Meet Iyabo Oba: The New Voice of AI and Human Connectivity

Iyabo Oba: 00:00:00

All of our discussions within relationships with AI will definitely be an unpacking and sort of lifting the lid on this particular area for this particular, for a particular context or whatever.

Iyabo Oba: 00:00:14

Just through the expertise of each of the guests that I have on.

Iyabo Oba: 00:00:19

It will be a real opportunity for me as a sort of a brand new person to the space of AI learning and just absorbing and just getting, getting and helping and being a helping hand to my audience.

Iyabo Oba: 00:00:32

You're listening to with aifm.

David: 00:00:36

Well, hello everybody.

David: 00:00:37

I'm David and I'm the executive producer of with aifm.

David: 00:00:41

And on today's episode, I wanted to introduce everybody to Iyabo Oba, who is going to be our amazing new host of relationships with AI.

David: 00:00:52

So, Iabo, welcome.

Iyabo Oba: 00:00:54

Thank you and it's lovely to be here and I'm very excited about this new show and all of the different discussions that will be had and the different sort of complex sort of ideas that will be shared.

Iyabo Oba: 00:01:09

And because I'm AI inquisitive and just this is a whole new growth area for me, I'm really keen to sort of have as many conversations with different people from all sections of society to be able to see, talk or unpack, unpack more about this whole thing about human connectivity and just how AI can enhance our relationships in all spaces, be it in the romantic space, in the work space, in the, you know, in the family space, and with regard to the commercial space and commerce and politically and sociologically and anthropologically.

Iyabo Oba: 00:01:49

I'm interested in all aspects of society and that's what this, that's why we're here and having this discussion.

Iyabo Oba: 00:01:56

So it's a pleasure to be here.

David: 00:01:59

So we met at what, the AI Summer.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:02

AI Summer, Yeah.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:03

That was just this summer.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:04

Can you believe it?

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:05

I know how you lived without me all this time.

David: 00:02:09

Exactly.

David: 00:02:10

I know.

David: 00:02:10

Well, I got you in here as quickly as I could.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:12

Yeah, no, that's true, that's true.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:14

I mean, we vibe because basically you had your famous Daniel Bedingfield interview and that was totally by accident.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:22

Totally by accident, but perfectly prepared.

David: 00:02:24

That's right.

David: 00:02:25

And it's one of my old father in law used to say, you know, lady Luck will not dance with you if you're not on the dance floor.

David: 00:02:32

And I just happened to be on the dance floor and you had all the equipment there.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:35

He was perfect.

David: 00:02:37

So.

David: 00:02:38

No, it was amazing.

David: 00:02:39

And we met through Nadia, who's obviously the host of Education with AI who came on actually after you.

David: 00:02:47

So you, you agreed to be a host before that?

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:49

Yeah, I just knew.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:50

I, I Love the medium of podcasting and I love the medium of the, of the voice.

Iyabo Oba: 00:02:54

It's just such a, a really great way of connecting with people and, and just helping to unpack stuff and discussion.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:02

I love.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:02

I'm a bit of a Chatty Patty, so it's just an easy, easy decision to make to become part of the.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:09

With AI, with AIFM family.

David: 00:03:12

Brilliant.

David: 00:03:13

Well, we're happy to have you.

David: 00:03:14

We've been recording today already.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:16

Yeah.

David: 00:03:16

So what'd you think?

David: 00:03:17

How did, how did you find it?

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:19

I really enjoyed it.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:20

It was great.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:21

I mean, what was wonderful is that these are two people that I know.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:25

One person I didn't know very well, I also had met through in London Tech Week this year and then one person I'd known very for a long, long time from university.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:36

So it was just a really great way to help to begin to unpack their areas of expertise in focusing on AI and focusing on where they feel AI can help enhance the good of society, help look and look at things from the political space as well as sort of what's happening ethically.

Iyabo Oba: 00:03:58

And actually, you know, there was, there were some really strong opinions.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:02

So how I found it so far today is it's been great to just hear those views and just share them.

David: 00:04:09

And who are they?

David: 00:04:10

You can give a little preview for people as they.

David: 00:04:12

If they're listening to this one first, you can sort of give us a preview of who's coming.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:16

The first guest I had was an incredible woman called MM Rita Usanga, and she is part of Global Tech Advocates and Global Tech Advocates in Nigeria as well.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:31

And she has got a wealth of expertise and a huge history in the startup world.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:39

She's got a real focus on the country of Nigeria and seeing how technology can help enhance those particular, all aspects of life in that.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:51

In that space.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:51

And she's a real mover and shaker, an incredible brain.

Iyabo Oba: 00:04:55

And it was really exciting listening to her and unpacking what she had to share.

David: 00:05:00

And we had some fun and games with it because as people will see, we had some of the lights going on and off and we had the cameras going on and off.

David: 00:05:09

So when everybody watches that or listens to that episode, just be aware.

David: 00:05:13

We had some interesting.

David: 00:05:15

But we powered on things going on.

David: 00:05:17

Exactly.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:18

We were praised.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:19

We made it happen.

David: 00:05:20

Exactly.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:20

We continued.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:21

We continued.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:22

And then the second guest was a person I've known since university.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:27

His name's Robin Osborne, and he has been in the space of creating chatbots from, from old, from the oldie times.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:38

And they both Interestingly, he, he and both he and mmm mentioned the use of sort of precursor to chat GPT and generative AI tools such as Eliza.

Iyabo Oba: 00:05:54

And that was really fascinating to hear how they both were inspired by that particular piece of technology and then.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:01

But Robin has since gone on to sort of work in different.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:07

In a whole range of different load of fashion.

David: 00:06:10

Yeah, there's a lot of fashion stuff.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:12

Yeah, a lot of fashion which is quite interesting.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:13

Yeah, just really, really fascinating.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:15

But he's also a real.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:18

Like we had the opportunity to be really geeky about tech and he went deep.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:23

So that's going to be a really fun episode to share.

David: 00:06:26

So relationships is a massively wide field.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:29

Yeah.

David: 00:06:30

Where do you want to take the discussions?

David: 00:06:33

Like what kind of.

David: 00:06:34

What's your position and where do you think you'd like to get more information or what do you want to learn from the people that you talk to and the guests that you have on the show?

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:44

Well, I, for me, I am really intrigued by the fact that with the whole point of wanting to look at relationships is I'm passionate about connecting.

Iyabo Oba: 00:06:59

I'm passionate about community building and I'm passionate about sort of what it is that ensures that people feel safe and secured and loved and known.

Iyabo Oba: 00:07:08

We ultimately, as human beings and as a group, as a sort of a species, it is better that we are interconnected than separated.

Iyabo Oba: 00:07:18

And I've seen that in the global sort of north there is or.

Iyabo Oba: 00:07:25

Or global minority, there's a real fracturing of that relationship and there's a high incidence of loneliness and the way that it's combated is there's a use as a high use of technology, whereas in the global majority there's a lot of.

Iyabo Oba: 00:07:46

There's a real sort of sense of community and there's less technology.

Iyabo Oba: 00:07:51

But there's.

Iyabo Oba: 00:07:52

There are other ways that things can be facilitated to ensure and to enhance the sort of quality of life, positive quality of life for people and I.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:04

But there's also space for technology to be used there, whereby things are, you know, not as easy to come by.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:11

We talked about sort of the lights going off.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:13

So that's often a regular thing of actual access to resource.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:17

But then equally there's.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:19

So there's.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:21

There's that aspect of things for me.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:23

There's also the way that, that human connectedness, how does that help enhance society through the different areas?

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:32

So, so I, I studied anthropology at university, my Masters.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:38

So I'm always interested in ethnographies and what.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:42

And the scripts that people, different communities operate within and the different codes and the different sort of ways and insight into people.

Iyabo Oba: 00:08:53

I'm really, I'm really interested in people.

David: 00:08:56

And I should get my wife on to talk to you because she did linguistics, which is a slight variation on that, and she was really interested and is still interested in the way people communicate with each other.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:07

And I would love to interview your wife.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:10

Please, let's set that up.

David: 00:09:12

You just can't talk about me.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:13

No, we're not going to talk about you because basically you'll be just, you'll be doing your.

David: 00:09:19

I'll be sitting over there organizing all.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:20

Things behind the scenes with my finger.

David: 00:09:22

On the button, the mute button.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:25

I'm not, I'm not here to get involved in any sort of extra stress.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:31

I just, I'm all about human connectivity and let that be.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:35

That's, that's the space I think as well, like sort of my.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:39

Or I know that one of the things I was thinking about is this is a safe space.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:44

This is a place where I want people to feel like welcome and easy and relaxed.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:48

And then in that space though, we're going to be talking about tough things.

Iyabo Oba: 00:09:52

So we'll talk about like the impact that AI has on the economic drivers and one of the key decisions that are made to make sure that one aspect of society has improved or one path.

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:05

But then what's knock on effect there?

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:07

Then I want to look at the philosophical side of things and why is that?

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:11

You know, how, how can we use this technology to be, as we talked about, as some of my guests have mentioned already about it being a co pilot and then how can this be developed further?

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:23

Then there's also obviously the sociological side of things, the economic, you know, and the political side.

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:30

I'm, I'm, I'm a social scientist at heart and so that's what my driver is for looking at relationships.

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:37

And I want to just see how this tool, AI is a very, and this whole area of technology has, can make leaps and bounds, improve people's lives dramatically.

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:51

But also let's look at sort of where the tension is, where's the rub?

Iyabo Oba: 00:10:55

And so there will be, there will be opportunities to unpack that further and.

David: 00:10:59

Trying to figure out, you know, like with social media it was, we didn't know, you know, what the, what the effects were really going to be and we're still discovering new effects even now.

David: 00:11:11

And you know, AI is going to be the same.

David: 00:11:13

So we've learned some lessons, hopefully, fingers crossed from social media.

David: 00:11:18

But you're absolutely right and I think, you know, we need to.

David: 00:11:21

And this is why I started the whole podcast network in the beginning was I really, in the beginning wanted it to be more of a canary in the coal mine.

David: 00:11:29

So I was like, you know, raise the flag.

David: 00:11:30

Hey, this thing is coming.

David: 00:11:31

We need to be careful.

David: 00:11:33

But I've softened on that stance a little bit and I think now there are a lot of positives, but we need to, we now need to start working.

David: 00:11:42

We've hit the top of the hype cycle.

David: 00:11:44

I think now we need to start really digging into it and saying, okay, how can we actually use this?

David: 00:11:49

So Jo on her podcast is talking about how can women use it to, to maybe make their position better or to get rid of bias or to, you know, to make things more representative for women.

David: 00:12:02

And we can do that.

David: 00:12:03

You know, I know you're going to teach people terms like Global south that people may not know and Global north, which, you know, when we first met was something that I hadn't really kind of heard those terms before.

David: 00:12:13

Now it totally makes sense.

David: 00:12:16

So, yeah, it's going to be quite interesting to kind of dig into that.

Iyabo Oba: 00:12:19

Yeah, no, I'm really looking forward to just like getting into the guts of this type of this area because AI is going to impact not just sort of how we, Our modes of work and how we do it on our relationships.

Iyabo Oba: 00:12:33

Because as I said, you know, even romantically, I'm really, I'm well into all things relationships.

Iyabo Oba: 00:12:40

I watch all the shows, all the shows.

David: 00:12:43

What's your favorite one so far?

Iyabo Oba: 00:12:45

I.

Iyabo Oba: 00:12:45

Well, I love, really loved Love is Blind because of the psychological approach they took to that.

Iyabo Oba: 00:12:51

But right now I'm in Married at First Sight Maths UK and I am really frustrated at the sort of the gamification of car crash relationships.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:03

I understand the importance of it for relationship, for.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:06

For entertainment, but what I find interesting is that they all say we trust the science.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:12

So they have gone through this process, this rigorous process of being assessed at every level, economically, psychologically, et cetera, et cetera.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:20

They've used AI for that process, actually.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:24

And yet they still have car because still cannot mitigate for human decision.

David: 00:13:30

And I reckon that they do that on purpose.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:33

Yeah.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:33

So that's why I find it a bit disingenuous, really.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:36

So that's the thing.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:37

This is another thing about the ethical side of how can we use this to actually enhance, positively use AI to enhance life positively for us so that it isn't a disingenuous thing.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:50

You are going through the filtering process.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:52

Absolutely.

Iyabo Oba: 00:13:54

But it is with a view to cutting out the trash, that you can actually focus on the quality.

Iyabo Oba: 00:14:01

But actually what you're doing is masking it.

Iyabo Oba: 00:14:04

So I find that really intriguing.

David: 00:14:07

I agree with you.

David: 00:14:08

I like Lovers Blind as well.

David: 00:14:09

And what my wife watches it all the time, so I watch it too.

David: 00:14:14

And I have to say I do actually like it.

David: 00:14:16

So it's fine.

David: 00:14:17

I can't.

Iyabo Oba: 00:14:17

Yeah, you have to.

Iyabo Oba: 00:14:18

Come on.

David: 00:14:21

What I find though, the most interesting about it is that are all the other ones.

David: 00:14:27

I don't care about the English like the American one.

David: 00:14:30

I mean, the American one's kind of interesting because being American and having lived over here, I'm essentially half and half now and.

David: 00:14:37

But because I've been in England for 25 years, I'm probably more English than American just because it's where I've been more recently.

David: 00:14:43

Right.

David: 00:14:44

So watching the American one is kind of interesting.

David: 00:14:47

But I love watching like the Japan one.

Iyabo Oba: 00:14:50

Oh, I've not watched that one yet.

David: 00:14:52

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

David: 00:14:52

So they've got them from like all different places.

David: 00:14:54

So they've got.

David: 00:14:55

And I really find the ones like Japanese culture because it's like one of those cultures that's really hard to crack.

David: 00:15:02

And when you see something like Love is Blind and they go through the same.

David: 00:15:06

They're the same, but different.

David: 00:15:09

And it's.

David: 00:15:10

I just find it fascinating watching all the foreign ones and I just.

David: 00:15:14

There's been several.

David: 00:15:16

I can't even think all the different ones they've done.

David: 00:15:18

So we'll put something in the show notes maybe.

David: 00:15:20

But yeah, it's.

David: 00:15:22

I like watching the other cultures and that's.

David: 00:15:24

You know those shows that have kind of been franchised out across different areas.

David: 00:15:29

I just find that, you know, you might get a Dutch one or you might get a Danish one or something like that.

David: 00:15:33

And it's like I find that really cool to sit and watch.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:36

Yeah, no, I'm with you.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:37

I love that.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:37

Just again, it just talks.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:39

It speaks to my heart about sort of relationships, but in different settings.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:44

And how do you.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:45

How does that.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:48

How getting an insight because that like each, each program is.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:53

Is an ethnographic study of love, but in that context and in that space.

Iyabo Oba: 00:15:59

So widening that all of our discussions within relationships with AI will definitely be an unpacking and sort of lifting the lid on this particular area for this particular.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:12

For a particular context or whatever.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:16

Just it's through the expertise of each of the guests I have on.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:20

It will be a real opportunity for me as a sort of a brand new person to the space of AI learning and Just absorbing and just getting and.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:29

And helping and being a helping hand to my audience.

David: 00:16:33

Awesome.

David: 00:16:34

Who's your dream guest or who, who are your dream guests?

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:37

My dream guests.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:38

I have been putting down my wish list.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:40

Oprah Winfrey, for sure.

David: 00:16:42

Yeah.

David: 00:16:43

Because she just did the special on AI as well.

David: 00:16:45

So it might be good to get her.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:47

Issa Ray, because of her.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:50

I've followed her since her days of creating insecure and awkward black girl.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:56

And then also Paul C.

Iyabo Oba: 00:16:58

Brunson, because obviously romance and stuff.

Iyabo Oba: 00:17:02

And then also Reid Hoffman because of his introduction.

Iyabo Oba: 00:17:06

I've got a list.

Iyabo Oba: 00:17:07

I've got a list.

Iyabo Oba: 00:17:08

I could just reel off 20,000.

Iyabo Oba: 00:17:10

There's tons and tons of people.

David: 00:17:12

I have one for you and you know this as well, but I'm going to put it out there.

David: 00:17:15

Jordan Peterson.

David: 00:17:16

I think it'd be really, really interesting to get Dr.

David: 00:17:18

Peterson's views.

David: 00:17:20

I know he talks a lot about some things, but I've only heard him once talk about AI And I think it would be really interesting to get his view as coming from a clinical psychologist, hands on, dealing with people struggling.

David: 00:17:38

I just wonder if at some point what we're going to find is that as humans, we're going to struggle with the fact that we're being replaced.

David: 00:17:46

And we will be replaced in a lot of instances and in a lot of jobs and for a lot of tasks.

David: 00:17:52

Obviously not everything, but a large majority of the mindless or repetitive tasks that we need to do for work and stuff like that, those are people's jobs and they're going to get replaced.

David: 00:18:06

And I think there's a.

David: 00:18:07

And you can dig into this with other people as well.

David: 00:18:09

We don't need just Dr.

David: 00:18:10

Peterson, but we want Dr.

David: 00:18:11

Peterson.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:11

You, please, JP, if you see this, hit us up.

David: 00:18:15

Hit us up, please.

David: 00:18:16

We've got a great studio in London.

David: 00:18:18

You can just come and see us when you're in town.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:20

Yeah, exactly.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:20

Well, let's look, let's put it out.

David: 00:18:22

There because strangely, someone might know.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:25

Yeah.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:26

The other person as well that sits in that space as well is Alain de Botton.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:29

Yeah, I want him.

David: 00:18:32

I was just talking to someone who spoke to him.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:34

Ooh, I love.

David: 00:18:35

Who was I talking to?

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:36

Come we.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:37

I would love you to come on because I've over the pandemic you helped me so much about, like, understanding.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:44

It's my love letter to you at London Bottle.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:49

Just talks about love and talks about relationship.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:52

I just think those two would be real stellar.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:55

Like, not that everybody.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:56

Not any.

Iyabo Oba: 00:18:57

Not that any of my other guests aren't Stellar, but let's edit that bit there.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:01

But, you know, I think those, they would elevate the discussion, particularly from the philosophical and the practical relationship side of things, about fracturing and also just connectivity and unpacking that further.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:16

Also, Esther Perel sits in that space for me.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:20

Just as a thought.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:22

She's a baddie.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:23

I love her so much.

David: 00:19:24

So we're going to start, I think we're recording this in what, end of September, so probably a couple weeks before this episode comes out.

David: 00:19:32

We've recorded a couple of other episodes already, so we've got a couple in the can.

David: 00:19:36

We've got a few scheduled.

David: 00:19:37

And we're off.

David: 00:19:39

We're up and running.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:40

It's so exciting.

David: 00:19:41

Yeah, I can't wait.

David: 00:19:42

It's going to be great fun.

David: 00:19:43

So welcome to with aifm.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:45

Why, thank you.

David: 00:19:46

And yeah, can't wait to see who you talk to and where you go from here.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:49

Yeah, looking forward to it.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:51

And thank you.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:52

It's going to be a real ride.

David: 00:19:54

Cool.

David: 00:19:54

All right, we'll see you soon.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:55

See you soon.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:56

Cheers.

Iyabo Oba: 00:19:56

Bye.