Episodes
Ergest Xheblati is a data architect and author of Minimum Viable SQL Patterns. We chat about the opportunities and challenges of SQL, things that don't change in tech and data, writing and publishing books, and much more. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ergestx/ Other links: https://www.ergestx.com/links/
Published 09/12/24
Dylan Anderson is a UK-based data strategist. We chat about bridging the gap between data and strategy, why talking about business value is a waste of time, and much more. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dylansjanderson/ Substack: https://thedataecosystem.substack.com/
Published 09/10/24
While speaking to one of my best friends, who's worked as a pilot for over 30 years, he mentioned that a "good" pilot doesn't crash the plane. In tech and data, "good" is viewed differently. How good you have to be at your job?
Published 09/06/24
Jordan Tigani is back to chat about why small data is awesome, data lakehouses, DuckDB, AI, and much more. Motherduck: https://motherduck.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordantigani/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jrdntgn?lang=en
Published 09/05/24
Demetrios Brinkmann is the co-founder of the massively global MLOps Community. We chat about AI hype vs reality, building a global tech community, and ROI of AI projects, and much more. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dpbrinkm/ MLOps Community: https://mlops.community/
Published 09/03/24
"Do you and Zach Wilson hate each other?" I get asked questions like this, and it makes me laugh. We're good friends for the record. Most people play zero sum games, where one person wins and another loses. Questions like this got me thinking about how content creation is a positive sum game. You can consume content from many people, and this benefits everyone. Here, I unpack the differences of zero sum and positive sum games.
Published 08/30/24
Vinoo Ganesh is an open source enthusiast and contributor, and a data and ML engineer. We chat about strong open source communities, LLMs and AI, and much more.
Published 08/28/24
Lekhana Reddy is a data content creator focusing on mindfulness. We chat about how mindfulness in technology is key, especially given the need to maintain humanity with the rise of AI. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lekhanareddy/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storytellingbydata/
Published 08/27/24
Until recently, Nik Suresh wrote under a mysterious blog that had several viral posts, including the famous "I Will F*cking Piledrive You If You Mention AI Again." For the longest time, he was an underground sensation, with nobody (not even his friends) knowing his identity. In this episode, we chat about his blog posts (I'm a huge fan), the realities of data science and data engineering, and much more. This is a very candid and fun chat where I'm actually the fanboy, so enjoy! Blog:...
Published 08/24/24
I've been saying for years, most companies are barely doing BI, let alone AI. Last week, I posted about this on LinkedIn and it went viral. Here, I unpack what I mean by that post. The post: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7230408663125913600
Published 08/23/24
Rehgan Bleile joins me to chat about the challenges and importance of AI governance and adoption. We also discuss the lack of representation of women in conferences, and efforts to create genuine opportunities for women speakers. 
 AlignAI: getalignai.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rehganavon/ Women in Analytics: https://www.womeninanalytics.com/
Published 08/20/24
Most people approach their careers via 1:1 - 1 employee: 1 employer, 1 consultant: 1 client, etc. In this rant, I discuss why you should consider 1:many as a way to level up your career and visibility.
Published 08/16/24
Christian Steinart and I chat about data consulting in unsexy and niche industries (like roofing in Christian's case). We go through starting a consultancy, the mental game of running a business, getting leads, and much more. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christiansteinert96/
Published 08/13/24
I've been head's down finishing my upcoming Data Engineering course on Coursera, and working on the new book. In this episode, I chat about the differences between courses and books, why high quality content matters more than ever in the age of AI, and much more. Enroll in the new DeepLearning.AI Data Engineering Professional Certificate course here! https://www.coursera.org/professional-certificates/data-engineering
Published 08/09/24
Chris Bergh joins me to chat about all things DataOps. We also discuss lean, removing waste from data processes and teams, and much more. DataKitchen: https://datakitchen.io/ DataOps Manifesto: https://dataopsmanifesto.org/en/
Published 08/06/24
Hanging out in Berlin right now. Re-read Peopleware (originally released in 1987), and it got me thinking about what hasn't changed in tech and data. Namely, we tend to rush through things in the name of productivity instead of focusing on quality. Will AI help this? Maybe and maybe not.
Published 08/02/24
Lexi Pasi and I chat about symbolic logic in AI, building and managing data science teams, math, and the shapes of ML/AI problems. Lexi is one of my favorites to talk to because she's so left-field yet so effectively reasonable and logical (she does have a PhD in logic...). LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandrapasi/
Published 07/31/24
I've been told that I "say the quiet parts out loud." It might be calling out "data science" and AI as overhyped, or anything else I've ranted about online over the years. In this episode, I unpack what that means and why I do it.
Published 07/26/24
Joseph Machado and I chat about teaching data engineering, trends in data engineering, and the state of data content and influencers. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephmachado1991/ Website: https://www.startdataengineering.com/
Published 07/24/24
Data can be a rough industry. Data professionals often feel alone and in need of someone to talk to. I've been hosting "data therapy" sessions for the last couple months. Here are my thoughts on them, and why I think they're critical to helping professionals feel heard and learn from others. Join here: https://practicaldatamodeling.substack.com/
Published 07/19/24
Paco Nathan and I chat about early chatbots, and all things AI, especially since the 1980s. We also riff on how we intersected in the early days of the Internet. Paco is one of my faves, so expect him back for another interview soon. X: https://twitter.com/pacoid LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ceteri/
Published 07/18/24
Shachar Meir joins me for a chat about the three missing ingredients in data, going out on your own, the state of the data industry, and much more. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shacharmeir/
Published 07/16/24
Matthew Mullins joins me to chat about a recent "get off my lawn" post along the lines that a lot of things we're trying to reinvent in data have already been done, and we're generally overcomplicating the hell out of things. I agree with him. In this episode, we rant about a few of the topics in his post. The post: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7217116669188485121/
Published 07/12/24
Lindsay Murphy joins me to chat about whether companies are ready for AI in their data and analytics workflows. The verdict - listen and find out more :) Lindsay's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindsaymurphy4/
Published 07/05/24
Steven Macleod joins me to discuss the importance of operational data modeling, the flaws in current data modeling practices, and the challenges of data modeling at startups and in 3rd party tools. Occam Works: https://occam.works/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenmacleod/
Published 07/02/24