From early digital media pioneer to mental health advocate for creators, meet Shira Lazar. Shira revolutionized web-first news in 2011 with "What's Trending," predating the creator economy as we know it today. She recognized the power of digital culture before most, becoming a go-to voice for emerging online communities and viral moments when traditional media wasn't paying attention. Through advocacy work, her weekly newsletter The Alpha, and speaking engagements on stages like SXSW, VeeCon,...

Grateful Dead fans, lovers of lyrics, and those curious about A.I.'s interpretation of art, you’re in for a treat because today’s episode invites you to explore human intelligence versus artificial intelligence through the analysis of the Grateful Dead song "Ripple" with Creativity Squared resident writer and philosopher, Jason Schneider.  From reciting poems to thinking deeply about consciousness and art, Jason is a true modern-day Renaissance man with passions that include photography,...

It’s not every day that you have the honor of meeting a national treasure who is creating new art genres and movements to help us expand our imagination and stretch our understanding of what’s possible. First inspired by Marvel and DC comics in his youth, Dr. Walter D. Greason is the distinguished DeWitt Wallace Professor in the Department of History at Macalester College.  Wondering why there weren’t Black people in the futures presented in classic sci-fi stories, Walter became one of the...

From innovating custom A.I. solutions in advertising since 2016 to revolutionizing how brands create content at the speed of culture, meet Dustin Callif. As President of Tool, a creative production partner based in Santa Monica, Dustin leads a team that blends traditional filmmaking with cutting-edge A.I. technology to create groundbreaking commercial content for some of the world's most recognized brands, like Toyota, T-Mobile, and Coca-Cola. He is also responsible for founding Tool’s...

Kaila Love is a Hip Hop artist, entrepreneur, and A.I. automation specialist who has been breaking barriers since she started rapping at age 14. Born and raised in the Bay Area by her great-grandmother, Kaila used music as a vehicle to overcome challenges, becoming the first in her family to graduate college when she received her Bachelor's in Political Science from UC Berkeley. As an early adopter of blockchain technology, Kaila has been investing in crypto since 2017. In March 2021, she...

Move over Burning Man — Cincinnati is showing how a city can become a canvas of possibility, illuminating art’s power to bring communities together to collectively experience wonder and awe. Our guest today is Chaske Haverkos, director, motion designer, 3d animator, and immersive artist. He’s one of four artists selected to illuminate Music Hall, which is not only a historic and iconic building in Cincinnati but also the biggest canvas during BLINK.  Taking place October 17-20 for its fourth...

How do we get back to human beings and not just humans doing? Today, we have the show’s first-ever live recorded episode with two A.I. luminaries, guest Dinesh Maheshwari and guest co-host Joanna Peña-Bickley, who explore what it means to be human in the age of artificial intelligence.  Dinesh is a humanist entrepreneur, advisor to several startups, and Chief Technology Advisor at Groq. With a career across 9 startups, 3 of which he co-founded, Dinesh brings three decades of experience to the...

Are creativity and freedom inextricably linked? In today’s episode, Creativity Squared host Helen Todd answers a listener’s question on the relationship between freedom and constraints in the creative process. As we enter the Imagination Age, please accept this as your invitation to play in the playground of possibility. Exploring this brave new world requires nuanced conversations around what it means to be human and what this collective future we’re co-authoring together looks and feels...

From aerospace engineering to being a leading voice of Responsible A.I., meet Dr. Kelly Cohen. Dr. Cohen is the Brian H. Rowe Endowed Chair in Aerospace Engineering and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Cincinnati. With over three decades of experience in Fuzzy Logic systems research, Dr. Cohen has advanced Explainable A.I. from autonomous robotics to personalized medicine.  His work has earned him the presidency of the North American Fuzzy Information Processing...

Ever wondered how A.I. and smart technologies might transform your city, home, or workplace in the coming years? As our built environments rapidly evolve with emerging technologies, understanding these changes is crucial for navigating future living and working spaces, making informed decisions about where to live or invest, and preparing for new career opportunities in design and urban planning. In this episode, you'll discover: How A.I. is revolutionizing the design and construction...

Discover how A.I. is revolutionizing marketing with former Meta Global Head of Marketing, Nicole M. Alexander. Nicole is a marketing innovator, educator, and thought leader with over 25 years of experience driving growth and operational excellence at the intersection of marketing, technology, and data analytics.  Currently, Nicole serves as an adjunct Professor of Marketing and Technology at New York University and is completing a Master's in A.I. Ethics and Society from the University of...

Is Black Mirror already in our classrooms? Discover the surprising reach of school surveillance, how youth are shaping the conversation, and what questions to ask to understand tech’s impact on your local community. From uplifting youth voices to embracing compassionate leadership, explore the algorithmic landscape and potential future of our institutions. For our 62nd episode, Creativity Squared has partnered with the Twin Cities Innovation Alliance (TCIA) for a special three-part data...

What if the key to reshaping our future isn't paved with algorithms, but with the power of human imagination and rediscovering our humanity? For our 61st episode, Creativity Squared has partnered with the Twin Cities Innovation Alliance (TCIA) for a special three-part data justice series. The intention of these conversations is to invite the audience to reimagine our relationship with the future. TCIA is a coalition of cross sector stakeholders building and developing problem-solving...

What if the key to our future lies not in what we know, but in what we dare to imagine together? For our 60th episode, Creativity Squared has partnered with the Twin Cities Innovation Alliance (TCIA) for a special three-part data justice series. The intention of these conversations is to invite the audience to reimagine our relationship with the future. TCIA is a coalition of cross sector stakeholders building and developing problem-solving ecosystems in collaboration with communities. These...

For the second year in a row, Creativity Squared is proud to partner with ArtsWave to amplify the phenomenal artists and grant recipients selected for this year’s ArtsWave Black and Brown Artist Program. Today, enjoy part three of a three-part special series of interviews with the artists featured in the program’s “Truth & Innovation Artist Showcase.” You’ll hear about their work, the world they want to live in, and their truth expressed through their art.  The artists featured in this...

For the second year in a row, Creativity Squared is proud to partner with ArtsWave to amplify the phenomenal artists and grant recipients selected for this year’s ArtsWave Black and Brown Artist Program. Today, enjoy part two of a three-part special series of interviews with the artists featured in the program’s “Truth & Innovation Artist Showcase.” You’ll hear about their work, the world they want to live in, and their truth expressed through their art.  The artists featured in this...

For the second year in a row, Creativity Squared is proud to partner with ArtsWave to amplify the phenomenal artists and grant recipients selected for this year’s ArtsWave Black and Brown Artist Program. Today, enjoy part one of a three-part special series of interviews with the artists featured in the program’s “Truth & Innovation Artist Showcase.” You’ll hear about their work, the world they want to live in, and their truth expressed through their art.  The artists featured in this...

Do you allow the A.I. large language model (LLM) chatbots to freely scrape your content or not? Today, we have a special episode featuring two experts with unique perspectives on this question — Jon Accarrino on how content creators and media publishers can protect and get compensated for their work and Pete Blackshaw on how brands can optimize their content for the A.I. chatbot answers that he calls the “Prompted Moment of Truth.”  Jon is an award-winning media executive recognized as the...

How can business leaders accelerate with A.I. and mitigate the risks to achieve their goals?  CybrCastle is part of my trusted partner network and I’m excited to have Steve Dong on the show to discuss futureproofing businesses in the new economy.   Passionate about people and purpose-driven work, Steve is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of CybrCastle, where he's at the forefront of helping mid-market organizations become A.I.-ready safely, securely, and responsibly. With an impressive...

What does it mean to Midwest Prompt? Listen in to find out! Cathy McPhillips is the Chief Growth Officer at the Marketing AI Institute, where she's at the forefront of making artificial intelligence approachable and accessible to businesses of all sizes. She oversees marketing, growth, and customer experience, including MAICON and the AI Academy for Marketers. Her journey in the marketing world spans decades, starting in Cleveland's advertising agencies, owning her own strategic digital...

Iliana Oris Valiente is not your average executive. She's a blockchain pioneer, an A.I. advocate, and a passionate voice for human potential. She’s also the youngest-ever managing director in the history of Accenture. Iliana’s title also includes Head of Innovation and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) at Accenture Canada. She works with senior executives and boards to support their strategic transformation journeys. She also leads multi-disciplinary teams across design, data, and...

Can we code machines to be as creative as humans? Listen in to discover our guest’s answer! Lori Mazor is a visionary leader at the intersection of artificial intelligence and creativity. She joins us for a thought-provoking conversation about her new book, Temperature, and the themes it explores on creativity in the age of A.I.   As the CEO and Founder of SYNTHETIVITY, Lori teaches executive leaders about the transformative power of Generative A.I. With her unique background in architecture...

Discover the next evolution of artificial intelligence with the rise of A.I. agents in this episode. From building billion-dollar brands to pioneering the world of A.I. agents, meet Maddie Bell.  Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Maddie is the CEO and Founder of Scheduler AI, a patented, fully autonomous A.I. agent that instantly connects businesses with their best prospects and customers. Maddie has over a decade of experience leading organizations in designing, developing, and launching...

How do you keep your agency in the age of A.I.? Listen in to find out! For the 50th episode of Creativity Squared, we have Sam Jordan, a futurist on a mission to spread “plausible optimism.” As a Manager at Future Today Institute, she helps clients navigate and plan for unpredictable futures with certainty. Sam also wrote on computing, the metaverse, space, and A.I. in the 2024 Emerging Tech Trend Report, released annually by the company’s renowned founder and CEO Amy Webb at her equally...