Washington AI Network is a dynamic bipartisan forum to highlight the conversations about artificial intelligence taking place in official Washington. We feature diverse stakeholders from industry, government, and civil society to foster collaboration, knowledge sharing, and responsible development and deployment of AI technologies as they pertain to public policy, venture capital, AI ethics, and funding for AI innovation. Join host Tammy Haddad to hear top AI experts and thought leaders discuss the opportunities and challenges presented by AI. Brought to you by Haddad Media.
81: Apple Store Founder on the Future of AI and Retail
Sep 26, 2026
Show notesRon Johnson spent twelve years building Apple's retail business from scratch, working side by side with Steve Jobs to create the Apple Store and, later, the Genius Bar. In this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast with host Tammy Haddad, Johnson talks about his first fateful meeting with Jobs and reveals the real story behind naming the Genius Bar — including Jobs's initial rejection of the idea. Johnson also discusses his new book Shop Different: How Retail Revealed Apple's Genius and gives his take on how artificial intelligence is already transforming both physical and online retail, and why physical stores remain essential even in a digital-first world.
80: “Dark Side of the Boom” Author Patrick Coughlin on AI Scams
Aug 20, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network podcast, host Tammy Haddad talks with Savi Security co-founder and CEO Patrick Coughlin, author of “Dark Side of the Boom: How Scammers Hijack the AI Revolution,” about how AI has made sophisticated, personalized scams cheap enough to target ordinary families, not just high-value government or corporate victims. They dig into why digital fraud — now estimated at nearly $200 billion in annual U.S. losses — has become the fastest-growing crime in the country, why Meta reportedly earns 10% of its revenue from fraudulent advertisers, and why Coughlin thinks federal "know your customer" rules for AI access, not a state-by-state patchwork, are the fix Washington keeps avoiding.
79: Siemens CEO Roland Busch on the Infrastructure Powering AI
Aug 05, 2026
Show notes
In this episode of the Washington AI Network podcast, recorded live at the CTA Innovation House in Washington, DC, guest host Sumi Somaskanda interviews Dr. Roland Busch, president and CEO of Siemens AG, to unpack "industrial AI" – a version of AI built for deterministic, repeatable results on the factory floor – robots, reshoring, and next-gen data centers.
78: AI’s New Cybersecurity Frontier
Jul 18, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, recorded live at Pubkey in Washington, DC, host Tammy Haddad interviews 6 cybersecurity founders and gets a candid look at how AI is reshaping both cyberattacks and cyber defense, AI vulnerabilities, American cyber dominance and how everyday consumers can protect their data, conversations and identities.
77: AI and the New Economic Landscape: Live from the Aspen Ideas Festival
Jul 02, 2026
Show notes
At the Aspen Ideas Festival, host Tammy Haddad talks to top AI leaders, economists and energy leaders about whether AI's economic boom is lifting everyone, or just the top. Featuring: Chris Womack, Chairman, President & CEO, Southern Company, Lael Brainard, Former Director, National Economic Council, and former Vice Chair, Board of Governors,and Benedict Macon-Cooney, Chief Innovation Officer, Tony Blair Institute.
76: Silverado Policy Accelerator's Maureen Hinman: A Trade Veteran’s Blueprint for U.S. AI Competitiveness
Jun 19, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, recorded live at the Special Competitive Studies Project’s AI+Expo, host Tammy Haddad interviews Silverado Policy Accelerator co-founder and executive chair Maureen Hinman about the high-stakes race to power America’s AI future. As Congress weighs the 269-page Great American Artificial Intelligence Act and the nation faces an AI-driven energy demand surge, Hinman issues a stark warning: America's ability to lead in artificial intelligence depends not just on software and models, but on solving foundational problems in energy infrastructure, critical minerals supply chains, and a permitting system built for a different era.
75: NVIDIA Engineers Nader Khalil and Carter Abdallah on AI Agents, Open Models, and the Future of Innovation
May 21, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, host Tammy Haddad interviews NVIDIA engineers Nader Khalil and Carter Abdallah. Khalil and Abdallah discuss the rise of AI agents, how new AI tools are becoming more useful in everyday life, and why open models are helping shape the future of innovation.
74: Meta President Dina Powell McCormick and CTO Andrew Bosworth on a "People, Not Products" Approach to AI
May 14, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, host Tammy Haddad interviews Meta’s new President and Vice Chair Dina Powell McCormick and CTO and Head of Reality Labs Andrew Bosworth in front of a live audience to discuss the company’s “people, not products” approach to AI. Powell McCormick and Bosworth tell Washington AI Network founder Tammy Haddad that AI's promise lies in human empowerment — from small business owners and veterans to a new generation of skilled trade workers.
73: Arun Gupta on The Mission Generation and a New Approach to Careers
May 04, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, host Tammy Haddad sits down with Arun Gupta, CEO of the NobleReach Foundation, to discuss his new book, The Mission Generation.
Gupta explains why traditional career paths are changing and why more people will move across multiple roles and sectors over the course of their working lives. He outlines an approach centered on purpose and flexibility, and discusses how those ideas connect to his work placing early-career technologists into government. The conversation also touches on NobleReach’s role as a founding partner of the federal government’s new U.S. Tech Force initiative.
72: Cyber Resilience in a High-Risk World with Sean Cairncross and Sanjay Poonen
Mar 21, 2026
Show notes
On this episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, host Tammy Haddad sits down with Sean Cairncross, White House National Cyber Director, and Sanjay Poonen, CEO and president of Cohesity, for a live conversation recorded at The House at 1229 in Washington, D.C.
They discuss President Trump’s new cyber strategy and cybercrime executive order, the growing role of the private sector in protecting critical infrastructure, and how AI is reshaping both cyber risk and cyber defense.
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