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AI Readiness Project

AI Readiness Project

By: Anne Murphy and Kyle Shannon
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 The AI Readiness Project is a weekly show co-hosted by Anne Murphy of She Leads AI and Kyle Shannon of The AI Salon, exploring how individuals and organizations are implementing AI in their business, community, and personal life. Each episode offers a candid, behind-the-scenes look at how real people are experimenting with artificial intelligence—what’s actually working, what’s not, and what’s changing fast. You’ll hear from nonprofit leaders, small business owners, educators, creatives, and technologists—people building AI into their day-to-day decisions, not just dreaming about the future. If you're figuring out how to bring AI into your own work or team, this show gives you real examples, lessons learned, and thoughtful conversations that meet you where you are. • Conversations grounded in practice, not just theory • Lessons from people leading AI projects across sectors • Honest talk about risks, routines, wins, and surprises New episodes every week.Copyright 2026 Anne Murphy and Kyle Shannon Economics Social Sciences
Episodes
  • She Built a University Because the Old One Couldn't Keep Up, with Sasha Thackaberry, Ph.D.

    She Built a University Because the Old One Couldn't Keep Up, with Sasha Thackaberry, Ph.D.
    Apr 1 2026

    Most conversations about AI and education ask how traditional institutions can adapt. Sasha Thackaberry asked a different question: what if you didn't start with the old system at all? As Founder and President of Newstate University — the nation's first AI-founded, AI-focused university — she's not retrofitting a legacy model. She built something new from the ground up, and the architecture itself is the argument.

    𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆

    Sasha spent decades inside some of higher education's most respected institutions — LSU, SNHU — leading digital transformation and watching the same patterns repeat: slow curriculum cycles, credential debt that outpaced career payoff, and a growing gap between what learners needed and what institutions could deliver in time to matter. When AI started reshaping the job market faster than any traditional university could respond, she stopped trying to fix the old system and started building a new one. Newstate University launched as a fully competency-based, self-paced, stackable institution where learners can apply, enroll, and start a credit-bearing course the same day — for $300 a month, no textbook fees, no waiting for "next semester."

    𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽

    • 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆: Why stackable certificates let you solve an immediate career problem now and build toward a full degree when you're ready

    • 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲-𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝘁: The skills and frameworks Newstate builds around so learners stay relevant through multiple role shifts

    • 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘁𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳: From AI coaches inside courses to LinkedIn-based communities replacing traditional discussion boards

    • 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗔𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹-𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲: What the "New State" of education looks like for the professional who feels behind

    • 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲: Why competency-based, no-elective, prescribed progressions reduce friction for learners who need outcomes, not options

    𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗸𝗶𝘁

    • 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆: https://newstateu.com/

    • 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼 𝗮𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗨: https://newstateu.com/about-the-professional-development-studio-at-newstate-university

    • 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗔𝗜: https://she-leads-ai.mn.co/

    • 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻: https://thesalon.ai/

    • 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺: https://ruready4ai.com/

    𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲

    Catch a new episode of The AI Readiness Project every Wednesday at 3pm (PST), co-hosted by Anne Murphy of She Leads AI and Kyle Shannon of The AI Salon. Want to meet others navigating this new terrain with humor and humanity? Visit The AI Salon or She Leads AI to find your people.
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • The Digital Afterlife: Why AI is Your Final Love Letter, with Niki Weiss

    The Digital Afterlife: Why AI is Your Final Love Letter, with Niki Weiss
    Mar 25 2026
    "𝙒𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙥𝙝𝙮𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨." — Niki Weiss, Digital Thanatologist & Founder of ENDevo𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: We're all building companies, accumulating data, and leaving digital trails — but 70% of Americans have no end-of-life plan at all. Not a will. Not a legacy contact on their phone. Nothing. In a world where AI can replicate your likeness after you're gone, that's a problem worth solving now.𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆: Anne sits down with Niki Weiss — hospice clinician turned project manager turned Digital Thanatologist and founder of ENDevo — to talk about the part of AI readiness nobody's discussing: what happens to everything you've built when you're no longer here to manage it. Niki lost both parents by the time she was an adult, spent years doing bedside hospice work, and now helps individuals and companies get their legal, financial, physical, and digital affairs in order before crisis hits. This episode goes from surprisingly practical (yes, you can set up your iPhone Legacy Contact in about 90 seconds) to genuinely philosophical — and Anne does both live, on air.𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽:• 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝘂𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗣𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 — and why skipping this means your family may need a court order to access your data• 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 — passwords, social accounts, and everything living in the cloud• 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗲𝗻𝗱-𝗼𝗳-𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 — with checklists, accountability, and a realistic timeline (Niki's clients have a complete plan within 100 days)• 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 — so your company doesn't collapse if something happens to you• 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 — because most people aren't avoiding the plan, they're avoiding the discomfort 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:• [𝟬𝟬:𝟬𝟬] Intro & this week's format — Kyle's traveling, Anne's flying solo• [𝟬𝟰:𝟬𝟬] Anne on "Claudifying" She Leads AI — building AI agents, compound engineering, and what she learned from Beth Lyons and Sebastian Chedal• [𝟭𝟯:𝟬𝟬] Building Sheila: Anne's AI Chief of Staff and how her agentic executive leadership team works• [𝟮𝟭:𝟬𝟬] Introducing Niki Weiss — Digital Thanatologist, what that means, and why Thanos is actually the Greek god of death (not a Marvel villain)• [𝟮𝟳:𝟬𝟬] Niki's origin story — hospice work, losing both parents early, and how a will update changed everything• [𝟯𝟬:𝟬𝟬] 70% of Americans have no end-of-life plan — and the data on your phone is the new conversation starter• [𝟯𝟮:𝟬𝟬] Live demo: Anne sets up her iPhone Legacy Contact in real time• [𝟯𝟳:𝟬𝟬] Niki's program 𝘔𝘺 𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 and ENDevo's employee wellness model for end-of-life planning• [𝟰𝟭:𝟬𝟬] AI, grief bots, Facebook's ghost platform, and what it means to not own your digital afterlife• [𝟰𝟳:𝟬𝟬] Can AI replace the grief process? Downloading consciousness, and what it means to be human right now• [𝟱𝟯:𝟬𝟬] Niki's definition of AI readiness — and why this is "the next level of adulting"𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗸𝗶𝘁• Final Playbook / ENDevo: www.finalplaybook.com• Niki Weiss on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/nikiweiss• She Leads AI: https://she-leads-ai.mn.co/• The AI Salon: https://thesalon.ai/• The AI Readiness Program: https://ruready4ai.com/𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲Catch a new episode of The AI Readiness Project every Wednesday at 3pm (PST), co-hosted by Anne Murphy of She Leads AI and Kyle Shannon of The AI Salon. Want to meet others navigating this new terrain with humor and humanity? Visit The AI Salon or She Leads AI to find your people.
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    56 mins
  • How to Trust the AI You've Built, with Sebastian Chedal

    How to Trust the AI You've Built, with Sebastian Chedal
    Mar 18 2026

    Sebastian Chedal has spent 25 years guiding organizations through digital transformation. These days, the question at the center of his work is one every executive is starting to ask: how do you minimize the risks of your AI system so you can actually trust it?

    This week, Kyle and Anne dig into AI testing, implementation risk, and what it takes to build systems you can stand behind.'


    Sebastian is the CEO of Fountain City, where he leads AI transformation and digital implementation engagements, and co-founder of TestFox.ai, a platform built specifically for AI testing. Over his career he has guided organizations including Heineken, Sony, Nike, and MITCO Tires through technology strategies that produce measurable outcomes.


    If you're an executive or team lead who's been handed an AI initiative and told to figure it out, this conversation gives you a grounded way to think about risk, reliability, and what responsible AI implementation looks like in practice.


    𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽:


    • How to evaluate whether your AI system is ready to trust before it touches your operations

    • How to approach AI testing so you're not discovering problems after launch

    • How to reduce liability exposure without slowing down your AI adoption

    • How to distinguish between AI that sounds promising and AI that performs

    • How to build a case for leadership when the question is "how do we know this is safe?"


    𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗸𝗶𝘁:


    • 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆: https://fountaincity.tech/

    • 𝗔𝗜 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺: https://testfox.ai/

    • 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗔𝗜: https://she-leads-ai.mn.co/

    • 𝗔𝗜 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻: https://aisalon.mn.co/

    • 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺: https://ruready4ai.com/


    𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲


    Catch a new episode of The AI Readiness Project every Wednesday at 3pm (PST), co-hosted by Anne Murphy of She Leads AI and Kyle Shannon of The AI Salon. Want to meet others navigating this new terrain with humor and humanity? Visit The AI Salon or She Leads AI to find your people.
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    58 mins
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