AI Ireland with Mark Kelly

Today's guest is Catherine Doyle, General Manager at Microsoft Ireland. Employees are embracing AI faster than their employers can adapt, creating a growing gap between individual productivity and business-wide results. Catherine joins host Mark Kelly on today's show to discuss how organisations can close that gap through stronger leadership, better data, practical training and a clear focus on measurable outcomes.Topics include:
0:00 Ireland’s rise to third in global AI adoption
2:17 Why leaders must catch up with employees using AI
4:38 How AI agents are reshaping careers, work and business
9:09 Closing the AI training gap and scaling adoption responsibly
12:39 Building trusted data without slowing down your AI journey
14:00 Measuring AI’s business impact, return on investment and growth
18:29 Showcasing Irish innovation and impact at AI Awards 2026

Today’s guest is Carl Kane, Group Data Culture Lead at Bank of Ireland. AI adoption is moving faster than many businesses can keep up with, with employees often taking the lead before company strategies catch up. In this episode, Carl speaks about what it takes to turn individual experimentation into meaningful business results, exploring leadership, data readiness, AI literacy and the role of storytelling in bringing people along.Topics include:
0:00 His journey from euro conversion, evolving into banking data analytics
5:56 Using storytelling to connect people, improve collaboration and drive better outcomes
8:07 How data governance orchestrates collaboration to deliver trusted, high-quality data
10:48 Why becoming data-led requires clean data and improved data fluency
12:39 Why AI adoption requires literacy, governance and responsible use before scaling
16:18 Using AI agents to analyse and compare lengthy industry research papers
17:18 How data enables personalised, flexible customer journeys across digital and human channels
18:29 How mentors helped develop his storytelling, leadership and data interpretation skills

Today's guest is George Filippou, Founder at Mar-Sci. In the episode, George explores how AI and open-source tools can help advertisers manage budgets more effectively. Drawing on his breath of experience in the industry, George discusses the challenges of building trust in AI recommendations, the continued importance of human judgement and his journey from marketer to startup founder.Topics include:
0:00 His career journey from Marketing Practitioner to founding Mar-Sci
5:24 Building an AI Moat in a Rapidly Changing Market
8:12 How AI Agents Could Become the Biggest Customers
9:28 As AI Is Transforming Marketing, Trust Still Matters
14:53 Building Flexible AI Products Without Losing Your Core
17:47 The Possibility of AI Driving Digital Advertising Costs Even Higher

Visit https://mar-sci.com/ to discover how MarSci can help your business make smarter marketing decisions.This episode is sponsored by Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet, helping Irish businesses close AI skills gaps through practical, funded training and bespoke programmes for their teams. Learn more at https://ictskillnet.ie/

Today's guest is David Keddy, National Security Officer at Microsoft Ireland. With AI changing both sides of the cybersecurity battle, David joins the AI Ireland podcast to talk about why cybersecurity has become a data problem and what that means for Irish businesses. From protecting critical operations to preparing for AI-powered security agents, David shares practical insights into strengthening defences and making informed decisions about risk, resilience and AI.Topics include:
0:00 His technology and cybersecurity career journey
5:52 Prioritising cyber defenses around what would stop your business
9:32 How AI speeds up cyberattacks and helps defenders hunt threats
15:00 The role of Agentic security operations and continuous monitoring with human oversight
18:28 The need for boards must own cybersecurity in the age of AI
24:55 His advice to identify critical systems, assume breaches and enable MFA

Today’s guest is Cyril Treacy, Co-Founder & Chief Operating Officer at Disseqt AI. As AI becomes increasingly embedded in business, questions around trust, transparency and compliance are becoming more important than ever. In the today’s podcast, Cyril discusses the importance of the EU AI Act, AI governance and assurance, and how businesses can build AI systems that are both innovative and trustworthy.Topics include:
0:00 The latest EU AI Act updates, compliance, transparency and preparation
5:22 Why AI risks require transparency, assurance and bias prevention
11:07 How AI assurance provides proof that AI policies work in practice
13:15 Why executives must demand AI testing, compliance and reliability proof
18:03 How his AI startup evolved into AI assurance and testing solutions
21:38 Why AI governance requires continuous training, not one-time compliance
22:28 How AI assurance enables regulated industries to automate safely
25:59 Why balancing AI trust, safety and human skills are essential