AI Your Business Podcast

Ep12: The AI Line Filmmakers Won’t Cross - with Craig Giles

What role should AI play in filmmaking - and where should humans stay firmly in the centre? In this episode of the AI Your Business Podcast, Kim Fernandez sits down with Craig Giles, filmmaker, producer, screenwriter, and co-founder of Central Coast Studios. Craig has spent more than 20 years across music, live events, television, screenwriting, and film production. He’s worked on major events, produced albums, created screen projects, and produced the feature film Get Free, a drama designed to raise awareness about human trafficking. But this isn’t just a conversation about film. Together, Kim and Craig unpack how AI is already being used inside creative workflows - from script analysis and research to proposals, distribution strategy, and production planning - without replacing the human craft of storytelling. They also explore the vision behind Central Coast Studios, a proposed film and television studio precinct on the NSW Central Coast that could support major productions, create local jobs, and strengthen Australia’s screen industry. This is a practical, nuanced conversation about AI, creativity, intellectual property, and what it takes to build something ambitious in a changing industry. In This Episode We Cover * Why AI is controversial in the film and television industry * The difference between using AI to replace creativity and using it to support better workflows * Why screenwriters need to protect their scripts, ideas, and intellectual property * How Craig uses AI for script analysis, story structure, audience alignment, and feedback * Why human judgement still matters in storytelling, coverage, and creative decisions * How AI can support research, funding proposals, distribution strategy, and business planning * The vision behind Central Coast Studios and why the Central Coast is a strong location for screen production * What the proposed studio precinct could mean for jobs, local talent, families, and the Australian film industry * Why ethical AI adoption still needs clear boundaries, secure tools, and people at the centre   About Craig Giles: Craig Giles is a filmmaker, producer, screenwriter, and co-founder of Central Coast Studios. His career spans more than 20 years across music, television, live events, screenwriting, and film production. He has worked as a camera operator, live event director, label manager, album producer, and filmmaker across Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Craig is also the producer of Get Free, a feature film created to raise awareness about human trafficking. Alongside his wife Amanda and a growing team of advisors, Craig is helping lead the vision for Central Coast Studios - a proposed film and television studio precinct designed to support major productions, create local jobs, and position the NSW Central Coast as a serious destination for Australian and international screen production. About the Podcast: The AI Your Business Podcast, hosted by Kim Fernandez, helps established business owners, founders, and service providers understand how to adopt AI in a practical, human-centric way, and be inspired by ways AI is being used to solve real world problems - through real-world case studies, stories, and strategies. Links Mentioned Get Free - the film [https://vimeo.com/ondemand/getfreefeature2023] Central Coast Studios Petition of Support [https://www.centralcoaststudios.com.au/register-your-support] Largo AI [https://home.largo.io] Suno AI [https://suno.com] Craig Giles:   Websites: https://www.centralcoaststudios.com.au [https://www.centralcoaststudios.com.au]     https://www.aagilesberg.com.au [https://www.aagilesberg.com.au] LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/craig-giles-15559048/] Kim Fernandez LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez [https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez] Website: https://ai-collab.com.au [https://ai-collab.com.au]

Ep11: She Was Fired. Then Built a Tech Company: The Dispute Buddy Story

What does it actually take to build a tech company - when you’re not technical? In this episode of the AI Your Business Podcast, Kim Fernandez sits down with Jenny Rudd, founder of Dispute Buddy - a legal tech platform transforming messy, emotional communication into structured, lawyer-ready evidence. But this isn’t a typical startup story. Jenny didn’t come from tech. She was fired from a magazine role… then went on to buy the business, become an award-winning editor, sell it, and start again - this time in SaaS. Together, they unpack: * The unproven beginning of building a startup from scratch * What it actually looks like before there’s an MVP, funding, or clarity * How non-technical founders navigate product, engineers, and early decisions * The role of lived experience in building meaningful tech * What it takes to earn trust in AI and legal-tech * The realities of being a solo female founder in tech This is a grounded, honest look at building in uncertainty - and how founders actually get from idea to product.   In This Episode We Cover * How Jenny Rudd went from being fired → to building and selling a business → to launching a SaaS startup * The real story behind Dispute Buddy and the problem it solves * What the “unproven beginning” of a startup actually looks like * Why non-technical founders can successfully build tech companies * How to approach MVPs, prototypes, and customer discovery * The importance of staying in the problem space before building * What founders get wrong about early-stage product development * How to find (and attract) world-class technical talent * The role of relationships, access, and community in startup growth * What it takes to build a product in a trauma-informed, high-trust environment * The realities of being a solo female founder in tech * Why support systems (at home and in business) matter more than people admit About Jenny Rudd: Jenny Rudd is the founder and CEO of Dispute Buddy, a legal-tech platform designed to help individuals and lawyers transform complex, emotional communication into structured legal evidence. Before entering the tech world, Jenny built and sold a magazine business she was once fired from, going on to become a finalist for Best Editor in New Zealand. Now, she’s building a global SaaS company focused on improving access to justice through technology. About the Podcast: The AI Your Business Podcast, hosted by Kim Fernandez, helps established business owners, founders, and service providers understand how to adopt AI in a practical, human-centric way, and be inspired by ways AI is being used to solve real world problems - through real-world case studies, stories, and strategies. Tools Mentioned Dispute Buddy (App) [https://www.disputebuddy.co/] The Lean Product Playbook – Dan Olsen [https://leanproductplaybook.com/] Jobs to Be Done Framework [https://jobs-to-be-done.com/jobs-to-be-done-a-framework-for-customer-needs-c883cbf61c90] Jenny Rudd:   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennyjanerudd [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennyjanerudd] Kim Fernandez LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez [https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez] Website: https://ai-collab.com.au [https://ai-collab.com.au]

10: Women, AI and the Most Overlooked Opportunity in Business (IWD 2026)

Women are significantly less likely than men to experiment with generative AI. But when you look closer, the explanation isn’t what many people assume. In this International Women’s Day episode, Kim Fernandez examines the research behind the AI gender adoption gap and explores what may actually be driving it - from constraints, risks and workplace structures, to how women evaluate new technologies. Importantly, this episode looks at what most businesses are overlooking: the largest productivity opportunities inside their own teams. Because the roles most capable of unlocking productivity with AI are often the roles women dominate. For business leaders and women in the workplace, this conversation reframes the AI gender gap as something far more important than a technology trend - it’s a signal about how organisations introduce change, where adoption gaps and opportunities exist, and how the future of work will actually evolve. In This Episode We Cover: * The real reason behind the AI gender adoption gap * Why the barrier to adoption is so nuanced * How women evaluate AI * Environments where women have statistically higher AI adoption than men * The operational roles where AI productivity is highest * What business leaders discover when AI unlocks capacity in teams * Why the future of work is humans orchestrating + working alongside AI * How AI adoption and representation impacts the future Research Links: Harvard Business School Digital Data Design Institute The Gender Divide in Generative AI https://d3.harvard.edu/the-gender-divide-in-generative-ai-a-global-challenge/ [https://d3.harvard.edu/the-gender-divide-in-generative-ai-a-global-challenge/?utm_source=chatgpt.com] Economics Letters / Federal Reserve research on gender differences in generative AI use https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165176524002982 [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165176524002982?utm_source=chatgpt.com] OECD Gender Data Portal — Time Use and Unpaid Work https://www.oecd.org/gender/data/ [https://www.oecd.org/gender/data/] International Labour Organization — Unpaid Care Work Statistics https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/newsroom/news/WCMS_633135/lang--en/index.htm [https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/newsroom/news/WCMS_633135/lang--en/index.htm] Boston Consulting Group — Women in Tech & Generative AI Adoption https://www.bcg.com/press/14may2024-women-leaders-in-tech-generative-ai-adoption [https://www.bcg.com/press/14may2024-women-leaders-in-tech-generative-ai-adoption?utm_source=chatgpt.com] PNAS Nexus — Gender Differences in Attitudes Toward Artificial Intelligence https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/5/1/pgaf399 [https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/5/1/pgaf399] Sensity AI — Deepfake Abuse Statistics https://www.sensity.ai/reports [https://www.sensity.ai/reports]   Tools Mentioned AI Profit Finder - designed to help organisations estimate where generative AI could unlock time and productivity across different roles. Free productivity and opportunity calculator: https://ai-collab.com.au/ai-profit-finder [https://ai-collab.com.au/ai-profit-finder] AI Intensive - a transformational program that helps businesses identify AI productivity opportunities, implement role-based AI tools, and build safe, practical AI capability across their teams: https://ai-collab.com.au/ai-intensive [https://ai-collab.com.au/ai-intensive] AI Collab: https://ai-collab.com.au [https://ai-collab.com.au] Kim Fernandez LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez [https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez]

09: Emotions Control 85% of Your Life: AI Just Made It Visible with Nicole Gibson

What if 85% of your behaviour isn’t conscious? Kim sits down with Nicole Gibson, Founder and CEO of In Truth Technologies - the first company in the world to successfully track emotional state in real time using advanced machine learning trained on proprietary clinical datasets. In doing so, Nicole hasn’t simply built a product. She has pioneered a new applied science at the intersection of neuroscience, emotional intelligence, and AI. Nicole’s journey into tech began in performance, mental health advocacy, and political reform. Through years of community work and policy exposure, she identified a fundamental truth: emotion drives behaviour, and behaviour shapes outcomes. Now, through wearable integrations and multimodal machine learning, the previously invisible emotional layer of decision-making is becoming measurable. This conversation explores what happens when subconscious data becomes visible - and what that means for leadership, teams, healthcare, privacy, and the future of human sovereignty in an AI-driven world. If you're interested in where AI meets emotional intelligence, leadership, and ethical design, this episode will expand how you think about intelligence itself. Guest: Nicole Gibson Nicole Gibson is the Founder and CEO of In Truth Technologies, a world-first platform capable of mapping emotional state in real time. A former mental health advocate, nonprofit founder, political reformer, and bestselling author, Nicole transitioned into AI to solve one of the most fundamental human challenges: emotional awareness at scale. Her work sits at the intersection of neuroscience, leadership, ethics, and artificial intelligence, with a mission to increase self-awareness while preserving individual sovereignty in a machine-driven world. In This Episode We Cover * Why emotion drives 85% of human decision-making * The difference between emotion, feeling, mood, and state * Why information alone doesn’t change behaviour * How In Truth integrates wearable sensor data through advanced machine learning * What an emotional language model actually means * Emotional co-regulation in teams and relationships * Leadership empathy gaps at scale * Privacy, biometric data, and digital sovereignty * The future of self-sovereign health data * The gender funding gap in AI startups * Why female representation is critical in designing future AI systems Interview with a Founder This episode marks the beginning of a new Founder Series on AI Your Business, spotlighting women building purpose-driven AI companies that are shaping the future of technology. Released as we’re coming into International Women’s Week, this conversation explores leadership, representation, VC equity and responsibility in the age of artificial intelligence. In Truth Technologies Website: https://intruth.io [https://intruth.io] Nicole Gibson Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicgibson_ [https://www.instagram.com/nicgibson_/]LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicjgibson [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicjgibson/] Kim Fernandez LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez [https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez]   AI Collab: https://ai-collab.com.au [https://ai-collab.com.au]

08: 2026 AI Trends for SMBs: Predictions & Tools to Watch (Part 2)

What are the biggest AI trends small and mid-sized businesses need to prepare for in 2026? In Part 2 of this AI trends series, Kim is joined by Rod Fernandez, Co-Founder and Head Developer at AI Collab, to unpack what’s actually happening inside AI adoption for SMBs in 2026 - beyond the hype. If you’re wondering: * Is it safe for my team to use AI tools? * Is AI putting my business data at risk? * What’s happening with AI search and Google visibility? * Are AI agents ready to replace workflows? * How do I adopt AI without breaking my operations? This episode answers those questions directly. Kim and Rod explore responsible AI usage, cybersecurity risks, enterprise-grade AI environments, app-building with AI, and why “agent swarms” aren’t the silver bullet many businesses hoped for. They also break down the shift from traditional SEO to AI-powered search (AEO), and why visibility in ChatGPT-style search results is becoming non-negotiable for service-based businesses. If you run a professional services firm, consulting business, trade business, financial services practice, or growing SMB - this episode will help you think strategically about: * AI governance * Secure implementation * Search visibility in an AI-first world * Change management for AI adoption * Practical next steps you can take now AI isn’t the problem. Poor implementation is. This episode will help you stay ahead - safely and strategically. Guest Co-Host Rod Fernandez - Co-Founder and Head Developer at AI Collab, Founder of web design agency Rod Fernandez Design Rod brings deep expertise in AI systems architecture, cybersecurity, and development. In This Episode We Cover: * Why free AI tools can expose business data * What “enterprise-grade AI” actually means for SMBs * Responsible AI policies every business should implement * The risks of building AI-powered apps without security validation * The pendulum swing from developer-only builds to DIY AI app creation * Deterministic vs probabilistic systems (and why that matters) * Why massive AI agent swarms aren’t ready for most businesses * How to introduce AI without overwhelming your team * The shift from SEO to AI-powered search and AEO * Why Google AI snippets and AI-native search tools are reshaping visibility Tradie Talk ProTM Links * AI Collab - ai-collab.com.au [http://ai-collab.com.au] * Rod Fernandez Design - rodfernandezdesign.com [http://rodfernandezdesign.com] * Learn more about AEO for your website - rodfernandezdesign.com/aeo-packages [http://rodfernandezdesign.com/aeo-packages] * Learn more about the AI Your Business Intensive → ai-collab.com.au/ai-intensive [http://ai-collab.com.au/ai-intensive] * Experience Donna, the interactive AI voice concierge → ai-collab.com.au [http://ai-collab.com.au]  Rod Fernandez LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rod-fernandez-377086117/] Facebook - Rod Fernandez Design [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61581765340619] Facebook - AI Collab [https://www.facebook.com/aicollab/] Kim Fernandez LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez/]