Tech Can't Save Us

S3 Ep96: Turning plastic waste into building blocks with Heidi Kujawa, Founder & CEO of ByFusion

This week on Tech Can't Save Us, host Paul David is joined by Heidi Kujawa, Founder and CEO of ByFusion, a manufacturing company that's turning plastic waste into high-performing building materials called ByBlocks. They discuss the staggering scale of the plastic waste crisis, with less than 9% of plastic getting recycled annually, and how traditional recycling methods have failed to address this growing problem. Heidi walks through the process of converting mixed plastic waste into durable building blocks and covers how ByBlocks compares to traditional materials like concrete in terms of performance and environmental impact.  Find more about ByFusion here: https://www.byfusion.com/  Follow Heidi Kujawa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidikujawa/

S3 Ep95: Making identity verification inclusive with Chloe Coleman, Co-Founder & CEO of Vouchsafe

This week on Tech Can't Save Us, host Paul David is joined by Chloe Coleman, Co-Founder & CEO of Vouchsafe, an inclusive identity verification platform tackling the global challenge of ID poverty through innovative approaches like biometric vouching. They discuss the staggering reality that 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to proper identification, including 11 million people in the UK who don't have a passport or driving licence. Chloe explains how this creates barriers to essential services like banking, healthcare, and housing, and why the increasing digitisation of services has made the problem even more acute. Find more about Vouchsafe here: https://www.vouchsafe.id/  Follow Chloe Coleman here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chloe-coleman/

S3 Ep94: Empowering educators through AI with Amanda Bickerstaff, Founder and CEO of AI for Education

This week on Tech Can't Save Us, host Paul David is joined by Amanda Bickerstaff, Founder and CEO of AI for Education.  They discuss how Amanda is helping bridge the growing divide between schools that are embracing AI and those that are restricting it entirely. Amanda, a former high school biology teacher, shares her journey from the classroom to founding a company that has partnered with more than 150 academic institutions since April 2023. The conversation explores common misconceptions about AI in education and Amanda's hands-on approach to AI literacy training. They also cover Amanda's ambitious goal of supporting 1 million educators and the challenges of scaling from a first workshop to training thousands weekly. Find more about AI for Education here: https://www.aiforeducation.io/  Follow Amanda Bickerstaff here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-bickerstaff-edu/

S3 Ep93: Building the open social web with Matej Svancer, Founder & CEO of Openvibe

This week on Tech Can't Save Us, host Paul David is joined by Matej Svancer, Founder & CEO of Openvibe, a platform that's bringing together the fragmented world of decentralised social media into one unified experience. They discuss how Openvibe connects platforms like Mastodon, BlueSky, Threads, and Nostr, allowing users to manage all their social networks from a single app. Matej explains why decentralisation is becoming crucial as people wake up to the risks of centralised platforms, from algorithm manipulation to content suppression. The conversation covers Openvibe's impressive growth to 80,000 downloads, the challenges of making complex decentralised tech accessible to everyday users, and how the company is using its recent $800,000 funding round to expand.  Find more about Openvibe here: https://openvibe.social/  Follow Matej here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/matej-svancer-399b2012b/ 

S3 Ep92: Cultural listening for brands with Michael Howard, Founder and CEO of Nichefire

This week on Tech Can't Save Us, host Paul David is joined by Michael Howard, founder and CEO of Nichefire, an AI-powered cultural intelligence platform that helps major brands like Walmart, Kraft Heinz, and Nestle identify and predict emerging cultural trends before they hit the mainstream.  They discuss how cultural intelligence has evolved far beyond traditional social listening, allowing businesses to spot micro-trends that start in small online communities and behavioural shifts that companies have historically missed. The conversation covers Nichefire's recent $2.6 million funding round, how the AI technology actually works to process data from multiple online sources, and Michael's journey from traditional marketing roles to founding a company that predicts cultural movements.  Find more about Nichefire here: https://nichefire.com/  Follow Michael Howard here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mahmike7/