I am a fan of kicking off the new year with a bang and what better way than to host a podcast! What’s the phrase again….go big or go home?
In taking on this podcast as the host going forward, I wanted to take the conversations with topics like AI to a more in depth and tangible feeling place. I’m incredibly passionate about this topic and my goal is to hold deep, useful conversations about where AI is headed and what it means for the folks who try to make it work every day, which I call the Future of Work.
To kick it off, I sat down with two people I found have great perspectives on AI individually in this space: Patrick McGarry, Federal Chief Data Officer at ServiceNow, and Dr. Jupiter Bakakeu, Lead Generative AI Technologist at Alteryx. They’re not talking heads. They are in the trenches building the future and thinking about how AI actually works, and they don’t sugarcoat the reality of what it takes.
To get a taste of where this amazing conversation went, take a look at these 5 ideas from this episode that I think will shape the AI conversation this year:
1. Agents change the stakes
AI agents are moving away from the perception of just being smart assistants to shifting the entire landscape of how teams are formed and work is done.
Jupiter broke it down like this: Real agents don’t just generate answers; they perceive, plan, act, and learn. Once they start taking real-world actions (like modifying records or triggering workflows), the stakes go up. Fast.
I think Patrick nailed it: ”The moment AI can take action, you have to care about governance. Mistakes aren’t just wrong answers anymore. They’re real outcomes.”
This is where a lot of the hype falls apart. Cool demos don’t mean a system is safe, auditable, or even reversible.
2. Delegate wisely
Everyone’s excited about delegation, and for good reason, AI agents can be powerful teammates.
But just handing off everything is a sure way for disaster.
I loved Jupiter’s framework on this point: Look for tasks that are repeatable, reversible, and auditable. If it meets all three, go ahead and delegate. If not? Keep a human in the loop.
Examples:
- Organizing your files or classifying documents
- Scheduling meetings or summarizing reports
- Making financial decisions
- Filing tax returns
Bottom line: Just because an agent can do something doesn’t mean it should. We need to be thoughtful about this part!
3. Voice is rising, but it’s not the end of the UI
We talked a lot about voice. Honestly? I’m bullish on it, especially for consumer use cases.
Voice lowers friction. It makes delegation feel more natural. And when it works, it feels like magic. But enterprise use cases? I’m willing to admit, that’s a taller order.
Patrick made a great point: ”Voice may feel natural, but governance needs the receipts.” When you’re working on regulated tasks or precision-heavy workflows, clicking a button is still safer than hoping an AI caught your meaning.
Jupiter was on the same page: “Voice should augment your interface, not replace it.”
During my rapid fire at the end of the podcast both agreed that voice will make progress, but that typing will still rule for now. For now, I’ll be on the other side talking to my computer!
4. The big blockers aren’t technical
One of the biggest myths in AI right now is that model quality is the bottleneck. It’s just not the case.
The real blockers are trust and cost.
We’re talking massive infrastructure needs and there’s a reason compute costs are exploding. Then layer on global regulations like the EU AI Act, amongst many others in flight, and you’ll understand what real constraints look like. AI won’t move forward with out a level of trust and a lower bill.
This makes tangible sense because guardrails matter. But it’s important to recognize that the path to scalable AI runs through modernization, governance, and data quality, not just cooler models.
Patrick summed it up wisely: ”The winners in 2026 won’t chase every new feature. They’ll be boringly compliant and quietly effective.”
I concur.
5. The best AI is invisible
One nugget of wisdom came up a few times: The most impactful AI might be the stuff we don’t even notice.
Take this example from Jupiter’s: He built a background agent that cleans up and classifies his entire Google Drive overnight, every night. No fanfare or extra tasks, just tasks checked off that you don’t have to think about.
That’s the bar we should be aiming for. AI that fits into your life or workflow quietly doing what needs to be done, without creating new risks.
You may argue that this isn’t revolutionary or radical enough. I disagree. A growing army of folks who become just 1% better daily will change the world in very short order.
We’re past the phase where AI is the shiny new toy. We’re in the phase where people are seeing the way forward and becoming strategic and deliberate about the path.
That shift from answers to action is what 2026 is all about.
Listen to the full episode here: 🎧 Alter Everything Podcast: What Does AI Look Like in 2026?
I’d love to hear your honest take! Let us know in the comments or shoot me an email at [email protected]