In this episode of the Shift AI Podcast, Scott Porad, CTO at TaskRabbit, joins host Boaz Ashkenazy for a wide-ranging conversation on how AI is reshaping software engineering and the future of technology leadership.

Scott shares his career journey across some of the internet's earliest gig marketplaces from Rover to Dolly to TaskRabbit and how TaskRabbit's relationship with parent company IKEA came about from a simple observation: people were using the platform to assemble furniture. From there, the conversation dives deep into how AI coding tools have swept through engineering organizations, tracing the evolution from early skepticism to prompt engineering to plan mode to today's spec-driven development.

The conversation explores how TaskRabbit is using AI agents for code review, the challenge of adapting AI to legacy codebases, and what happens when designers and product managers can write code themselves. Scott addresses the blurring of roles and decision rights across engineering teams, the shadow IT challenge of citizen developers building internal tools with lovable.dev and similar platforms, and why security — unlike everything else — is a one-way door that can't be undone with people and money.

This episode is essential listening for engineering leaders, product managers, and anyone trying to understand how the practice of building software is being fundamentally rewritten in real time.

Chapters

Connect with Scott Porad

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottporad/

Podcast: howmanyctos.com

Connect with Boaz Ashkenazy

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boazashkenazy/

Email: info@shiftai.fm

In this episode of the Shift AI Podcast, Gordon Evans, CMO of Commerce Cloud at Salesforce, joins host Boaz Ashkenazy live from Dreamforce in San Francisco for a conversation on how AI agents are reshaping commerce across both B2C and B2B.

Gordon breaks down the full scope of Salesforce’s commerce portfolio—from the well-known B2C platform powering brands like Pandora and L’Oréal, to B2B commerce, order management, and the recently acquired PredictSpring point-of-sale capability. Together, these pieces deliver what Salesforce calls unified commerce: the same product, inventory, and customer view whether you’re engaging online or in-store.

The conversation dives into how AgentForce Commerce is bringing AI-powered personalization to retail. Gordon shares how Pandora’s Gemma agent has driven a 10% increase in NPS by handling customer service with the nuance of a knowledgeable store associate, and how Williams Sonoma’s Olive agent helps shoppers plan everything from Thanksgiving dinner to table decor. The discussion explores why great data is the foundation for effective agents, how B2B buyers deserve the same seamless experience as consumers, and why natural language interfaces are collapsing the technical barrier between businesses and their customers.

Boaz and Gordon also examine the evolving trust dynamic around AI in commerce—how the pandemic accelerated consumer willingness to trade data for speed and convenience, and how that same value exchange is now driving adoption of AI agents. Gordon shares how his own team uses internal LLMs and Slack bots to move faster, and why learning to ask the right questions is becoming the most important professional skill.

This episode is essential listening for commerce leaders, retail strategists, and product teams who want to understand how AI agents are moving beyond customer service into full shopping experiences—and why conversation and context are the two words that define what comes next.

Chapters

[00:00] What It Means to Be CMO of Commerce at Salesforce

[02:15] AgentForce Commerce and the Unified Commerce Vision

[03:37] PredictSpring, Point of Sale, and Bringing It All Together

[04:20] Personalization Powered by Data and AI Agents

[05:58] Why B2B Buyers Deserve the Same Experience as Consumers

[07:30] First Job, Worst Job with Gordon Evans

[09:30] How AI Tools Are Changing the Daily Work of Marketing

[11:20] Pandora, Williams Sonoma, and the Rise of Brand Agents

[13:50] Trust, Credit Cards, and the Speed-Convenience Value Exchange

[15:00] Two Words for the Future of Work: Conversational and Context

Connect

Connect with Gordon Evans

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gordonmevans/

Connect with Boaz Ashkenazy

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boazashkenazy/

Email: info@shiftai.fm

In this episode of the Shift AI Podcast, Nadia Hansen, Global AI Go-To-Market Leader and Industry Advisor for Public Sector at Salesforce, joins host Boaz Ashkenazy for a live conversation recorded at Dreamforce in San Francisco on how AI agents are fundamentally reshaping government services.

Nadia shares her unconventional career journey—from serving as the Chief Information Officer for Clark County in Las Vegas overseeing 2.3 million residents and 10,000 employees, to leading public sector go-to-market strategy at Salesforce. From there, the discussion dives deep into how today’s government agencies are navigating digital transformation with resilience, experimentation, and a growing openness to AI-driven innovation.

The conversation explores how AgentForce and agentic AI are enabling government agencies to deliver seamless digital front doors for residents—automating intake processes, streamlining permit requests, breaking down departmental silos, and providing multilingual access to public services. Nadia explains why voice technology is poised to become the next major interface for government, how co-creating AI use cases with employees drives real adoption, and why the biggest barrier to transformation is mindset, not technology.

Boaz and Nadia also examine the growing challenge of shadow AI in government, why bottom-up adoption workshops outperform top-down mandates, and how cities like Kyle, Texas are experimenting with AI in safe, compliant environments. The episode closes with Nadia’s powerful two-word vision for the future of work: revolutionary mindset.

This episode is essential listening for public sector leaders, civic technologists, and anyone who wants to understand how AI is moving beyond individual productivity gains to transform the way government serves its communities.

Chapters

[00:00] From Home Depot to the C-Suite: Nadia’s Career Journey

[04:07] Landing at Salesforce and Repositioning CRM for Government

[07:50] First and Worst Jobs: Lessons from Selling Manure

[10:22] The Digital Front Door: Seamless Government Services

[12:37] Selling to Government: Speak in Outcomes, Not Products

[15:03] AgentForce and the Rise of Voice-First Government

[17:24] Augmentation Over Replacement: Addressing the Fear of AI

[19:47] Bottom-Up Adoption: Co-Creating AI Use Cases with Employees

[21:13] Public Safety, Multilingual Access, and the World Cup

[23:30] The Future of Work: Revolutionary Mindset

Connect with Nadia Hansen

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadiakhansen/

Newsletter: Hack to the Future (on LinkedIn)

Connect with Boaz Ashkenazy

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boazashkenazy/

Email: info@shiftai.fm