Coworking is a weekly segment where we spotlight Tech Brew readers who work with emerging technologies. Click here if you’d like a chance to be featured.
How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in tech?
In my role as Preferabli co-founder, I imagine a world with sensorial AI—where everyone can easily discover every sensory consumer product they would like. The point of entry for Preferabli was the adult-beverage industry because there are more than a million wines and spirits in the market, and no one knows how they all taste.
In my role as CEO, I run a company that licenses software that behaves like a human expert. We build a model of an individual’s taste preference, and then predict which wines and spirits a person will like. Our software was created by PhDs in physiology and applied mathematics, as well as the largest group of Masters of Wine and Master Sommeliers in the world.
What’s the most compelling tech project you’ve worked on, and why?
Preferabli is the most compelling because it works like a human expert at scale. We started building over 10 years ago, before AI was a thing. Most people in the wine and spirits industry didn’t think it could work. People didn’t think we could do it even after we did it. The reactions to our demos have been some of the most rewarding moments along the way.
Bringing together supply and demand through the prism of preference is compelling for both businesses and consumers. Consumers struggle with the paradox of choice, and businesses
struggle to present the right choices at the right time. Software that powers choice through individual taste preferences is a win across the entire industry.
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Preferabli’s work in generative AI has been particularly exciting, since everything we do can now work using natural language, without traditional web and mobile prompts. Imagine being able to type in what you’re having for dinner and get specific wine recommendations from your favorite retail or grocery store or restaurant wine list. Isn’t that so cool?
What technologies are you most optimistic about? Least? And why?
I’m most optimistic about AI and its ability to solve problems that have been around forever. We know technology isn’t intrinsically good or bad, though. What matters is how it’s used. AI is the most powerful technology of our time, and it has the potential to cause real trouble, too. We’ll have to work very hard to make sure that over time the good outweighs the bad.
What’s the best tech-related media you read/watch/listen to?
Tech Brew, of course! And I love Lex Fridman’s interview style. Kara Swisher has extraordinary insight into the tech markets and has for many years. I’m also a fan of the All-In Podcast.
What’s something about you we can’t guess from your LinkedIn profile?
I love spy novels.
What do you think about when you’re not thinking about tech?
How to travel, whether near or far. Travel has become something of an art form, and increasingly a part of day-to-day life. It’s very exciting to think about where in the world to go, what to experience, and what to eat and drink on any given day.