In this episode of Data-powered Innovation Jam, hosts Robert Engels and Ron Tolido jam with Craig Wiley, Senior Director of AI/ML Products at Databricks and former founder of AWS SageMaker and Google Vertex AI. From Seattle’s grunge roots in Nirvana, from Jimi Hendrix to Kurt Cobain, then going on to the evolution of AI platforms, Craig shares insights on how generative AI is reshaping development workflows, why “vibe coding” is becoming the new norm, and how Agent Bricks aims to simplify building and tuning AI agents using natural language.

Expect candid takes on deterministic vs. generative systems, contextual awareness, and the role of developers versus data scientists in this fast-changing landscape. If you’re curious about the future of AI-driven software and why coding might soon feel like playing a guitar riff, this episode is for you.

Timestamps

[ 00:25 ] - Ron and Robert share their special connection to grunge music

[ 05:46 ] - Introducing the episode with Craig Wiley from Databricks and talking about evolving of the Databricks platform, developer profiles and language models

[ 14:05 ] - Deterministic vs. indeterministic goals of AI solutions and the importance of context

[ 20:02 ] - from Digital Twins to world models and leveraging Agentic AI solutions efficiency and talking about the path to determinism through tools of agents

[ 28:35 ] - going with the flow - vibe coding in Databricks

[ 33:12 ] - looking on the roadmap of Databricks

[ 40:04 ] - Weiwei busts the myth about vibe coding

[ 42:08 ] - Summarising this 'vibey' episode