Free Form AI
Episodes
Research Spikes: Starting Simple to Drive Success (E.39)
24 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Most AI systems fail before they scale because teams build the “final architecture” too early. Research spikes exist to expose what you don’t un...
Controlling the Chaos: Creating Reliable LLM-Based Applications (E.38)
17 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
LLMs don’t fail loudly, they drift into undefined behavior and take your system with them. The only way to build stable AI systems is to enforce con...
Builders vs. Posers: How to Provide Real Value (E. 37)
10 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
AI has made it easier than ever to build fast, but also easier to fake progress. In this episode, we break down the difference between people who opti...
Automating Execution: What skills still matter? (E. 36)
03 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
AI coding agents can generate code faster than ever, but they also introduce new risks that most teams don’t understand yet. In this episode, we bre...
AI in the Legal Industry: What Jobs are Safe (E. 35)
27 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into the use of AI in the legal industry, focusing on the Succession platform and its approach to will creation. It explores t...
Evaluating AI: Best Practices for Stable AI (E. 34)
23 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into the importance of data science in AI, the challenges with existing evaluation frameworks, the significance of looking at ...
Scaling Systems: How to Avoid Catastrophe (E. 33)
13 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation covers topics related to software development, testing, and team culture. It emphasizes the importance of system-driven solutions, ef...
Philosophy of Stupid Work: How to Enjoy it (E. 32)
08 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into the philosophy of collaboration, the absurdity of technical work, the ethical imperative of mentorship, the role of a tec...
Career Strategies: Emergent vs. Deliberate (E. 31)
01 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into the concepts of hygiene vs. motivation factors in the workplace and explores the methods of creating motivation within a ...
Personal Finance: Advice from Dr. Adam Link (E. 30)
22 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into the scale of finance and the concept of 'enough' in relation to wealth. It explores the value of money, safe withdrawal r...
Agentic Systems: Architectures at Microsoft (E. 29)
15 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into Victor Dibia's career journey, global experiences, transition to a PhD, and strategic career planning. It also explores h...
Knowledge Transfer: How to Help Others (E. 28)
11 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation delves into the importance of knowledge transfer within an organization, highlighting the benefits of a collaborative culture, the va...
Diverse Hiring for AI Skills (E.27)
17 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation covers the topics of diversifying vs. focusing, structuring your day for productivity, the evolution of AI training, AI leadership tr...
Systematic Creativity: TRIZ, Knowledge Graphs and AI-Driven Innovation (E.26)
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when creativity is treated not as intuition, but as a system that can be studied and scaled?In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and ...
Inside the Codebase: Reviews, Testing and the Hidden Mechanics of Good Software (E.25)
13 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ever wondered what senior engineers actually talk about behind closed doors?In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and Ben open up the conversations...
Beyond Intelligence: GPT-5, Explainability and the Ethics of AI Reasoning (E.24)
23 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when AI stops generating answers and starts deciding what’s true?In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael Berk and Ben Wilson dive into...
The Cost of Complexity: Why Simplicity Wins in Software Development (E.23)
09 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How to fight complexity creep and build software that stays simple, even as it grows.Every engineer knows the struggle: a simple system slowly buried ...
Competence, Trust and Ethical Client Engagement: Applying Military Strategies to Consulting (E.22)
25 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and Ben draw surprising parallels between military strategy and consulting practice. They break down how prin...
Knowledge Sharing, Culture and the Future of Cloud + AI (E.21)
18 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Passion for the product, not compensation, is what keeps the best engineers engaged.In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and Ben sit down with Ale...
Solution Accelerators: Balancing Production Software and Durability in AI Development (E.20)
11 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Behind every robust AI system is a solution accelerator that makes complex development smarter.In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and Ben dive i...
Data Annotation to Auto-Optimization: How Agents and Human Oversight Shape AI's Future (E.19)
04 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and Ben explore the evolution of prompt engineering and the rise of auto-optimization in AI. We discuss how a...
Automating Intelligence: Data Collection, Human Feedback and the Future of Context-Augmented Agents (E.18)
28 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, we sit down with Tomu Hirata (Databricks), whose journey from medicine to software engineering offers a unique lens o...
Problem Solving Under Pressure: Lessons in Fundamentals, Failure, and Finding the Fix (E.17)
21 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, we go behind the scenes with co-host Ben Wilson to explore how his early experiences in the Navy shaped his approach ...
Beyond Benchmarks: How GPT-5 and OSS Are Redefining AI Evaluation (E.16)
14 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Behind every major leap in AI is a wave of experimentation. And GPT-5 is no exception.In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael and Ben unpack what mak...
Libraries, Law and LLMs: How Unconventional Paths Are Shaping the Future of AI (E.15)
07 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, we sit down with Lara Rachidi and Maria Zervou, two AI professionals whose paths defy the traditional tech blueprint....
GenAI, Agency and Infrastructure: What’s Actually Holding Back the AI Frontier (E.14)
31 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, we sit down with Puneet Jain, Senior Applied AI Engineer at Databricks, to explore what’s really holding back GenAI...
From Career Pivots to AI Innovation: Lessons in Building Better Systems (E.13)
24 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, we sit down with Mary Moore-Simmons, VP of Engineering at Kibo (formerly GitHub), to explore how career pivots, leade...
How AI Assistants Are Changing Coding (E.12)
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, we explore how AI coding assistants are reshaping the development workflow. From spotting bugs that slip past human r...
LATAM Engineers vs. Offshore Norms: Gino Ferrand on Hiring Right (E.11)
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Free Form AI, Michael sits down with Gino Ferrand, CEO of Tecla, to explore how traditional tech hiring misses the mark, especially...
10 - Case Study: AI Video Recommender
28 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael and Ben discuss the intricacies of building a video clipping service and recommendation engine. They explore the challenges o...
9 - AI Career Leveling
22 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael Berk and Ben Wilson discuss the various levels of a data science career, from internships to senior leadership roles. They ex...
8 - Microservices with Mark Fussell
27 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael and Ben speak with Mark Fussell, CEO of Diagrid, about Dapr, a runtime for building distributed applications. Mark shares ins...
7 - What are the best AI Software Packages
03 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael and Ben explore the world of open source projects in AI, focusing on MLflow and its various flavors. They discuss popular mac...
6 - When Should You Bail
27 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael and Ben discuss the challenges of decision-making in software engineering, particularly focusing on the sunk cost fallacy, em...
5 - How to Lead Engineers with Ben Johnson
04 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael Berk and Ben Johnson discuss the essential traits of effective engineering leadership, the importance of customer-centric sof...
4 - How to Transfer Projects
30 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael Berk and Ben discuss the intricacies of transferring code, project ownership, and knowledge within teams, particularly in the...
3 - How to be a Tech Lead (TL)
24 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael Berk and Ben Wilson discuss their experiences at Databricks, focusing on project management, team dynamics, and the importanc...
2 - How to Make Knowledge Useful
14 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Michael and Ben Wilson discuss the concept of knowledge acquisition, focusing on how to effectively acquire knowledge for practical a...
1 - How to Scope and Build
21 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Freeform AI, hosts Michael and Ben discuss the importance of understanding ROI in feature development, emphasizing the need for eff...