Most people still think of AI in medicine as a novelty. Matt Pavelle sees it as the new first step in patient care.In this episode, Matt breaks down how Doctronic built an AI doctor that can gather history, follow clinical guidelines, produce full treatment plans, and then hand everything to a real physician who can review it in minutes. It is private by default, aligned with top primary care doctors, and already helping millions of people move faster through the healthcare system without lowering the standard of care.We talk through how this changes access, trust, and the way care teams work. And we open up what this means for the future of primary care as capacity continues to fall and patient demand keeps rising.Key takeaways• The AI is trained on physician written clinical guidelines which gives it a clear path for gathering symptoms, sorting possible conditions, and building treatment plans that match top doctors at a high rate.• Privacy and trust were built in from the start. The chat is anonymous, data is not used for training, and everything is run with HIPAA level protection even when it is not required.• Capacity pressure is the real problem in primary care. Offloading the easy eighty percent of cases lets doctors focus on the harder ones and gives them more time with each patient.• The system writes notes, gathers history, and completes insurance paperwork which cuts down on burnout and improves the patient experience.• This model can scale to wearables, home devices, labs, and specialists which could raise the standard of care for people who normally wait weeks for answers.Timestamped highlights00:40 Doctronic explained and why a full visit can take only a few minutes03:44 How medical knowledge moved from books and search results to AI that can guide real care08:13 A look at the micro agent system and how the team measures accuracy against real doctors11:27 The shortage of primary care doctors and why capacity pressures make AI support necessary17:20 How anonymous design and strong privacy choices help people trust the system26:05 Adoption numbers, fast growth, and what millions of consults are teaching the teamA line that captures the episodeWe want to be that first step in patient care every time you need that first step.Pro tips for builders and leaders• Ground your product in real domain guidelines so the AI follows the same reasoning paths as experts.• Treat privacy as a design choice. Make it clear, simple, and part of the value of the product.• Focus on the work that slows experts down. The biggest wins come from reducing the load, not from replacing the expert.• Make the handoff between AI and human seamless so the expert starts with context instead of starting over.Closing noteIf you enjoyed this conversation, follow The Tech Trek, leave a quick rating, and share this episode with someone curious about the future of patient care and AI.
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34:23
The Mindset Shift Behind a True Zero Bug Policy
Chris Church, VP of Engineering at Rainforest, breaks down why a zero bug policy is more than a technical choice. It is a mindset, an operating model, and a culture shift that shapes how engineering teams build, release, and support software at scale.In this conversation he goes inside the habits that actually make quality a strategic advantage and explains how small releases, strong visibility, and healthy engineering practices create real impact over time.Key Takeaways• Quality is not a feature. It is the foundation of trust, especially in a payments environment where even small defects can erode confidence.• Small releases reduce risk because teams can actually reason about the changes they ship. Frequency builds confidence and reliability.• Visibility is non negotiable. You cannot fix what you cannot see, so strong monitoring and clear alerts must exist before a quality culture can grow.• Teams need real capacity set aside for fixes and improvements. Without that buffer, bugs turn into a silent tax that slows down the entire org.• You can adopt a zero bug mentality even in a mature codebase, but you must commit to a long game of continuous improvement.Timestamped Highlights00:33What Rainforest actually does and why their customers rely on embedded payments01:44Chris explains what a zero bug policy means in practice for a fintech engineering team03:06Why the policy must be strict and why a backlog of broken things creates a false sense of safety06:13How Rainforest structures ownership, on call rotations, and incident response to support quality10:51Smaller releases, lower risk, and why the size of a change has a direct impact on failure modes12:59Why test coverage and automation must start early and why teams struggle when they try to catch up later14:27How to adopt this mindset if your org is nowhere near zero bugs and where to begin23:44The biggest gotchas teams underestimate when they start this journey and why progress requires patienceOne line that stands out“People overestimate what they can fix quickly and underestimate what they can improve over the long run.”Pro Tips• Start by making your system noisy. More visibility will feel painful at first, but it becomes the foundation for every improvement.• Reserve capacity for fixes before planning feature work. If you wait until later, that time will never appear.• Break tech debt into specific problems. Vague labels hide real risks and slow down prioritization.Call to ActionIf you found value in this conversation, follow the show and share it with someone who cares about engineering quality, team culture, and building software that lasts. You can also connect with me on LinkedIn for more conversations that explore people, impact, and technology.
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26:55
The Skills Veterans Bring That Most Hiring Teams Miss
Snehal Antani, co founder and CEO of Horizon3 AI, joins the show for a conversation about how veterans bring rare leadership strengths to fast moving companies. He pulls back the curtain on the world of special operations, shares what industry leaders often miss when interviewing former service members, and explains why these leaders are some of the most prepared problem solvers you can hire.This episode helps any listener understand the real strengths behind military experience and how those strengths translate into modern tech and business environments.Key Takeaways• Veterans succeed in high pressure environments because they train as learn it alls and solve problems as a team• The best performing military units succeed due to empowerment, shared understanding, and clear cadence• Many veterans underestimate their own leadership ability when entering industry and need support reframing their experience• Hiring managers often miss top talent because they use filters that do not map well to military backgrounds• Reference based hiring and early transition planning create a smoother path for veterans entering tech rolesTimestamped Highlights00:41 Snehal describes the world inside JSOC and what makes special operations leaders exceptional04:45 Why many transitioning service members experience imposter syndrome and how to shift that mindset10:17 How geography affects familiarity with military culture and shapes hiring outcomes14:33 A look at why Israeli veterans become top founders and what the United States can learn from that19:19 How military roles connect directly to major sectors like logistics, telecom, infrastructure, and talent management24:24 The real reason many veterans struggle to land interviews and why referral networks matter so much28:40 Practical resources and programs that help veterans navigate transition with clarity and confidenceA line that captures the heart of the episode“You are the most cycle tested leader in the world. Those skills are not taught in school. They are earned.”Practical advice from the conversation• Translate military jargon into industry language and speak to the business outcomes you created• Build and maintain a strong network long before you transition• Start planning two to three years out and use programs like SkillBridge to build experience and confidence• Hiring teams should look beyond titles and focus on the pressure tested leadership traits that veterans bringCall to actionIf this conversation helped you, follow the show and share the episode with someone who would benefit. You can also connect with us on LinkedIn for more leadership insights and real stories from people shaping tech today.
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31:07
How Engineering Leaders Inspire Ownership
Chandni Jain, VP of Engineering at Checkr, joins the show to talk about what it takes to build a real culture of ownership. She explains how clarity, trust, and true empowerment help teams move faster and work better together. You will also hear how leaders can bring out stronger initiative and confidence in their people.This episode gives a simple and useful guide for anyone who wants to lead with intent and build teams that think and act like owners.Key Takeaways• Ownership grows when clarity, context, and empowerment all work together• Strong accountability does not require fear. It comes from trust and clear expectations• Teams follow what leaders show, so leaders need to model ownership every day• Feedback works only when trust comes first• New managers grow fastest when they balance technical skills with people leadershipTimestamped Highlights00:26 Why ownership begins with customer outcomes02:02 How accountability, empowerment, and safety support each other04:08 The difference between blame and real accountability11:36 How to give people space to lead without losing direction14:37 What new managers struggle with and how to guide them16:49 A four part checklist for building stronger ownership20:16 Why recognition matters and how it lifts the whole orgA standout moment“Ownership begins with you as a leader. The team mirrors what they see.”Pro Tips• Give clear context early and often so people know what they own• Celebrate small wins to encourage more initiative• Focus on outcomes, not tasks. It changes how people think and deliver• When someone steps up, give them more room to growCall to ActionIf this episode helped you see leadership and ownership in a new way, follow the show and share it with someone who might find it useful. For more conversations on people, impact, and technology, subscribe and stay connected.
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23:10
The Future of Autonomous Transit Is Not What You Think
Shawn Taikratoke, CEO and co founder of Mozee, joins the show to unpack one of the biggest questions in mobility today. How close are we to real autonomous transportation and what will actually move the needle in our cities. Shawn breaks down why the future is not a single robotaxi dream, but a more human centered shift in public transit that solves the first and last mile in a smarter way. If you care about how people move, how cities evolve, or how autonomy will reshape everyday life, this one is worth your time.Key Takeaways• The biggest transportation barriers are not technical. They come from how cities were built and how people actually move in short distances.• Robo taxis will play a role, but public transit needs a more flexible and human centered model before adoption changes.• Many Americans still have no access to reliable transit, which creates ripple effects in work, health, and community access.• Real adoption will come when mobility becomes easier and cheaper than using your own car.• Cities want smarter transit, but they need partners that help them bridge gaps without major infrastructure costs.Timestamped Highlights00:44 What Mozee was built to solve and why they avoided the pure robotaxi route03:26 Why autonomy still scares most people and how public perception is shaping rollout06:57 How regional culture and city layout shape transportation adoption10:24 The vision for a mesh network of shared autonomous shuttles16:24 How smarter first mile and last mile service can shift car dependence21:52 What it takes to move from a handful of vehicles to true scale27:54 Why Shawn moved from the robotaxi hype to solving public transit gaps insteadA standout thought“Progress is rarely a straight line. The products that last are the ones that stay human centered.”Pro Tips from the Conversation• Transit solutions that work do not start with tech. They start with how people move in the real world.• Scale only matters when it meaningfully makes someone’s day easier.• If you want to understand mobility problems, talk to city officials. They know exactly where the gaps are.Call to ActionIf this episode pushed your thinking about mobility and smart cities, follow the show and share it with someone who is curious about the future of how we move. New episodes every week with leaders shaping technology, people, and impact.
The Tech Trek explores how engineering leaders build teams that deliver real outcomes. The show looks at the connection between people, impact, and technology, and how that relationship is changing fast with data and AI now at the center of every product and company.
Hosted by Amir Bormand, founder of Elevano, the show features CTOs, VPs of Engineering, heads of data, and technical leaders who have built and scaled teams in high pressure environments. They share the decisions that shaped their path, the experiments that worked, and the thinking they rely on to stay ahead in a world defined by
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