Practical AI

If the name doesn't give it away, Practical AI is obsessed with making AI useful in the real world. Hosts Chris Benson and Daniel Whitenack, produced by Changelog Media, have been at this for nearly 350 episodes, and their focus has stayed remarkably consistent: strip away the hype and figure out what actually works. Episodes run about 40 to 50 minutes and typically follow one of two formats. Some are interview episodes where they bring in guests like security expert Bruce Schneier to discuss AI's impact on democracy, or a Waymo VP to break down autonomous vehicle research. Others are just Chris and Daniel riffing on a topic together, like their year-end reviews where they sort through what mattered in AI and what was just noise. Both formats work well because these two have genuine chemistry and don't talk past each other. The show deliberately targets a broad audience. You don't need a PhD to follow along, but experienced practitioners won't feel like they're being talked down to either. They cover everything from MLOps and neural networks to the Model Context Protocol and how AI is reshaping hiring practices. Their recent episodes on AI startup funding and the ethics of AI-assisted coding show they're not afraid to tackle uncomfortable questions alongside the technical stuff. Published weekly and rated 4.4 stars across 190 ratings on Apple Podcasts, Practical AI has built a reputation as the show you recommend to someone who keeps asking you to explain what's going on with AI.