The Grand Challengers Podcast

#60 - Maryam Imani: Embracing failure to build resilience - critical infrastructure, nature and the human spirit

Why do some cities grind to a halt during storms while others recover quickly? The answer often lies in what happens when water, energy and transport fail at the same time, and whether the people managing them are actually talking to each other.In Episode 60, Dr Maryam Imani, Associate Professor of Water Systems Engineering at Anglia Ruskin University, takes us into the hidden interdependencies of urban critical infrastructure. Drawing on her RV-DSS (Resilience and Vulnerability-informed Decision Support System), Maryam reveals how a single flood can trigger chain reactions across water networks, power substations and railways and why "shared interventions" between operators could dramatically improve recovery.Maryam's story goes beyond infrastructure models. From childhood Lego building in Iran to a black belt in taekwondo, from running her own engineering firm to finding her calling in water research at Exeter's Centre for Water Systems, her journey is one of exploration, setbacks and reinvention. After losing her brother in a motorcycle accident, she found liberation by facing that fear... a personal resilience story that mirrors the engineering resilience she studies.The conversation expands into nature-based solutions and sustainable drainage systems (SuDS), and how they can strengthen urban resilience. Maryam shares insights from Brazil, India and the UK, comparing how the Global North and South approach climate adaptation and drainage planning. She argues that while SuDS are increasingly recognised as critical infrastructure, we lack evidence about their long-term performance and her SuDS Health Monitoring research aims to change that.Chapters:0:00 Intro1:59 Guest Intro & Action Hobbies12:47 Lego inspired a start in structural engineering19:00 From structure to water, from CEO to researcher25:27 Unpacking Resilience & Interdependency and the RVDSS35:52 What is infrastructure resilience?45:02 The NbS Terminology discussion47:25 Maryam's international NbS Research56:29 NbS as Critical Infrastructure - what about resilience?1:00:12 UK, Brazil, India comparison in terms of NbS1:05:02 The key lesson for Global North-South learning1:06:33 Maryam's future plans1:09:05 Q&A Start1:09:24 What does innovation mean to you?1:11:32 Key event, book person1:13:57 Time Management1:17:23 Favourite childhood memory1:18:30 Biggest challenge to date1:21:19 Advice for young professionals1:23:24 What would you most like to be remembered for?1:24:36 Where can people find you?1:25:04 Final message1:27:41 OutroDetailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from. Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on: X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach Instagram: @petermbach87 Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

#59 - Galina Yordanova: Human Consciousness is the most valuable business asset in the Age of AI

In a world racing toward automation and AI-driven efficiency, what happens to the humans inside the machine? With nearly a billion people worldwide living with a mental health disorder, youth burnout rates climbing, and a loneliness epidemic affecting 50% of adults in the US alone, the question is no longer theoretical, it is URGENT! On this episode, human and organizational development expert Galina Yordanova argues that human consciousness is the most valuable business asset of the AI age and shares her mission to awaken the corporate world from the inside out.Galina is the Founder and Chief Awakening Officer at Awakenomy. Holding an MBA in Digital Transformations and certifications as an Agile Coach and trained facilitator, she brings over 15 years of experience in executive HR leadership, learning and development, and cross-cultural organizational work spanning Bulgaria, USA, Austria, and Switzerland. Her thesis is deceptively simple: 42 hours per week of your life at work, those hours should support your growth as a human, not just your output as an employee.We discuss the scientific and spiritual, covering the neuroscience of consciousness, the biology of bliss molecules like anandamide, the concept of spiritual AI, simulation theory, quantum entanglement, implications for human connectedness, and practical approaches like breathwork, meditation, and single-tasking. We explore why Gen Z is burning out in environments of abundance, why the education system is failing to prepare the next generation, and why only 3% of companies currently operate at a higher consciousness level.Whether you are a business leader, a young professional navigating burnout, or simply curious about what it means to be truly present in an increasingly automated world, here's a rare blend of the practical, philosophical and deeply human.(Disclaimer: References to mental health statistics and global suicide rates.)Chapters:00:00 Intro1:59 Guest Intro & the blindfold experiment10:11 What is consciousness and Galina's own discovery21:59 The urgency of 'Awakening’31:27 Galina's background and discussing the impact of 'abundance’40:07 How will AI help or worsen our current society?44:51 Spiritual AI, Ghost in the Shell and The Matrix54:35 Galina's Startup Awakenomy1:08:41 Current progress and how to get involved1:11:18 Making sense of today's discussion - a tangible piece of advice1:11:59 Q&A Start1:12:13 What does innovation mean to you?1:14:19 Key Moment, Book, Person1:18:31 Time Management1:22:11 Favourite Childhood Memory1:22:37 Biggest challenge to date1:26:14 Advice for young professionals1:26:53 Something you'll regret not doing?1:27:45 What would you most like to be remembered for?1:28:39 Where can people find you?1:30:57 Final Message1:31:26 OutroDetailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from. Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on: X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach Instagram: @petermbach87 Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

#58 - Juan Pablo Carbajal: Tadpoles, tolerance and why AI alignment is really a human problem

We train AI systems to optimize for metrics — but what if the real alignment problem isn't in the machine? What if it starts with us?Juan Pablo Carbajal is a physicist, interdisciplinary researcher, and educator at the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences (OST). Originally from Argentina, his career spans physics, robotics, biomechanics, agronomy, machine learning, and water research — driven not by any single discipline but by a deep need to understand the systems underlying everything he encounters.In Episode 58 of The Grand Challengers Podcast, Juan Pablo joins host Peter Marcus Bach to reframe the AI alignment debate as fundamentally a human one. He argues that the same narrow, single-metric optimization we apply to AI — rewarding output over understanding — is already distorting science, education, and society. From the "publish or perish" crisis in academia to how we evaluate students with one-dimensional scores, the pattern is the same: pressure systems to hit a number, and unintended behaviours emerge.The conversation traces Juan Pablo's journey from collecting tadpoles in an Argentine river (with a memorable food-chain disaster) to studying embodied AI at the University of Zurich's AI Lab under Rolf Pfeifer, where intelligence is inseparable from its physical body. Along the way, he shares lessons from plant biology — how nitrogen-fixing bacteria and their "cheater" free-riders coexist through tolerance rather than punishment — and explains why physics-informed AI may be the antidote to purely data-driven approaches that mistake local patterns for universal truths.Topics include: the limits of data-driven machine learning, Gestalt psychology and machine vision, why the word "robot" means slave, complex systems and emergence, the role of culture as humanity's alignment mechanism, and why understanding history is our best defence against repeating its mistakes.Chapters:0:00 Intro1:59 Guest Intro & Yerba Mate6:47 JP's Secret Mate Recipe11:13 Summarizing JP's passions into a keyword13:08 The Tadpole Story17:24 JP's dilemma of what to study and his lifelong mentor22:57 Versatility of a physicist and the Sokal affair25:58 Critique of the current education systems31:23 From physics to magnetic flux leakage detection36:51 A life lesson on tolerance from bacteria46:12 Embodied AI, Robotics and Studying Intelligence54:07 Physics-informed AI59:21 The challenge with prior knowledge - example from Gestalt Psychology1:05:08 The Real Alignment Problem1:22:49 JP's current exciting next steps1:26:12 Q&A Start1:26:43 What does innovation mean to you?1:28:38 Key moment, book, person1:31:10 Time Management1:33:32 Favourite childhood memory1:33:56 Biggest challenge to date1:35:58 Advice for young professionals1:36:35 What would you most like to be reDetailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from. Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on: X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach Instagram: @petermbach87 Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

#57 - Hiten Sonpal: A LEGO crane, a belt and disrupting the 600 billion dollar robotics industry

Every machine that lifts, digs, or hauls relies on hydraulics — a technology that hasn't changed in over 50 years. But what if you could replace that leaky, energy-wasting oil with a belt-and-pulley system that's three times faster, three times more efficient, and three times more durable, with zero emissions?That's what Hiten Sonpal and his team at RISE Robotics are doing. In Episode 57, Hiten joins Peter Marcus Bach to explore his full robotics journey, from a childhood fascination with LEGO Technic in India to building bomb-disposal robots for Iraq and Afghanistan at iRobot, designing the Roomba lawnmower, and now leading RISE Robotics as CEO, where their patented Beltdraulic™ technology is disrupting the $600 billion hydraulics industry.Hiten takes us inside the world of robotics: what counts as a robot, why humanoid robots are far from ready, and how AI is augmenting rather than replacing skilled workers. He explains why hydraulic systems waste 70% of their energy as heat, why electrifying heavy machinery has been prohibitively expensive, and how Beltdraulic solves both problems by replacing fluid with precision-engineered belts and sealed bearings.The results speak for themselves. RISE's Guinness World Record-holding robotic arm lifts over 7,000 lbs fluid-free. Their military crane dropped from 1,800 lbs to 300. And their commercial liftgate saves delivery fleets $300–$1,200 per truck per day.Hiten also shares the personal story of spending five years building a robot lawnmower at iRobot, only to have it cancelled by COVID, and how that adversity became the catalyst for his entrepreneurial career leading three companies as CEO.🔗 Show notes: https://petermbach.com/index.php/podcast/057-hiten-sonpal/ 🔗 RISE Robotics: https://www.riserobotics.comChapters:0:00 Intro1:59 Guest Intro and the Drumming Passion5:04 Early inspiration for robotics - Lego9:15 Moving beyond Lego11:29 The Chess Playing Robot18:55 From Chess to iRobot - seeing real-world value23:27 The rise and diversity of the robotics industry30:21 Generative AI's impact on robotics32:36 The electric sheep and an unfortunate timing37:56 Being smarter about design for sustainability - RISE Robotics45:15 Examples of RISE's applications51:44 RISE Robotic's Future Plans58:17 Hiten's reflections from advisory and leadership positions1:01:43 Q&A Start1:02:04 What does innovation mean to you?1:03:28 Key Moment, Book, Person1:05:18 Favourite childhood memory1:07:03 Biggest challenge to date1:13:18 Advice for young professionals1:14:18 What would you most like to be remembered for?1:15:32 Where can people find you?1:15:58 Final Message1:16:43 OutroDetailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from. Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on: X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach Instagram: @petermbach87 Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

#56 - Fred Jordan: The power of mathematics, anti-counterfeiting to "wetware" and how biocomputing will disrupt our future

Fred Jordan, scientist, entrepreneur and co-founder of AlpVision and FinalSpark in Vevey, Switzerland reveals the power of mathematics to us and how he thinks differently when it comes to computing. We dive deep into how he has combined industrial processing and digital watermarking to create anti-counterfeiting technology and uncover the mystery of "Organoid Intelligence", also known as biocomputing - using "the real thing" to compute. What was previously only written in science fiction novels (e.g., "wetware" from William Gibson's Neuromancer) is now becoming a reality! Tune into the longest episode on the podcast to date to hear about how Fred's love for science, technology and scifi has inspired him to make real disruptive change and how biocomputing could be the complement to our rapidly advancing semiconductor and AI industries. Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)Chapters:0:00 Intro1:59 Guest Intro & the City of Vevey3:16 Talking Science Fiction10:25 An early opportunity to use a supercomputer15:49 The power of mathematics21:57 The story and principles behind AlpVision - anti-counterfeiting38:19 Why start FinalSpark? Thinking DIFFERENT42:00 Speech recognition in a bucket?49:10 Reservoir computing and using the real thing57:55 Early history and fundamentals of biocomputing1:17:51 A discussion on terminology1:20:33 The energy consumption debate1:29:38 The Neural Platform and the eventual application1:38:57 Future Plans for FinalSpark & Fred1:43:30 How to learn more about biocomputing?1:46:41 Q&A Start1:47:13 What does Innovation mean to you?1:48:37 Key event, book, person1:50:29 Time Management1:52:39 Favourite childhood memory1:55:21 Biggest challenge to date1:57:02 Advice for young professionals1:58:17 What would you most like to be remembered for?2:00:32 Where can people find you?2:02:11 Final Message2:02:45 OutroDetailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from. Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on: X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach Instagram: @petermbach87 Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/