Best Fidalgo Podcasts (2025)

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Episode 2, June 27, 2025 7:45

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3d ago7:45

7:45

Send us a text In today's episode, I cover a brief comparison of market supply in 2024 and to date in 2025. Comparisons include months supply, and the average number of showings to pending. For events: June 27: Pre-Flight Bites at Skagit Regional Airport to benefit the Skagit Children's Museum, 5-7pm. **Street address is 15426** Get tickets and inf…

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Pilot 8:22

10d ago8:22

8:22

Send us a text Welcome to my very first podcast! I will be sharing a brief overview of the current real estate market for Skagit County, and a selection of events for Saturday June 21, through Friday, June 27. If you would like to submit events, news, or ideas, you can do so from your phone through the "Send us a text" link in the show notes, or yo…

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AI, Agility, and Enterprise Architecture – Reflections on Season 2 of Augmented Ops 18:38

12d ago18:38

18:38

This week marks the final episode of Season 2 of Augmented Ops! Natan and Erik look back and share their biggest takeaways from conversations with CEOs, frontline engineers, and operations leaders. They unpack marketing hype vs. the current state of AI on the shop floor, the rise of citizen developers, and why “digital transformation” needs a serio…

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The Future of Quality and Validation with AstraZeneca’s Bob Buhlmann 28:59

26d ago28:59

28:59

This week’s guest is Bob Buhlmann, Head of Quality Digital and Computer Strategy at AstraZeneca. Bob shares how technology has evolved over the course of his 35+ years in the pharma industry, the hurdles pharma companies often face when adopting emerging technology, and the future of quality management. He also takes a deep dive into validation, th…

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The Rise of the Frontline Engineer: Driving Digital Transformation on the Shop Floor 34:49

1M ago34:49

34:49

This week’s guests are Ryan Infantozi of VEKA, Esmeralda Gonzalez of Stanley Black & Decker, and Cuyler Monahan of Agility EMS. The three represent a new generation of frontline engineers—dedicated shop floor problem solvers applying digital technology to tackle the diverse set of challenges each of their operations face on a daily basis. The three…

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Lighthouses, Lean, and the Human Factor in Digital Transformation with AstraZeneca’s Jim Fox 24:49

2M ago24:49

24:49

This week’s guest is Jim Fox, SVP of Americas Supply Operations at AstraZeneca. Jim explains how digital manufacturing in pharma has evolved over his nearly 3 decades in the industry, from basic automation and data collection to advanced predictive modeling and integrated digital ecosystems—and why having humans in-the-loop continues to be critical…

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Rethinking Governance, eBR, and the CIO Role from the Ground Up with NextPharma’s Joel Fidalgo 29:04

2M ago29:04

29:04

This week’s guest is Joel Fidalgo, CIO of NextPharma. Joel shares how NextPharma is bridging IT and operations to lead digital transformation across a decentralized CDMO network, and taking a modular, app-based approach to MES and eBR. He also explores the changing role of the CIO in driving innovation on the shop floor, the importance of cross-fun…

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Hannover Messe Unfiltered: The Real State of AI in Manufacturing 23:53

3M ago23:53

23:53

This week, Natan Linder, Co-Founder and CEO of Tulip sits down with Madilynn Castillo, Tulip’s CMO for a recap of their experiences at this year’s Hannover Messe—the world’s largest industrial trade fair. They explore the overwhelming AI hype at the fair, the confusion it creates for manufacturers, and the persistent gap between marketing and real …

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Preview: Hannover Messe Special 1:24

3M ago1:24

1:24

This week, we're at Hannover Messe, the world’s largest industrial trade show. We’re foregoing our usual episode this week, but, we’ll be recording our annual on-site episode at the show later this week covering the state of the industry, analyzing the trends we’re seeing, and cutting through the hype to figure out which of the latest technologies …

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Operational Excellence at Enterprise Scale with Stanley Black & Decker’s Audrey Van de Castle 42:22

3M ago42:22

42:22

This week’s guest is Audrey Van de Castle, Senior Director of Operational Excellence Technology at Stanley Black & Decker. Audrey breaks down the challenges of scaling digital initiatives across 100+ manufacturing sites, how to balance governance with citizen development, and the need to move past the buzzwords and invest in technology that can mak…

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Digital Twins, Industrial AI, and the Future of Manufacturing with TwinThread's Erik Udstuen 25:20

4M ago25:20

25:20

This week’s guest is Erik Udstuen, Co-founder and CEO of TwinThread. Erik shares insights from his 30+ years in industrial software, discussing how AI and digital twins are transforming manufacturing by standardizing data, optimizing operations, and driving operational excellence. He also dives into the challenges of industrial data standards, the …

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Augmenting Craftmanship with Digital Technology at a Luxury Jeweler with Nicolette Naya 33:03

4M ago33:03

33:03

This week’s guest is Nicolette Naya, Senior MES Engineer at a leading luxury jewelry manufacturer. Nicolette shares insights into how she helped digitize centuries-old manufacturing processes, the challenges of introducing technology to the shop floor, and the importance of a structured governance model to successful digital transformation. She als…

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Scaling Open Source in Manufacturing with FlowFuse’s ZJ van de Weg 26:57

5M ago26:57

26:57

This week’s guest is ZJ van de Weg, CEO of FlowFuse. ZJ shares his journey from an intern at GitLab to now leading FlowFuse, how open-source technology is transforming industrial operations, and why Node-RED has become the go-to platform for low-code manufacturing connectivity. He also takes a deep dive into the challenges of scaling open source so…

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Speed Kills: Is Our 'Freedom to Drive' a Danger to Others? 51:36

5M ago51:36

51:36

In this thought-provoking episode of Conversations in the Park, host Tim Papandreou explores the contentious relationship between personal driving freedom and public safety with three leading experts in transportation safety and technology. Dr. Nick Reed, former Chief Road Safety Adviser for National Highways and founder of Reed Mobility, brings de…

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From Sony to Semiconductors: Digital Transformation in the Asia-Pacific with Vijay Chinnasami 28:11

5M ago28:11

28:11

This week’s guest is Vijay Chinnasami, former COO of Ultra Clean Technology. Vijay shares an inside look into how electronics supply chains and manufacturing practices have evolved over his 35+ year career, the rise of EMS and ODM business models, and how the semiconductor industry is shifting in response to global pressures. The discussion also ex…

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Interoperability for Industry 4.0 with HighByte’s John Harrington 31:42

6M ago31:42

31:42

This week’s guest is John Harrington, co-founder and Chief Product Officer of HighByte. John shares how his experiences working on Kepware at PTC led him to co-found HighByte, why Industry 4.0 requires a fundamentally different approach to interoperability, and the importance of contextualizing data in manufacturing. He also breaks down the real va…

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How AI Agents are Closing the Loop with Composabl’s Kence Anderson 34:19

6M ago34:19

34:19

This week’s guest is Kence Anderson, CEO of Composabl. Kence and Natan explore the role of AI agents in industrial processes, how manufacturers are using them to solve complex problems like scheduling or machine control, and the challenges of building startups in the manufacturing space. Kence also lays out how his concept of machine teaching diffe…

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Bringing Open Source to Industrial Automation with Arduino’s Fabio Violante 30:20

7M ago30:20

30:20

This week’s guest is Fabio Violante, CEO of Arduino. Fabio and Natan explore the importance of open source technology in manufacturing and how the democratization of embedded systems development is reshaping the industry. Fabio also shares the history of Arduino, and how he led the charge to evolve their approach from focusing purely on makers and …

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Frontline Operations in NASCAR with RFK Racing's Kevin Kidd 29:00

7M ago29:00

29:00

This week’s guest is Kevin Kidd, Director of Software and Analytics at RFK Racing. While advanced manufacturing might not be the first thought that comes to mind when you hear the word NASCAR, Kevin sheds light on the complex processes and digital tools that go into building high performance race cars. He also explains how citizen development helpe…

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Inside a Next-Gen Medical Device Manufacturer 30:58

8M ago30:58

30:58

This week’s guest is Marc Nash, SVP of Operations and R&D at Outset Medical. In an industry dominated by legacy players, Marc explains how Outset set out to redefine what is possible when it comes to patient health, and how they leveraged an equally disruptive approach to manufacturing to give them a competitive edge. He also explains how they are …

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Uniting the Frontline Operations Community at Operations Calling 21:11

8M ago21:11

21:11

This week, Natan Linder, Co-Founder and CEO of Tulip sits down with Tulip CMO Madilynn Castillo to reflect on the second annual Operations Calling conference and what it means for the future of frontline operations. Natan and Madi discuss what makes Operations Calling more than just another user conference, the importance of authenticity, and build…

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A New Approach to Pharma Manufacturing with Roche’s Daniele Iacovelli 34:18

9M ago34:18

34:18

This week’s guest is Daniele Iacovelli, SVP, Global Head of Digital, Analytics (AI) & Operational Excellence at Roche. Although regulated industries like pharmaceutical manufacturing can be slow to digitally transform their manufacturing operations, Daniele lays out how changing trends in the industry have led Roche to architect a new digital produ…

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The Past, Present, and Future of Industrial Software with Rick Bullotta 36:18

9M ago36:18

36:18

This week’s guest is Rick Bullotta, longtime veteran of the industrial software space and co-founder of Lighthammer and Thingworx. Rick and Natan explore the history of MES solutions, how Frontline Operations Platforms are democratizing the development of industrial software, and what this means for the future architecture of the manufacturing tech…

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Episode 141: Reindustrializing America with Liz Reynolds 28:12

12M ago28:12

28:12

In this bonus episode, Elisabeth Reynolds—MIT Professor of the Practice, former White House policymaker, and now Strategic Advisor to Tulip—joins Natan Linder to discuss the building momentum around reindustrialization in the United States. Liz calls attention to the most important factors shaping the industrial landscape, and the need for a clear …

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Episode 140: A Frontline Perspective on Industry 4.0 – Reflections on Season 1 of Augmented Ops 34:44

1y ago34:44

34:44

This week marks the final episode of Season 1 of Augmented Ops! Natan Linder and Erik Mirandette sit down to discuss their takeaways from the first season—while trying not to get derailed analogizing frontline operations to the Celtics Championship win. Natan and Erik highlight the advancements (and stumbles) in industrial AI, and the way that open…

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Episode 139: How to Architect Your Digital Strategy with Jeff Kramer 29:51

1y ago29:51

29:51

This week’s guest is Jeff Kramer, VP Technology & Digital Factory at Kason Industries. Jeff discusses why manufacturers struggle to develop a cohesive digital strategy, and lays out best practices around governance, data architecture, and bridging the IT/OT divide. He also explains why it’s critical for organizations to empower their frontline pers…

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Episode 138: Democratizing Computer Vision with LandingAI’s Kai Yang 30:38

1y ago30:38

30:38

This week’s guest is Kai Yang, VP of Product at LandingAI. Kai discusses the need for a data-centric approach to AI, why vendors should build tools rather than solutions, and more, sharing lessons learned from his career in machine learning and software development. He also explains how new tools like visual prompting are democratizing computer vis…

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Episode 137: AI for the Frontline Engineer with Instrumental’s Anna Shedletsky 32:37

1y ago32:37

32:37

This week’s guest is Anna Shedletsky, Co-Founder and CEO of Instrumental. Having started her career as an engineer at Apple, Anna shares lessons around quality management, which manufacturing KPIs actually matter, and how to take an idea from prototype to production. Plus, she lays out why organizations should think about manufacturing as a profit …

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Episode 136: AI Takes Center Stage at Hannover Messe 23:57

1y ago23:57

23:57

This week, Natan Linder, Co-Founder and CEO of Tulip sits down with Madilynn Castillo, Head of Marketing for a recap of their experiences at this year’s Hannover Messe — the world’s largest industrial trade fair. They explore the lackluster state of AI in industrial software, the rise of composable software architectures, and how open technology ec…

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Episode 135: Bringing Spatial Intelligence to Operations with Zerokey's Matt Lowe 28:45

1y ago28:45

28:45

This week’s guest is Matt Lowe, Co-Founder and CEO of ZeroKey. Not only is he a contributor to major open source projects like Linux and Arduino, Matt is the inventor of Quantum RTLS, a system that uses ultrasound to achieve 3D position tracking of objects with an unmatched level of fidelity. He explains what makes ultrasound-based positioning syst…

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Episode 134: Building Industrial Architectures with MQTT with HiveMQ’s Dominik Obermaier 36:56

1+ y ago36:56

36:56

This week’s guest is Dominik Obermaier, Co-Founder and CTO of HiveMQ. With over 10 years of experience serving on the MQTT technical committee and helping organizations build their data foundations using HiveMQ’s MQTT platform, Dominik shares his deep expertise on the technology. He explains what makes MQTT such an important communications protocol…

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Episode 133: Rethinking Our Approach to AI with Dr. Jay Lee 31:11

1+ y ago31:11

31:11

This week’s guest is Jay Lee, Director of the Industrial AI Center at the University of Maryland. Dr. Lee shares his experiences from the early days programming machines with punch cards, to eventually developing advanced machine learning applications for industry. He explains how AI and ML are reshaping manufacturing, the workforce, and global sup…

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Episode 132: Open Source Software for Manufacturing with UMH's Alex Krüger 26:34

1+ y ago26:34

26:34

This week’s guest is Alex Krüger, Co-founder and CEO of United Manufacturing Hub, or UMH. Alex shares his journey from working on integration projects in consulting fresh out of college, to founding UMH and building an open source alternative to the offerings from incumbent vendors. He breaks down the role of the open source software movement in ma…

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Episode 131: MQTT, Unified Namespace, and The New Industrial Data Stack with Litmus’s Vatsal Shah 26:07

1+ y ago26:07

26:07

This week’s guest is Vatsal Shah, Founder and CEO of Litmus. Vatsal discusses his journey from an automation engineer at Rockwell, to building a new industrial data platform from the ground up after becoming frustrated with the limitations of the offerings from established vendors. He discusses manufacturers’ exodus from on-prem to cloud systems, t…

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Episode 130: Democratization, Gen AI, and the Future of Industrial Analytics with Seeq’s Lisa Graham 29:43

1+ y ago29:43

29:43

This week’s guest is Dr. Lisa Graham, CEO of Seeq. Dr. Graham discusses her journey from process engineer, to using Seeq’s platform as a customer, and now leading the company as CEO. Drawing on her extensive experience in operations, she discusses how advanced analytics, generative AI, and the emergence of an interoperable technology ecosystem are …

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Episode 129: AI and the Human Element in Industry 4.0 with Jeff Winter 35:52

1+ y ago35:52

35:52

This week’s guest is Jeff Winter, Sr. Director of Industry Strategy for Manufacturing at Hitachi Solutions. Jeff offers his insights into the history of the Industry 4.0 movement and how he expects it to evolve in the coming years. His discussion highlights the balance between AI and human ingenuity, the role of frontline workers in an increasingly…

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Episode 128: From Tailor to Technologist: A Digital Transformation Journey with Joachim Hensch 24:25

1+ y ago24:25

24:25

This week’s guest is Joachim Hensch, Founder of Joachim Hensch Consulting and former Managing Director of the Hugo Boss factory in Izmir, Turkey. Hensch shares invaluable lessons learned about digital transformation through his over three decades of experience working in the apparel industry in roles from the shop floor all the way to management. H…

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Episode 127: Venture Capital's Role in Digital Transformation with Lior Susan 26:00

1+ y ago26:00

26:00

This week’s guest is Lior Susan, founder of Eclipse Ventures. With the digital transformation of critical industries like manufacturing now at the forefront of many nations’ economic priorities, Lior discusses the role that venture capital can play in helping drive this change. He addresses the growing importance of integrating IT and OT in industr…

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Episode 126: Transforming Manufacturers’ Organizational Strategy with Dr. Jörg Gnamm 22:36

1+ y ago22:36

22:36

This week’s guest is Dr. Jörg Gnamm, Senior Partner & Global Head of Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 Practice at Bain & Company. In order to successfully transform their business, Jörg calls on manufacturers to take a systemic approach to technology adoption by enabling interdisciplinary collaboration, and focusing on use cases that drive value for …

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Episode 125: Rethinking Quality Control for Pharmaceuticals with Mark Buswell 23:14

1+ y ago23:14

23:14

Our guest this week is GSK’s Mark Buswell, VP of Quality Tech. Mark draws on over two decades of experience in pharma manufacturing as we explore the challenges of quality control in the industry. Our discussion sheds light on the hurdles of adopting emerging technologies in regulated industries as Mark presents his vision of how to enable 'Quality…

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Episode 124: Industrial Data Interoperability with Erich Barnstedt 20:09

1+ y ago20:09

20:09

Our guest this week is Microsoft’s Erich Barnstedt, Chief Architect Standards, Consortia & Industrial IoT, Azure Edge + Platform. Erich brings his perspective as we try to get to the bottom of why–despite overtures from some of the biggest vendors in the space–we still have not achieved true data interoperability in the manufacturing industry. We e…

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Episode 123: Building a Manufacturing Software Marketplace with Diego Tamburini 22:20

1+ y ago22:20

22:20

Our guest this week is Diego Tamburini, Category Manager for Manufacturing for the Microsoft Commercial Marketplace. We explore what the modern manufacturing software landscape looks like from the consumer and vendor perspective, and take a deep dive into what software providers can do to enable an open, interoperable tech stack for manufacturers. …

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Episode 122: Fixing the Failures of Industry 4.0 with Antonio Padovano 22:41

2y ago22:41

22:41

Our guest this week is Antonio Padovano, Assistant Professor at the University of Calabria. In this conversation, we discuss the failures of practically implementing Industry 4.0 on the shop floor, and his vision for how we can address these with a new approach that respects both humans and technology. Augmented Ops is a podcast for industrial lead…

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Episode 121: Looking Back and Looking Ahead 41:01

2y ago41:01

41:01

In this special episode, Trond introduces Natan Linder, CEO of Tulip and co-author of Augmented Lean, as the new host of Augmented Season 4. Trond and Natan review four great interviews from 2022, and Natan previews what’s to come in 2023–with new episodes that go beyond interviews to include brainstorms, debates, and the occasional stream of consc…

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Episode 120: Digital Manufacturing in Turkey and Beyond with Efe Erdem 30:23

2y ago30:23

30:23

Efe Erdem, Executive Director of the MEXT Technology Center takes us on a journey through Turkey's manufacturing landscape and its pivotal role in advancing digitalization across the MENA region. We delve into the motivation behind establishing the MEXT Technology Center, its unique approach in providing end-to-end services to manufacturers, and th…

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Episode 119: Industrial Design with Kimberly Andersson 36:42

2y ago36:42

36:42

Augmented reveals the stories behind the new era of industrial operations, where technology will restore the agility of frontline workers. The topic is Industrial Design. Our guest is Kimberly Andersson, Head Of Design at Tulip Interfaces. The conversation between Trond and Kimberly revolves around the topic of design, particularly in the context o…

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Episode 118: Digital Manufacturing in the Cloud with Jon Hirschtick (Rebroadcast) 1:10:55

2y ago1:10:55

1:10:55

Augmented reveals the stories behind the new era of industrial operations, where technology will restore the agility of frontline workers. The topic is: Digital Manufacturing in the Cloud. Our guest is Jon Hirschtick, Head of SaaS, Onshape and Atlas Platform, PTC. In this conversation, we talk about the story of SolidWorks, using agile methods, lis…

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Episode 117: Manufacturing with Jessica Yen 38:39

2y ago38:39

38:39

In episode 117 of the podcast, the topic is manufacturing. Our guest is Jessica Yen, Head of Customer Success at Tulip. In this conversation, we talk about how it's interesting to see that changes are happening in manufacturing but that these changes aren't fast. It's a moving target, manufacturing, but certainly, complexity is there. The Augmented…

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Episode 116: The Market of Marketplaces with Jason Ray 33:22

2y ago33:22

33:22

In episode 116 of the podcast, the topic is: The Market of Marketplaces. Our guest is Jason Ray, Co-Founder and CEO of Paperless Parts. In this conversation, we talk about the importance of implementing a growth mindset in manufacturing, procurement, and industrial supply chains. The Augmented podcast is created in association with Tulip, connected…

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Episode 115: Bridging the Physical-Digital Divide in Industrial Tech with Rony Kubat 17:58

2y ago17:58

17:58

In episode 115 of the podcast, the topic is: Bridging the Physical-Digital Divide in Industrial Tech. Our guest is Rony Kubat (@kubat), CTO and co-founder, Tulip In this conversation, we talk about the complexity of the shop floor and programming a physical-digital environment. What does Digital Lean mean to you? What is augmentation? What's next i…