Why AI Still Lacks True Agency — And What Founders Must Build Instead
Tue Jan 27 2026
In this episode of Liftoff, Keith sat down with Arshavir Blackwell, PhD, AI researcher, founder, and author of The Creative Agency’s Guide to AI, to unpack what’s really happening behind today’s AI boom.With decades of experience building neural networks—from Ask Jeeves to enterprise AI—Arshavir explains why most so-called “AI agents” still don’t have real agency, why vertical focus is the only way startups can survive Big Tech competition, and how the next generation of companies will be smaller, faster, and radically more capital-efficient.They explored AI interpretability, local vs frontier models, privacy-first AI, and what founders should actually be building over the next 24 months.Connect with Arshavir Blackwell: - Newsletter: insidetheblackbox.ai- Book: tinyurl.com/creativeagencybook- App: yourvoicecraft.ai- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arshavirblackwell Subscribe for more founder insights and hit the bell for notifications! Follow us on our channels for exclusive startup content and behind-the-scenes insights from interviews like this one. - Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD?si=f5a14e779777487d - Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589 - Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/ - Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/ - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith - TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@keithnewman74 For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: sponsorships@wherewithstudio.com#Podcast #ArtificialIntelligence #AITrends #AIStartups #Founders #TechLeadership #FutureOfWork #LiftoffPodcast #AIInnovation
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In this episode of Liftoff, Keith sat down with Arshavir Blackwell, PhD, AI researcher, founder, and author of The Creative Agency’s Guide to AI, to unpack what’s really happening behind today’s AI boom.With decades of experience building neural networks—from Ask Jeeves to enterprise AI—Arshavir explains why most so-called “AI agents” still don’t have real agency, why vertical focus is the only way startups can survive Big Tech competition, and how the next generation of companies will be smaller, faster, and radically more capital-efficient.They explored AI interpretability, local vs frontier models, privacy-first AI, and what founders should actually be building over the next 24 months.Connect with Arshavir Blackwell: - Newsletter: insidetheblackbox.ai- Book: tinyurl.com/creativeagencybook- App: yourvoicecraft.ai- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arshavirblackwell Subscribe for more founder insights and hit the bell for notifications! Follow us on our channels for exclusive startup content and behind-the-scenes insights from interviews like this one. - Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD?si=f5a14e779777487d - Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589 - Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/ - Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/ - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith - TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@keithnewman74 For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: sponsorships@wherewithstudio.com#Podcast #ArtificialIntelligence #AITrends #AIStartups #Founders #TechLeadership #FutureOfWork #LiftoffPodcast #AIInnovation