AI in the real world isn’t a keynote... it’s a factory floor, a power bill, and a risk register.

In this episode, Marvin Tansley (Thing-Zero) sits down with Alec Coughlin (AI with Alec) to map the jump from hype to hard results: securing brownfield OT, preparing a data/knowledge-centric estate, and using agents to augment operators—not replace them.

We cover the shift from app-centric silos to platforms, prescriptive analytics that drive next-best actions, and the leadership moves that make it stick: psychological safety, exec bootcamps, incentives that reward smart risk, and “hands-in-dirt” adoption.

If you’re a CTO/CIO, plant leader, or ops owner wondering how to compete when AI becomes table stakes, this is the playbook you've been looking for.

⏱ Chapters:

0:00 Intros & setup

0:24 Alec’s origin: RPA spark → “AI with Alec”

1:14 Marvin’s path: industrial engineering to AI

2:00 Practical vs hype; LLMs get “evolutionary” + Palantir/data platforms

5:31 Augmentation vs automation (factory story)

9:07 Brownfield OT realities & security-by-design

12:50 From app-centric to data/knowledge-centric (why it’s existential)

16:45 Analytics ladder: descriptive → predictive → prescriptive

19:08 Ransomware lesson ($20M/day) & designing safety in

40:56 Culture, incentives, “make the beer taste better”

42:32 Closing Thoughts

→ The Zeroed in Podcast is also now available on your favorite podcast platforms: https://linktr.ee/zeroedinpod

📌 Follow Alec Coughlin on LinkedIn -https://www.linkedin.com/in/alecchh/

📌 Follow Marvin Tansley on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marvin-tansley-a914551/

🎧 Brought to you by Thing-Zero — Secure. Predict. Augment. Automate.

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