Ep. 25 – The Professor and the Philosopher

The Upgrade: Beyond the Hype

This week, host Peter Bittner welcomes back artist, innovator and friend of The Upgrade Kris Krug. Over the last year, Peter and Kris have run courses together that help mediamakers, creatives and working professionals to incorporate AI into their daily lives and make their workflows more efficient. In this episode, the two discuss everything from how Kris trained an AI model on his own photography to the possible ways AI could empower indigenous communities. Plus, they announce their new, weekly AI group coaching calls! Come for an enlightening conversation about the ways AI is influencing a wide variety of fields, stay to hear about Peter’s adventures in Mongolia.

Show Notes:

(1:44) A summary of the courses Peter and Kris offer to help professionals get a handle on AI

(3:15) How AI is changing what it means to have a creative-minded profession

(6:49) Kris explains one way that artists can train AI on their own works to create original art with generative AI in their own style

(14:00) A roundup of exciting new image-generating AI tools

(15:50) Kris describes his go-to AI tools that have become essential parts of his workflow

(18:49) Resources and communities to help you keep up to speed on developments in AI

(20:52) The Upgrade’s new offering for graduates who have finished our courses and want to continue exploring AI in a supportive environment without investing a ton of time

(24:29) A new radio show about AI that Kris recently launched on the CBC in Canada

(27:21) The debate about whether AI can help First Nations in Canada

(31:21) Peter explains his long-term relationship with indigenous communities in Mongolia

(33:20) How tech entrepreneurs in Mongolia are using AI to preserve the Mongolian language and make the internet more accessible to those who don’t speak English

Links:

• Learn more about Kris and Peter’s weekly AI Coaching Community Calls
• Kris and Peter’s upcoming, six-week AI course
• Listen to the new radio show Kris launched on the CBC
• YouTubers Wes Roth and Matt Woolfe are great resources Kris recommends to keep up with new developments in AI

Learn more about The Upgrade and our online courses

Connect on LinkedIn with Peter Bittner, The Upgrade’s founder and CEO

Special thanks to Mitch Walker for helping to design the podcast’s artwork