Season 2

In this episode of AI & Impact, Dr. Sidney Shapiro speaks with Janelle Marietta, PhD candidate, instructor, and nonprofit leader, about the growing role of artificial intelligence in nonprofit organizations, education, and community-based work.

The conversation explores how AI tools can help nonprofits address long-standing capacity challenges, improve marketing and donor engagement, and support evaluation and analysis—while also highlighting the risks of over-reliance on automation, biased data, and inauthentic communication.

Key topics include ethical considerations in AI adoption, the limits of AI in qualitative and community-engaged research, and the importance of maintaining human-centered approaches in equity-focused and decolonization work. …

In this episode of AI in Action, Dr. Sidney Shapiro sits down with Mahammad Ayan Shaikh, Computer Programming student and CPIN Lab Monitor at Cambrian College, to explore how artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things are converging to power the next generation of embedded systems. Drawing from his hands-on experience designing and troubleshooting IoT prototypes, Mahammad discusses how AI enhances connected devices by transforming real-time sensor data into intelligent, autonomous decision-making.

The conversation highlights one of his most ambitious projects: a real-time collision-detection and automated emergency-notification system. Designed to activate in the event of an accident, the system detects impact, captures GPS location and environmental data, and…

AI in Action – Season 2, Episode 4Featuring Jenni Hayman

In this episode of AI in Action, Dr. Sidney Shapiro speaks with educator, researcher, and senior academic leader Jenni Hayman about the rapidly evolving role of generative AI in education. Their discussion moves beyond surface reactions to explore how institutions, faculty, and students can respond thoughtfully to technological change while maintaining academic integrity, equity, and rigor.

Jenni reflects on the pace of AI adoption in post-secondary education and the shift from fear-based conversations about academic misconduct to a more constructive focus on AI literacy and instructional redesign. She highlights the growing reality that students are often early adopters of generative AI tools, challenging traditional assumptions about…

In this episode of AI in Action, Dr. Sidney Shapiro speaks with Professor Kris Hodgson-Bright from Lethbridge Polytechnic about the intersection of artificial intelligence, journalism, immersive storytelling, virtual reality, augmented reality, and education.

The conversation explores how AI is changing media and communication, from brainstorming and writing support to misinformation, framing, and the importance of human judgment in journalism. Kris also discusses applied research in immersive technologies, including VR-based public-speaking tools, simulation-based training, and the future of interactive learning environments powered by AI.

The episode also examines the opportunities and risks of AI-generated content, emotional…

In this episode of AI in Action, Dr. Sidney Shapiro speaks with Robin Ayoub, translation and localization thought leader, GM and VP Sales at Lionbridge, CLIA Advisory Board member, and host of the Localization Fireside Chat podcast.

The conversation explores how AI is changing business, language services, education, and digital work. Robin discusses why organizations need to move beyond hype-driven adoption and focus on clear business problems, clean data, and measurable value. He emphasizes that AI systems require careful data curation, validation, monitoring, and human expertise to produce reliable outputs.

The episode also examines the risks of relying on out-of-the-box AI systems, including…

In this episode of AI in Action, Dr. Sidney Shapiro speaks with Professor Mark Price, Distinguished Service Professor and AI Faculty Lead at the Opus College of Business at the University of St. Thomas.

The conversation explores how generative AI is changing business education, executive learning, consulting, analytics, and organizational decision-making. Professor Price discusses why students are adopting AI faster than universities, and why educators need to move beyond traditional content-based assignments toward assessments that develop critical thinking, evaluation, judgment, and adaptability.

The episode also examines how organizations can adopt AI more effectively. …