and cervical cancer screening. Mostafa shares with me how his background in architecture brought him to where he is today, the challenges facing CEOs in the UK biotech industry in 2022 and his views on how the lab automation market is changing and growing.
Oct 14, 2022 • 29min
2140: SolarWinds Hybrid Cloud Observability
SolarWinds is number one in network management software beating out IBM, Cisco and others, and serves over 300,000 customers including 498 of the Fortune 500. Its products have become ubiquitous because they are easier to use, more powerful and scalable and more affordable than other providers, including its recently launched Hybrid Cloud Observability Platform. This is the first platform that the company has built from the ground up since the SUNBURST supply chain incident that targeted SolarWinds and other technology companies last year. The platform provides customers with an integrated, full-stack solution that's able to detect productivity and security anomalies, identify issues and take automated remediation actions to maximize productivity, prevent security issues and reduce costs. The company's Head Geeks, Chrystal Taylor and Sascha Giese join me on Tech Talks Daily to talk about what observability can do for network administrators and learn more about SolarWinds' new Hybrid Cloud Observability Platform.
Oct 13, 2022 • 25min
2139: Cybersecurity Best Practices for Analyzing Who's Behind the Sign-on
It's been nearly a decade since the famed story of a Verizon employee who leveraged a VPN to outsource his job to privately hire workers in China. In 2013, remote employees accessing company networks was a less frequent occurrence than it is now. But today, studies are projecting that by 2025, 36M American employees will work remotely. HR professionals and business leaders are welcoming a newer, more flexible age of working arrangements to accommodate digital nomads, work-from-home offices, and in some cases, a partial return to the office or hybrid work. Meanwhile, cybersecurity professionals tasked with managing now ever-expanding digital boundaries of the organization face exponentially increasing threats. All while managing users accessing companies' systems and sensitive data during the once-in-a-career jump to WFH catalyzed by the pandemic has become a new standard working protocol that adds layers of complexity to access control and authentication measures. In this new cybersecurity best practices discussion, Jonathan Tomek provides background knowledge on the importance of applying threat intelligence protocols to track, identify and analyze IP address data to ensure safe work environments, regardless of how they are accessed.
Oct 12, 2022 • 14min
2138: Huawei 5.5G The Bridge Bridge Between 5G and 6G
Wang Qi (Joey) is responsible for Huawei's 5.5G marketing. He has more than 17 years of experience in the mobile communications industry. He has a deep understanding of industry developments and solutions related to 5G, LTE, indoor coverage, and vertical industry applications. I recently sat down with him to discuss 5G-Advanced, the key capabilities of this technology, and real-world use cases of how businesses can unlock new opportunites. We also take a look under the hood at 5.5G's key characteristics which include 10 Gbps downlink, 1 Gbps uplink, 100 billion connections, and native intelligence. Driven by new toC and toB services, 5.5G will enhance eMBB, URLLC, and mMTC, it provides new capabilities of sensing, passive IoT, positioning, and native intelligence. We also discuss how Huawei are on a mission to build intelligent 5.5G that support 10 Gbps downlink, 1 Gbps uplink, and 100 billion connections, embarking on a new journey of 5G.
Oct 12, 2022 • 21min
2137: Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Managed Risk, Managed Detection and Incident Response
In February, eSentire announced a bursary with Munster Technological University to support students in their learning and development around security. Ciaran Luttrell, Senior Director, SOC Operations EMEA at eSentire joins me on Tech Talks Daily to discuss how companies should get involved in developing the next generation of security professionals, using direct funding and providing internships. We also discuss the challenges teams face in running a SOC and supporting customers with their security responses. About eSentire eSentire, Inc. is the Authority in Managed Detection and Response, protecting the critical data and applications of 1500+ organizations in 80+ countries, representing 35 industries from known and unknown cyber threats. Founded in 2001, the company's mission is to hunt, investigate and stop cyber threats before they become business disrupting events. Combining cutting-edge machine learning XDR technology, 24/7 Threat Hunting, and proven security operations leadership, eSentire mitigates business risk, and enables security at scale. The Team eSentire difference means enterprises are protected by the best in the business with a named Cyber Risk Advisor, 24/7 access to SOC Cyber Analysts, Elite Threat Hunters, and industry-leading threat intelligence research from eSentire's Threat Response Unit (TRU).
Oct 11, 2022 • 33min
2136: In Conversation With Kris Beevers, NS1 Founder and CEO
Kris Beevers, founder, and CEO of NS1 joins me on Tech Talks Daily. I learn more about how this New York City-based startup delivers smart network control across core network services for over 800 global customers, including Dropbox, Fox, Salesforce, LinkedIn, & eBay. We also talk about the tech startup story behind their success which began as a specialist in DNS, and to quote TechCrunch, took: 'a slumbering and dreary yet reliable aspect of the Internet and turned it into a strategic moat and an enterprise win'. Kris is a recognized authority on all things DNS, but he also knows a lot about building and deploying high-performance infrastructure globally. He has a Ph.D. in Computer Science. We discuss the impact of outages (including in the summer heatwave) and the importance of multi-cloud or multi-CDNs. We also talk about DDoS attacks, the importance of working with the open source community.
Oct 10, 2022 • 41min
2135: Closing the Digital Divide with Accelerated Geospatial Data Analytics
The pandemic highlighted what many already knew: high-speed internet access is not a luxury, it's a necessity. Yet, the digital divide remains prevalent, with 21M U.S. citizens still lacking internet connection. The UN Human Rights Council considers access to the internet as a basic human right, but despite numerous strides that have taken place in the technology realm in the last two decades, billions of people worldwide still don't have access to the internet. So, how can telcos and government organizations work together to accelerate the process of identifying these "digital deserts" to build the infrastructure needed for internet access? The answer lies in accelerated big data analytics, which enables users to analyze billions of data points in minutes and generates detailed visualizations of regions that still lack broadband. Dr. Mike Flaxman, head of product at HEAVY.AI joins me on TechTalks Daily to discuss how utilizing GPU-powered advanced data analytics and visualization can help to close the digital divide and shares different use cases for the technology.
Oct 9, 2022 • 21min
2134: The Story Behind Perimeter 81 and Reaching Unicorn Status
Amit Bareket, CEO of client Perimeter 81, just helped secure a $100 million Series C funding round for the company, making them one of the latest unicorns in the cybersecurity industry. He's a former operative of Unit 8200. Perimeter 81 simplifies corporate network security with its Security Service Edge (SSE) platform. As a holistic, cloud-based solution, Perimeter 81 allows organizations of all industries and sizes to efficiently support the decentralized, hybrid workplace while avoiding the cyber complexity that hurts IT's ability to defend corporate cloud and on-prem networks. I invited Amit on Tech Talks Daily to discuss the most significant cybersecurity risks businesses face and what they need to do differently to address them better. We also discuss why the zero-trust model is top of mind for security experts and explore a few practical ways businesses can begin to implement/think about zero trust.
