The Aboard Podcast

Why do we try to explain tech concepts and processes with metaphors—and why do we choose the metaphors we use? On this week’s podcast, Paul and Rich get philosophical, kicking off the conversation wi…

You’ve just shipped your latest release. Once you finish celebrating, how do you decide what to build next? Paul taps Rich, in his role as Aboard CEO, to set a course on a hypothetical product roadma…

On this week’s podcast, Paul and Rich offer up some quick hits—and sample, in Rich’s words, “a buffet of technology news.” First, rhetoric: Specifically, the rhetorical pretzels of Nick Clegg, Presid…

Does the real promise of generative AI lie in the chatbot? Paul and Rich don’t think so. Building off a post by tech entrepreneur Dustin Moskovitz on “scaffolded AI,” they discuss extreme visions of …

There are a huge number of low-code tools out there—but is “low code” a meaningful term? Paul and Rich discuss the promise versus the reality of low code, what most businesses really need from softwa…

What does “risk-taking” really mean in business—and how can embracing some level of chaos help foster success? Paul and Rich make the case for unpredictability, talking about everything from New York…

You’ve got one software system that doesn’t play nicely with your other software system—so surely the answer is a third software system to link them together, right? And how about adding a fourth, ma…

How do you bring in ten times as many new users every day? That’s not the question you should actually be asking. Paul and Rich discuss the tech world’s faulty success metrics, the perpetual struggle…

If a huge company wants to “partner” with your small business, can that ever be a fair partnership? Paul describes a recent mentorship dilemma to Rich, and they discuss the dynamics that make the pos…

From copyright violations to environmental concerns to the looming threat of the singularity, AI is a hot-button topic these days. Paul and Rich talk through many facets of this conversation, and dis…

Most weeks, the Aboard Podcast is only sponsored by Aboard—but this week, Paul and Rich celebrate Aboard’s relaunch by devoting the whole episode to their shiny new AI-powered product! After they tak…

Just a quick update today, because....WE'RE LAUNCHING A SHINY NEW VERSION OF ABOARD!!! Paul and Rich will be back on Thursday with a full episode (which, as you can imagine, will be about the shiny n…

This past week, the big news in the design software world was Canva’s acquisition of Affinity, and Paul and Rich kick off the episode by asking, “Is this a failure on Adobe’s part?” But of course Ado…

Can we all agree that the vibes are off? On this week’s podcast, Paul and Rich dig into our broader societal malaise (the effects of the pandemic; our phones as an endless portal to misery) and discu…

Algorithmically innovative? An important tool for connection? A grave national security threat? Paul and Rich discuss the recent bipartisan vote in the U.S. House of Representatives to ban TikTok—and…

How do you build a company that has an exciting product—but has nice, boring, stable qualities, too? Paul and Rich tackle this question from a variety of angles, from tax strategy to the value of mar…

Will generative AI give us the answer or lead us to the answer—or is that the wrong question entirely? Paul and Rich assess the promise of AI through a lens of lightly skeptical optimism, trying to s…

As the last decade’s big social media platforms crumble, Paul and Rich reflect on the (false) promise of the “global town square,” and the suggestion that putting millions of people in a giant room t…

When Paul suggests recording a podcast about public figures they admire, Rich has a counter-offer—why not talk about people they hate instead? But this particular exercise has a catch: They can only …

When Paul injures himself and is advised by his wife, Rich, and ChatGPT (seriously) to seek emergency medical attention, he goes to the urgent care and marvels at their utterly Byzantine technologica…