Force Multiplier

In this episode of Force Multiplier, recorded in our brand new home studio in London, Danny is joined by Professor Baba Sheba of City St. George’s, University of London
Baba and Danny talk flipping AI on its head, where AI becomes the prompter, and the user the learner. We also hear about Baba’s Diaspora Nexus, and the potential that comes from bringing together a community of like-minded people.
If you like Force Multiplier, make sure to check out Danny’s debut podcast Sondership, which shares Inspiring Stories from People with Purpose at Sondership.com
Links:
Follow Baba on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/babasheba/
Read more about the Diaspora Nexus on Baba’s Substack: https://blueprintnotes.substack.com/p/diaspora-nexus-london-and-the-case
Chapters
00:00 Social Media Wake Up
01:07 Meet Professor Sheba
02:23 Leading Digital Change
04:54 AI Accelerator Program
07:03 AI Is Not Just Tool
08:44 Critical Thinking Risks
12:06 Human AI Collaboration
14:49 Project X Core Skills
16:11 Duolog Learning Platform
18:54 Nebula One AI Gateway
23:14 Measuring Impact Maturity
25:19 Student Led Prototyping
28:42 Role Play Studio Simulations
30:53 Choosing Models Ecosystems
33:45 AI Powered Viva Exams
36:37 Diaspora Nexus Network
38:43 Rural Education Potential

Live from Manchester, Danny interviews Dr. Miri Firth from the University of Manchester about AI as a core employability skill and the importance of keeping humans central.

Firth explains her work on “flexible assessment,” describing multiple kinds of assessment flexibility (mode, deadlines, word count) that increase student autonomy and reduce poor AI use by avoiding single-answer tasks. They discuss using AI openly for formative drafting and feedback, supporting international students with translation, and helping learners rehearse presentations. Both argue human “transferable skills” remain essential, confidence, curiosity, adaptability, empathy, critical thinking, ethics, and lifelong learning, especially as tools change quickly.

They critique AI-generated communication on social platforms, emphasise human connection and creativity, and note tensions around creative IP. The episode closes with reflections on agile leadership and combining humans and AI to accelerate product evolution.

01:39 Change Through Employability
02:27 Flexible Assessment Explained
04:36 AI In Assessment Policy
06:18 Humans Still Matter
07:28 Transferable Skills For Work
10:25 Ethics Kindness And Honesty
12:01 AI For Student Communication
13:02 AI Written Content Fatigue
15:28 Inclusive Communication With AI
16:51 Curiosity Over Laziness
17:34 National AI Education Research
18:14 Human Awareness With AI
18:45 Creativity And Gen AI
19:36 Protecting The Human Touch
21:24 Why Live Art Still Matters
23:01 Libraries And Shared Spaces
24:23 Future Graduate Skills
27:56 Speed Of Change Reality Check
30:07 Mindsets And Diverse Teams
33:14 AI In The Workforce

Recorded in New York, Danny is joined by Dr. Michael J. Jabbour, AI Innovation Officer at Microsoft to delve into how AI is affecting parenting, the difference between education and training, and the importance of agency, presence, and comfort with ambiguity. We also get to hear Michael read from his recent children’s book series ‘The Giving Mind’, inspired by conversations with his daughter.

If you like Force Multiplier, make sure to check out Danny’s debut podcast ⁠Sondership⁠, which shares Inspiring Stories from People with Purpose at Sondership.com

Purchase ‘The Giving Mind’ here: ⁠https://www.amazon.co.uk/Giving-Mind/dp/1972829009⁠

Follow Michael on Substack:
⁠https://substack.com/@michaeljjabbour/posts⁠

Michael’s Website:
⁠https://www.michaeljabbour.com/

Chapters
01:08 From Medicine to Government Tech
04:47 Culture Shapes AI Adoption
07:16 Education Versus Training
15:57 Answers Are Free Now
19:00 Writing The Giving Mind
22:22 Michael Reads The Giving Mind
25:21 A Different Type of Human
28:09 Parenting and Hidden Influences
30:11 Are We Living in a Simulation?
33:53 Offline Time and Voice AI
37:57 Learning to Handle Ambiguity
45:36 Compiled Intent and Outcomes
46:57 Mourning Dead Skills
49:57 AI Sommelier and Harnesses
54:11 Platform Shifts and First Encounters
57:42 nebulaONE

In this episode of Force Multiplier, Danny is joined by Jenny Rae, CIO of Imperial College London.
Jenny shares her career path from a business degree at Oxford Brookes, to roles at Microsoft and BT, leading to her joining Imperial as Director of Digital Products. The conversation explores where the topic of sustainability has gone when talking about AI, and touches on student trust, concerns about profiling, and a lack of a “golden” GenAI use case. 
If you like Force Multiplier, make sure to check out Danny’s debut podcast Sondership, which shares Inspiring Stories from People with Purpose at Sondership.com
Links:
Watch AI Confidential with Hannah Fry: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m002q76b/ai-confidential-with-hannah-fry
Read ‘Hello World’ by Hannah Fry:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hello-World-How-Human-Machine/dp/1784163066/
Title Chapters
00:14 What’s the change you’re trying to make
01:19 Becoming Imperial CIO
03:14 From Microsoft to BT
05:40 Meet Daisy AI
07:25 GenAI Vision at Imperial
10:51 Jobs Fears and AI Teachers
11:54 Governance and Ethics
14:38 Student Data Boundaries
17:28 Student Success Chatbot
18:47 Collaboration Beyond IT
19:20 Frictionless Tool Enablement
19:45 Change Management Over Use Cases
20:33 Everyday Productivity Wins
21:53 Humans Still Matter
22:59 User Centric vs AI First
24:27 Blade Runner Future Vision
26:35 Sustainability and AI Costs
29:55 Risks and Critical Thinking
30:54 Managing Humans and Agents
33:31 Robots and Autonomy Fears
35:45 Human Flaws and Trust
36:41 Augmenting Healthcare Decisions

In this episode of Force Multiplier, Danny is joined by Lailany Sierra, Strategic Operations & Transformation Leader, with experience across IMAX, Disney, and Chanel.
Lailany discusses the change she wants to make through individual transformation: building resilience, adapting in volatile times, upskilling, and developing agency as technology reshapes work.
She emphasises showing up by adding value, supporting collaboration, and considering human implications during digital transformation.
The conversation warns that organisations often treat technology as an ROI investment while treating people as a cost, risking displacement, underinvestment in upskilling, and using AI to replicate existing dysfunction; successful transformation requires data, security, ethics, and alignment to customer journeys and Conway’s law.
Lailany describes learning via structured courses (including an Oxford AI course) and creative studies, prefers Claude as a thought partner and Perplexity for sourced research, and advocates prompting for alternative viewpoints to avoid confirmation bias.
She raises concerns about AI representation, pace, accountability, and societal/ecological impacts, while highlighting benefits like democratised access, productivity gains, and advances in life sciences and climate tech.
If you like Force Multiplier, make sure to check out Danny’s debut podcast Sondership that shares Inspiring Stories from People with Purpose at Sondership.com
00:49 What’s the change you’re trying to make
02:16 Leadership and Adding Value
04:43 Human Centric AI Transformation
05:35 Why Tech Deployments Fail
09:28 ROI Versus People Investment
11:49 Conway’s Law and Org Design
15:21 Collective Intelligence With GenAI
16:00 Luxury Needs Humans
17:10 Reskilling and Learning Styles
19:43 Art Deco Inspiration
20:26 Choosing AI Tools
22:36 Low Cost Learning Paths
24:41 Avoiding Confirmation Bias
27:43 AI Risks and Representation
33:04 Democratisation and Breakthroughs
35:28 Climate and Sustainability Outlook