Episode 979 – Why?

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1:14:43

Artificial intelligence is evolving at an unprecedented pace—what does that mean for the future of technology, venture capital, business, and even our understanding of ourselves? Award-winning journalist and writer Anil Ananthaswamy joins us for our latest episode to discuss his latest book Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI . Anil helps us explore the journey and many breakthroughs that have propelled machine learning from simple perceptrons to the sophisticated algorithms shaping today’s AI revolution, powering GPT and other models. The discussion aims to demystify some of the underlying math that powers modern machine learning to help everyone grasp this technology impacting our lives, even if your last math class was in high school. Anil walks us through the power of scaling laws, the shift from training to inference optimization, and the debate among AI’s pioneers about the road to AGI—should we be concerned, or are we still missing key pieces of the puzzle? The conversation also delves into AI’s philosophical implications—could understanding how machines learn help us better understand ourselves? And what challenges remain before AI systems can truly operate with agency? If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. Sign up for our newsletter at techsurgepodcast.com for exclusive insights and updates on upcoming TechSurge Live Summits. Links: Read Why Machines Learn, Anil’s latest book on the math behind AI https://www.amazon.com/Why-Machines-Learn-Elegant-Behind/dp/0593185749 Learn more about Anil Ananthaswamy’s work and writing https://anilananthaswamy.com/ Watch Anil Ananthaswamy’s TED Talk on AI and intelligence https://www.ted.com/speakers/anil_ananthaswamy Discover the MIT Knight Science Journalism Fellowship that shaped Anil’s AI research https://ksj.mit.edu/ Understand the Perceptron, the foundation of neural networks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perceptron Read about the Perceptron Convergence Theorem and its significance https://www.nature.com/articles/323533a0…

рік тому 12:29

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I want to do something a little different today. I want to share with you my why. If you can figure out your why, I believe you are halfway to success. Simon Sinek tells us to start with why. But I believe that why is not all-encompassing and as simple as finding one why on your way to the top. I believe there are a series of whys. Why are you in or running a business? Why are you in the niche or market that you serve? Why do you offer the specific products or services you sell? The other thing I have found is that, over time, your why can change and evolve as you change and evolve. I believe that understanding the “why” questions and how others may perceive you is not only useful but critical in business. It can help you get a peek into how clients, prospects, and vendors may perceive you before you start to interact. Then, the rest is up to you to collect data from interactions.

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Episode 979 – Why?

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

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The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 1000 – You’ve Got To Know When… 13:14

8 weeks тому13:14

13:14

I have always been driven by three principles in life and business. Although I have not always been 100% successful in adhering to them, I have noticed that I am 1000 times happier and more successful when I do. First , life is about motion, emotion, promotion, commotion, and finally, ethical motivation! “When you stop learning, you stop earning.” I have loved learning from others, and I believe that when you teach others, you learn twice as much, twice as fast! Second , it’s advice from Kenny Rogers. “You’ve got to know when to hold ’em, Know when to fold ’em, Know when to walk away, And know when to run.” All that motion, emotion, promotion, commotion, and ethical motivation will never change the cards you are dealt. Third , it’s part biblical and for the Byrds: “To everything (turn, turn, turn) / There is a season (turn, turn, turn) / And a time for every purpose under heaven.” 2014 was my turn to start a podcast, and 2024 (now 2025) is my turn to explore better ways to serve you… my people, fans, and audience!…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 999 – What’s the Deal with 2025? 11:26

9 weeks тому11:26

11:26

This time of year, the two weeks around Christmas and New Year’s, always seem like a blur. It’s hard to remember what day today is, especially when both holidays fall in the middle of a week. Business generally grinds to a halt with people and companies taking vacations. TV is filled with retrospectives of the past year. It’s mind-blowing when you realize all of the events that have happened in the last 365 days. It’s also a time to look forward and try to plan how you would like your next year to play out. In this new technologically charged business environment, it’s almost impossible to predict. Larger companies with more people and resources are more capable of directing their futures than small companies, but none of us have crystal balls. All we can do is try to adapt to what’s next. In this podcast, I would like to give you some insights into what I see coming for business and technology in the coming year.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 998 – The Mysteries of LinkedIn? 9:38

10 weeks тому9:38

9:38

One of the world’s great mysteries is the Bermuda Triangle. When it comes to any social media platform, people, features, and more are like the Bermuda Triangle. One second, they are there, and the next, they are gone. If you feel like your content is being swallowed up by LinkedIn’s Bermuda Triangle (algorithms), I am here to offer you hope. The two things I have mentioned are to connect with as many relational contacts, and initiate engagement with them as much as possible. As I have said in past posts, email is the only tool you can use to control who sees your content. In reality, spam blockers and bad data can hinder that, but the message gets delivered. As a basic free system, social media is controlled by AI to determine who sees your content and when they see it, making it seem and feel like it just swallows it up.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

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Episode 997 – The Original Inbox 10:59

11 weeks тому10:59

10:59

We have officially transitioned from the information economy to the attention economy. The Information Economy has significantly transformed B2B business, driving a shift towards data-driven decision-making and digital transactions. In this paradigm, companies leverage information and communication technologies (ICT) to streamline business. The Attention Economy has profoundly impacted B2B business, transforming companies’ engagement with clients and prospects. In this new paradigm, marketers face the challenge of capturing and retaining the scarce attention of decision-makers amidst an overwhelming flood of information. The main difference between the email inbox and the postal inbox is often looked at as cost. It can cost pennies to send to either. Email costs a fraction of a cent to send, while it costs 50¢ to 70¢ to send a postcard. Email tends to have a 20-40% deliverability. But, if you have the correct mailing address for somebody’s postal box, you have a 90% or greater deliverability, which is 2-4 times more successful than email. We are seeing an increase in companies scrubbing their client data. What I mean is that they are looking at their CRM or accounting data and copying and filtering in spreadsheets (by the way, my company does that for them). The art of getting personal is going to become more of a norm than being part of the “AI Machine.” Automation is great at some things but not at developing relationships.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 996 – Reach Out… Reach Out and Touch Someone 10:11

12 weeks тому10:11

10:11

In 1979, AT&T employed a marketing campaign aimed to soften AT&T’s image and promote long-distance calling as an essential part of everyday American life. It focused on “selling emotion” by emphasizing the human desire to connect with others. Phone numbers were designated to a person, an address, and even a desk when PBX systems were implemented at companies. With the advent of computers and now AI, talking to a human is damn near impossible, especially if they don’t have your number in their contact system in their phone or VOIP system. What has been lost in all of this transition to technology is the “Art of the Phone Call.” That makes every connection on social media and every conversation a valuable asset in your business arsenal. As I said before, it costs more to have human-to-human contact, but that is something that no internet form, chatbot, or automated voice tree hell will ever give you. The main thing is to find a way to get people to share information. Reaching out and touching someone digitally has become more complicated and time-consuming than it has been in the past. This is why the 10-10-10 method is so effective.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

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Episode 995 – Let’s Do The Time Warp Again 10:32

13 weeks тому10:32

10:32

“Time Warp” is one of the most recognizable songs from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” It was created as a time filler for the stage play but has exploded in popularity and become a central part of audience participation during film screenings and live performances. When the movie came out in 1975, things were very different. People read newspapers, listened to the radio, and watched TV to get the news. Newspapers were themselves a Time Warp. The news was generally a day old, printed at night, and delivered by morning. Social media started out as a way for communities and news organizations to reach their audiences again. In its heyday, Twitter let you (the user) choose or restrict who and what you wanted to follow. Facebook and Instagram let you choose who you see and follow. The time warp happens when the algorithms feed you old information. Looking closely at your feed, you will see posts from hours, days, months, and years ago. Even though news and sports have been about what’s happening now, posts show me things that have happened before! This is part one of a series. Over the next few weeks, I will show you some tools and techniques that you can use to overcome these challenges. While social media is still a valid and attractive tool for business, you will want to use it with your eyes wide open. Their goal is to extract money for attention. Your goal is to use that attention to make money. Profit is the motive in both cases, but you must make more than you spend to see a profit.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 994 – That One Thing… The Price Of Eggs 10:39

14 weeks тому10:39

10:39

Have you seen the price of eggs? I have not, but I hear it’s high. It is a battle cry for those who go to the grocery store and see that their cart has less, yet they are paying more. My wife loves carrot cake. Recently, there was a recall of carrots. I wonder if that is why I am paying $6 for one slice instead of an entire cake. We all are looking for that one thing: to get people’s attention and keep them engaged long enough to learn something and maybe even change their point of view. I am trying to convey the idea (the one thing) that complex problems rarely have simple messages or solutions. Audiences are looking for that one easy thing that will rock their world and make them wealthy and successful. Times change, people change, businesses change, and AI will accelerate this change. What has not changed is that “Businesses do not do business with other businesses… People do business with people!” But have you seen the price of eggs lately?…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 993 – It’s Time To Get To Work 9:36

15 weeks тому9:36

9:36

Back in the 1960s, the TV program was called The Twilight Zone. It was an anthology series that explored fantasy, science fiction, horror, and psychological thriller elements. In today’s complicated new marketing and media world, it can feel like we are living in a Twilight Zone. Marketing is about getting people to become aware and engaged and building trust. If you work in a vacuum, then your messages are delivered more organically to the recipient. But when you try to use a delivery platform like a social media or search platform, your message has additives of other content surrounding it and the timing as to how and when it’s delivered. We are in the part of the business year that is like another Twilight Zone. It’s the two months between Halloween and New Year’s Day. If you are in the consumer market, you are primed for people to be in a good mood and spend a lot of money on themselves and gifts for others. If you are in the business-to-business market, you are trying to finish the year strong while the people you sell to are winding down. No one can predict what 2025 will be like for business. AI will continue to grow in power and popularity, but how will your clients and audience use and adapt to it?…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 992 – The Anatomy of Trust 9:32

16 weeks тому9:32

9:32

If you watch broadcast TV, I am sure you are happy the election is over and all we have to watch now are pharmaceutical and Christmas commercials. One of the interesting things I heard in post-election analysis was that a billion dollars was spent on TV ads. At the same time, the most decisive information was distributed via free-to-access websites and apps. This was described as paywall and non-paywall media. I never really thought about that but it makes sense. It becomes a matter of trust. Voters trusted without needing journalistic and regulatory confirmation that the information was accurate or even true. That works for elections, but you cannot take trust that lightly in business. Like a human body, trust is a complex system with some essential parts, needs, and truths. It has a brain, digestive system, lungs, and a heart. The body is a system, and the brain, the stomach, the lungs, and the heart all need each other for the body to function and survive. Trust in business is the same thing. It takes thinking, seeing, and feeling to ensure your business relationships are built on respect and trust. They need to be fed with consistent quality information, thought leadership, and a dash of advice. You must constantly breathe new life into relationships while expelling the negative. It also takes heart to feel and empathize with how a relationship is mutually beneficial and not merely transactional.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 991 – Getting Personal 12:28

17 weeks тому12:28

12:28

AI has been part of our culture for a long time. Think about the movies that have predicted where we are now. Although this is Hollywood and entertainment, we have realized most of this already: 2001 = Self-Driving Vehicles Matrix = VR Games and Headsets Her = ChatGPT, Siri, Alexa, and more impressive versions coming soon The biggest thing holding AI back or impeding it’s progress is it knowing who it’s talking to. Personalization will need to go way beyond what information is available on the Internet. What it will need (and what you want to do with your marketing) is called Hyper-Personalization. The problem with data is that it constantly changes. A real-life example is trying to do something very old-school: sending US Mail to customers. Chances are, you have a database or CRM where the records are old. In no way, shape, or form am I saying that digital marketing (social and email) wastes time and money? I can tell you that human-to-human interaction will increase interactions with your digital presence. Humans are complex, fickle, and emotionally charged beings. It takes just being there as another human being to build that trust again and again, as needed.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 990 – 3 Ways I Like to Use Artificial Intelligence 9:23

18 weeks тому9:23

9:23

I have a problem. “Hi… my name is Brian… and I am addicted to tabs.” I normally have four Chrome browser windows open with 20 to 30 tabs open in each—that's over 100 tabs. As you age, things slow down (I can't run or jog as fast), and I believe your brain gets full. My memory is still sharp, but I have to admit that there are many more ideas, facts, and concepts that I had to remember before the lightning-fast, internet-based information overtook reading the Encyclopedia Brittanica. AI is an excellent tool for quick research or jogging your memory. AI is an excellent tool for defining ideas and concepts and exploring new ways to build or clarify supporting content. AI is an excellent tool to bounce your content off of, like a writing partner who gets you. But it's ultimately up to you to make it sound and feel like you wrote it. My main point is “You be You!” You have to define your voice, style, and process. No matter what you write, AI can be a great tool, but it does not replace the need to integrate your style and personality. Remember, AI uses other people's content to help you make points, but your thought leadership is an active tool that AI has not mastered… YET!…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 989 – Let’s Keep This Between Us… 11:31

19 weeks тому11:31

11:31

I recently came up with a Billion-Dollar Idea. I am sharing it with you, so please don't share it with anyone else. It's going to make me rich, and I would not want anyone to copy or steal it. I created an app that will stop delivering snail mail, emails, texts, radio, and TV commercials once you have voted in an election. The only problem I have not been able to work out is that it does not work if your spouse or partner has not voted yet. Political marketing is about how a candidate or a party will affect you, your family, and your life. Business marketing is about getting attention and then getting people to make a choice (buy or vote for) and take action (buy or vote). What I mean by vote is to choose to interact with or at least not block or unfollow. Automation and AI in marketing help collect, analyze, and utilize data faster, better, and maybe cheaper. This is the allure, but it lacks the emotion necessary to develop a relationship. That takes people. Sometimes, your most powerful tool is pen and paper or a note-taker app. Capturing that information and transferring it to your CRM or ERP will give you data that will become useful for AI or even a word cloud app to gauge the pulse of business today.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 988 – Reinventing Networking 8:21

20 weeks тому8:21

8:21

Back in the day (circa 2013), I spent a lot of time networking. I attended up to 20 events per month. It has slowed down since, but I have always found some value in networking. That all changed in 2020. The pandemic shut down in-person events and everything went virtual via Zoom. While it decimated some groups, others thrived due to the ability to network with others not within driving distance. In 2022, in-person events were coming back, but people were reevaluating the time and costs of local networking. I have always said, “Relationships are the currency of business.” I also tend to view business relationships as a way to help my clients and contacts make more money. By focusing on business and not just sales, you create relationships that were not built around the transfer of cash but the cooperative transfer of wisdom, insight, and quality connections.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 987 – The 3 Things That Make Marketing Harder 11:15

21 weeks тому11:15

11:15

It's incredible how fast things change. Do you remember that slogan? “You've Come A Long Way, Baby.” That phrase was used in an advertising campaign for Virginia Slims, a brand of cigarettes marketed specifically to women. The slogan was introduced in 1968, and cigarette ads were banned in 1971. It lasted only three years but was so successful that it's still remembered and used today in cultural references. In the first four years of the 2020s, technology has not changed much except that it has become cheaper, faster, and more powerful. But when it comes to marketing, the game has completely changed. Today, I want to discuss the three things we must pay the most attention to and how you can increase your ability to break through the marketing morass and noise. Some of you may remember the Toys R Us ad “I Don't Want to Grow Up,” which touted play and toys. I still have that feeling today. I love toys. AI is a toy that helped me come up with this post. Computers are fun because they help us do so many things: become organized, be better communicators and more analytical thinkers. I believe that thinking of marketing as play with data, computers, and tools can help us focus on the fun and not the function. And be careful not to choke on your marketing efforts.…

The Bacon Podcast with Brian Basilico | CURE Your Sales & Marketing with Ideas That Make It SIZZLE!

1
Episode 986 – Superman vs The Boogeyman 12:21

22 weeks тому12:21