AI skepticism – much like AI itself – is here to stay, whether we like it or not. While getting buy-in can be difficult, and leveraging it as a solution within a company is even harder, the key thing to remember is that AI, like any new tool, must address a pain point. The only way folks will be persuaded as to its use will be when it solves a problem that was previously thought unsolvable.
In this episode, we are joined by Adam Gluck, the CEO and Founder of Copia Automation. Join us as we explore the problems that AI is solving, why a customer-centric culture is so key to developing useful products, and the need for Silicon Valley to overlap with industries that have existed for over two hundred years.
The problem-first mindset is one that’s helped Copia evolve since July 2020 and navigate hype cycles in tech. What’s more, by keeping users front of mind, they can use AI as a “painkiller” rather than a “vitamin”. This means Copia create proactive, targeted solutions that deliver value where it matters most.
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3 Quick Things from this Episode
- A non-manufacturing background can help innovate in the industry. Adam’s experience in software engineering and sociology provided him with a fresh perspective on industrial challenges.
- Adam emphasizes the importance of DevOps in industrial environments, explaining that DevOps spans processes from coding to deploying software. These include practices such as code review and automated testing, but tailored for industrial environments.
- AI should solve real, tangible problems. Copia focused on creating solutions for tasks like code generation, which could be streamlined with AI.
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Tweetable Quotes
- “I want to build something people can use every single day as part of their standard workflow and that solves material problems for them.”
- “DevOps AI for the software space has transformed the way software gets written.”
- “Ultimately, you can try and solve things with processes organization, but you’re going to actually solve problems with really smart people.”
Please Scroll Down for Recommended Resources from this Episode
Do you want to connect with other leaders that are moving the needle in manufacturing everyday? Then make sure to join us in the Manufacturing Happy Hour Industry Community on LinkedIn.
MaintainX recognizes that 80% of the workforce – primarily technicians – aren’t sitting at a desk but out managing equipment and facilities. Their maintenance and asset management platform empowers these professionals by keeping equipment running through preventive maintenance, facilitating quick repair insights, and streamlining safety and compliance.
A fragmented operational environment makes designing, sourcing and producing parts slower, more costly and more error prone than it needs to be. CADDi connects manufacturing data across your entire operational ecosystem so your team can put it to use. By analyzing drawings to extract data, you create a link to every PO, CAM file or spec sheet that design has ever been associated with. This lets your team start to leverage hidden commonalities across your parts catalog to optimize production and reduce cost.
What We Discuss with Adam
- Adam shares his career path, including his work for Uber and his sociology undergraduate degree
- Why it is harder for graduates to get software engineering jobs
- How, in engineering, a self-taught approach can be less restrictive when learning new approaches or facing new problems
- Hiring smart people is often the most important step in solving hard problems
- Copia has evolved since July 2020, and the key to this has been their market understanding, adoption, activation, and backup and disaster recovery
- How DevOps AI for the software space has transformed the way software gets written
- Adam chose to move to New York from San Francisco because of the large number of seed rounds, proximity to venture capital and large amount of talent
- How the current enthusiasm for industrialization and manufacturing among venture capitalists and young companies will persist long-term
Recommended Resources
- Copia Automation, bringing modern DevOps tooling to industrial automation, standardizing processes to drive quality, efficiency, and uptime at scale
- Reindustrialize, a summit exploring how technology will shape the future of the US industrial base
- American Dynamism, part of a16z, investing in founders and companies supporting the national interest: aerospace, defense, safety, education, and manufacturing
- Founders Fund, a San Francisco based venture capital firm organized by Peter Thiel and others, investing in companies building revolutionary technologies
- General Catalyst, a global investment and transformation company that partners with the world’s most ambitious entrepreneurs to drive resilience and applied AI
- Lux Capital, “turning sci-fi into sci-fact”…venture capital firm based in New York City, founded in 2000, and focusing on investments in emerging technologies
- Construct Capital, an early stage venture capital firm, investing in founders who are reimagining the foundational industries of our economy
- Dante NYC, legendary circa-1915 cafe serving small plates & cocktails in an updated historic setting in New York City’s West Village
- Lobby Bar at the Chelsea Hotel, high-end cocktail bar inside of NYC’s Chelsea Hotel offering seasonal cocktails, artfully prepared plates, and late-night hours
Connect with Adam and Copia Automation
Adam Gluck | LinkedIn | X
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