Rapid Response
Rapid Response features candid conversations with today's top business leaders navigating real-time challenges. Hosted by former Fast Company editor-in-chief Bob Safian, the podcast explores what is most important to pay attention to when striving to innovate, create, and lead. It is produced by the team behind Masters of Scale.
Episodes
The AI race to save American science and reshape medicine forever
Renee Wegrzyn spent her career building the future of American science — including ARPA-H, the White House agency created to accelerate health breakthroughs. Then the Trump administration showed her the door. Wegrzyn co-founded Transfyr to tackle what she calls one of the most overlooked issues in science: the magic hands problem. She joins Rapid Response to explain why fixing this unglam
Airbnb’s bet on an IRL future, with Brian Chesky
This episode of Rapid Response first aired in 2025.Live on stage at Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco, Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky explores what role business could and should play in building the future. He shares his candid perspective on politics, creativity, and AI — taking listeners from Airbnb’s humble beginnings to bold plans for the company’s future. Through a de
Kalshi vs. Everyone: Co-Founder Luana Lopes Lara on the lawsuits and the long game
Prediction markets incentivize truth. Everything else incentivizes clickbait. That's the core argument Luana Lopes Lara makes for Kalshi — the prediction market platform she co-founded that has gone from $5 billion to $22 billion in valuation in under a year, and is now being sued by New York's attorney general for $36 billion. Luana joins Rapid Response to make the case that Kalshi is fu
Meet Tilly Norwood and her creator: AI "actor," death threats, and new Hollywood
What happens when you interview an AI? Bob Safian found out, and while it didn't break out into Cantonese, it was stranger than he expected. This episode is split in two: first, a conversation with Eline van der Velden, the Dutch actress-turned-tech-founder who created Tilly Norwood, the AI "actor" who sent Hollywood into a spiral. Then, Bob sits down with Tilly itself. Eline explains how
Halloween meets GLP-1s: Hershey’s candy Super Bowl, with CEO Kirk Tanner
The second a brand like Hershey stops being culturally relevant, says its CEO Kirk Tanner, you should be worried. He joins Rapid Response to explain exactly what he's doing to make sure that never happens. Tanner also reveals why GLP-1 users are actually good for the candy business, how AI is now routing Hershey's sales force in real time through Target and Walmart, and why the Reese's Or
Chobani & Patagonia CEOs break down where values meet profit
This episode of Rapid Response first aired in 2025. Live on stage at Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco, Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert and Chobani CEO Hamdi Ulukaya joined the New York Times’ David Gelles to explore the intersection of values and commerce. They reveal their different strategies for dealing with an activist White House, the pressure for what David calls “anticipatory co
Rebranding in a war zone, with Prosper Global (formerly Mercy Corps)
The world has never faced so many humanitarian crises at once, and the systems built to respond to them are fraying. Tjada McKenna, CEO of Prosper Global — the organization long known as Mercy Corps — joins Rapid Response during UN General Assembly week to share what she's seeing firsthand from Syria to Sudan to Ukraine to Gaza, and why she rebranded a 40-year-old institution in the middl
Pioneers of AI: The deep AI shifts that will reshape our lives
For nearly two decades, Amy Webb's annual Tech Trends Report was required reading for anyone trying to keep up with technology. But this year, Webb killed the report and replaced it with something more applicable for leaders in an AI era.In this episode, CEO of Future Today Strategy Group Amy Webb joins Pioneers of AI host Rana el Kaliouby to unpack her 2026 Convergence Outlook and examin
Stop creating businesses. Buy one instead, with Codie Sanchez
Own or be owned. That's Codie Sanchez's ultimatum for anyone serious about their financial future. The founder of Contrarian Thinking and author of the new book Own or Be Owned returns to Rapid Response to make her most impassioned case yet for why buying a small business is the most reliable path to wealth that most people are too scared to take. She breaks down what "cowboying" your bus
Let’s Kill Sh*t: Axios CEO on simplifying your work-life in the AI era
AI isn't simplifying your life… Yet. It's mass-producing more options, more decisions, and more noise. Axios CEO Jim VandeHei returns to Rapid Response to make the case that the antidote isn't a better productivity app, it's a ruthless, three-part system he calls Confront, Delete, Amplify. VandeHei shares what he's learned from running Axios by these principles, including calling a leader
On's 16-year overnight success: Zendaya, Federer, and outrunning competition
On built a $4 billion sports brand in 16 years with a garden hose, a Roger Federer dinner in Zurich, and a young designer who watched a Halloween YouTube video. Co-founder and co-CEO David Allemann joins Rapid Response to explain why the defining decade for On is still ahead, and why being the most premium brand matters more than being the biggest. He breaks down the leadership shake-up t
NFL Kickoff: the science gets more damning, but the money keeps growing
The NFL is the world's most valuable sports business, and it keeps growing. But is the growth sustainable? Sports journalist Michele Steele joins Rapid Response to kick off the 2026-2027 NFL season with a clear-eyed look at what's driving record franchise valuations, why quarterback salaries keep exploding, and what the league's dizzying array of streaming platforms means for the fans. Sh
Masters of Scale: Always be the challenger, with Savannah Bananas founder Jesse Cole
Jesse Cole loved baseball. He also knew most people thought it was too long and boring. So he disrupted America’s pastime by putting on a yellow tux - and an incredible show. In this episode of Masters of Scale, the founder of the Savannah Bananas welcomed host Jeff Berman to Anaheim Stadium before a show recently to talk about how he’s scaling Fans First Entertainment into a growing leag
When AI agents do your shopping, everything changes, with Shopify’s Jess Hertz
For decades, e-commerce rewarded the biggest brands that could buy their way to the top of search results. AI is changing that. Shopify COO Jess Hertz joins Rapid Response to share what Shopify's data reveals about the agentic shopping revolution in real time, and how the company is building the infrastructure layer that makes products discoverable and purchasable by AI. Plus, why Shopify
Chicago Fed President on inflation, recession, and Trump’s attacks
The economy is strong, prices are still too high, and the job market is sending mixed signals. The Federal Reserve is navigating all of it while fending off the most overt political pressure in its modern history. Austan Goolsbee, President of the Chicago Fed, joins Rapid Response ahead of the Central Bank’s highly-watched meeting in Jackson Hole, to give his most candid read on what's ac
Ford's Jim Farley on beating China, and the storm nobody sees coming
This episode originally aired on Rapid Response in April 2026.With the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz and fuel prices still elevated, few auto executives are feeling the pressure more acutely than Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Farley. He joins Rapid Response to give a candid account of what the turmoil means for the auto industry, and for an iconic American brand navigating one o
How Snoop Dogg, Comic-Con, and cold calls are growing USA Fencing
Fencing is one of the oldest sports in Olympic history. It's also one of the least watched domestically. Phil Andrews, CEO of USA Fencing, is on a mission to change that, and with the 2028 Los Angeles Games on the horizon, he's running out of time. Andrews joins Rapid Response to reveal how he's building a sports brand with almost no budget and no marketing playbook, cold-calling CMOs, cr
What the jobs report isn't telling you about AI & the workforce, with Upwork’s Hayden Brown
Few leaders have a better real-time read on how AI is actually reshaping the workforce than Hayden Brown. As CEO of Upwork, the platform where 18 million freelancers meet the businesses that need them, she sees what the monthly jobs report can't: which skills are surging, which jobs are quietly disappearing, and why 23% of businesses that moved work to AI are already bringing humans back.
Masters of Scale: Author Jim Collins on unlocking your potential
Jim Collins is the author of some of the most important business books of all time, like Good to Great and Built to Last. For his latest project, instead of profiling iconic companies, he zoomed in on extraordinary individuals we can learn from. He joined Masters of Scale to reveal how icons like Grace Hopper and John Glenn illustrate lessons on how to navigate the cliffs and fog of life.
Speed vs. accuracy, scale vs. soul: Watch Duty's toughest fire season yet
It's only mid-August, and Watch Duty CEO John Mills says it's only going to get worse. With British Columbia under a province-wide state of emergency and Spokane still reeling from the most destructive wildfire in Washington state history, Mills joins Rapid Response to take us inside the most catastrophic fire season his team has ever faced. Since the LA wildfires made Watch Duty a househ
Google’s exodus, Spider-Man’s odyssey, Taco “Hell”, and more
What’s the business story of the summer thus far? SpaceX’s stumble post-IPO? AI security breaches? Ongoing tension surrounding the Strait of Hormuz? Host Bob Safian sits down with Rapid Response producer Alex Morris to weigh in. The pair also break down the impact of Uber COO Andrew Macdonald’s appearance on the podcast, and how it sparked a broader conversation throughout the business wo
The Long Game: Bob Safian on great leadership in the AI revolution
Rapid Response host Bob Safian recently sat down with Eric Becker on The Long Game to discuss leadership, innovation, and what makes a category-defining business. Bob breaks down what goes into becoming a truly “backable" founder, drawing from his experience profiling early-stage leaders like Mark Zuckerberg and Brian Chesky. The pair also dive into the future of AI and what it means for
The new rules of brand building, with Wieden+Kennedy CEO
For decades, Wieden+Kennedy has defined the brands that shape culture. Now, as economic uncertainty, AI, and shifting consumer expectations rewrite the rules of business, CEO Neal Arthur joins Rapid Response to break down why understanding your audience is no longer just the marketing team's job. Arthur shares what today's most successful brands are getting right and how leaders can bette
Byron Allen’s vision for BuzzFeed, Starz, and beyond
When media mogul Bryon Allen took a controlling stake in BuzzFeed in May – becoming its CEO and chairman – it was his latest bold bet in a volatile media landscape. The Allen Media Group founder joins Rapid Response to explain his strategy for BuzzFeed (note: we recorded this before BuzzFeed announced layoffs for 35% of its staff), taking over Stephen Colbert's former CBS time slot with h
Serena Williams on winning in business
Serena Williams doesn't just defy convention on the court. She’s also applying her competitive mindset to entrepreneurship and venture investing, recently rebranding her firm from Serena Ventures to Starfire Ventures. Serena joins Bob Safian to discuss the investment strategy that has led to 16 unicorns now in her portfolio, what she looks for in founders, and how partnerships with compan
No legacy, no playbook, no problem: Inside the Toronto Tempo's wild first season
The Toronto Tempo arrived in the WNBA this season with record-breaking attendance, a 53-point single-game performance, and the weight of being the league's newest franchise. As the season pauses for All-Star Weekend, President Teresa Resch joins Rapid Response to take stock of what she's built, what's surprised her, and what she's still figuring out in real time. She talks about running a
Delta's Ed Bastian on spiking fuel, summer travel, and a blunt reality check on AI
Few companies have a better real-time read on the American economy than Delta, and few CEOs are more willing to say what they actually think. Ed Bastian returns to Rapid Response to share what Delta's booking data is telling him that the headlines aren't, why he's not convinced by AI until it moves his top line, and how he decided to yank congressional travel perks during the government s
OpenAI’s Critterz blowback: Director Nik Kleverov on year zero for Hollywood
Critterz was one of the first feature films built primarily with AI, but OpenAI abruptly shut down Sora, the very tool its director was relying on. Nik Kleverov, Chief Creative Officer of Native Foreign, joins Rapid Response from the Cannes Lions festival to make the case for why AI isn't killing Hollywood, it's about to reinvent it. He breaks down why 2026 is year zero for mass adoption
The quiet reinvention of a $42b business, with Canva’s Cameron Adams
In the last year, Canva redefined itself from the ground up. Co-founder and Chief Product Officer Cameron Adams joins Rapid Response live from the Cannes Lions festival to explain why the so-called SaaSpocalypse never kept him up at night, how Canva shifted from a design company to an AI company without losing what made it great, and why being only 1% of the way there is actually the most
Possible: Satya Nadella on making human and token capital compound
In this recent episode of Possible, Reid Hoffman sits down with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella fresh off Microsoft Build 2026. The conversation goes wide: how AI is reshaping work, business, and society—and why the transformation sweeping through software development today is only a preview of what's coming for all knowledge work. Satya makes the case that human capital and "token capital" a
The race to help Venezuela: Amazon's disaster relief machine
Tens of thousands of Venezuelans remain missing after two deadly earthquakes. Bettina Stix, Global Director of Amazon Community Impact, joins Rapid Response to take us inside the disaster relief operation she built from scratch, now deployed across more than 200 global crises from the LA wildfires to the Caribbean. She explains what Amazon's Prime obsession with speed and logistics has to
Relevance is a sport: Gap’s Richard Dickson on swinging, missing, and winning
Gap was never uncool. It just disappeared. CEO Richard Dickson joins Rapid Response to explain how he's bringing it back, using the same pop culture playbook he used to resurrect Barbie at Mattel. He breaks down why he tracks "brand love" metrics on a dashboard hourly, why Sydney Sweeney's viral jeans ad was actually good news for the whole industry, and why the biggest risk a brand can t
What Ken Burns’ The American Revolution warns us about today
After a decade in development, legendary documentarian Ken Burns released his long-awaited series, The American Revolution. Burns returns to Rapid Response to share key lessons from the founding of the United States—and the parallels between the revolutionary era and today. He also reflects on his admiration for Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, the obstacles he faces in his ongoing quest fo
Cannes Lions’ battle of the brands: Starbucks’ stumble, World Cup ads, and more
Every year at Cannes Lions, the advertising world takes stock of itself — what's working, what's not, and what it's pretending not to notice. Autodesk CMO Dara Treseder joins Rapid Response live from the festival to cut through the noise. She breaks down the industry's complicated relationship with AI, weighs in on the hottest and most overrated campaigns of the year including sharp takes
Gina Raimondo’s bipartisan fight for workers in the age of AI
This morning, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo launched RAISE US, an initiative to directly confront what she calls America's missing piece: a people strategy to match its technology strategy. Raimondo joins Rapid Response to explain how she built a $500 million war chest, secured bipartisan backing, and signed up launch partners from Bank of America to Anthropic before the
$300m in year two. The controversy came free, with David Protein’s Peter Rahal
David protein bars went from startup to one of the hottest consumer products in America in under two years. But the ride has been anything but smooth. Founder and CEO Peter Rahal joins Rapid Response to talk about building a breakout brand through lawsuits, a Jeffrey Epstein association, and the kind of social media heat most companies would run from. Rahal also revisits his $600 million
IBM’s $10 billion bet on what comes after AI
While many tech companies race to build ever-larger AI models, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna sees the future differently. Speaking with host Bob Safian before a live audience during New York Tech Week, Krishna explains why enterprises are overcomplicating AI adoption, what kinds of risks leaders should be taking right now, and how to weigh AI's costs against its benefits. He also shares why IBM
The U.S. at 250: The case for reckoning and rebuild, with Ian Bremmer
As America hurtles toward its 250th birthday, the world is watching. Ian Bremmer, Eurasia Group President and PBS host, joins Rapid Response to give his unvarnished read on the state of Brand America. He shares how he’s advising business and political leaders around the globe, why he believes the US is overdue for a revolution, and what the widening gap between American wealth and America
U.S. Soccer CEO: The unseen stakes of this World Cup
The World Cup arriving on American soil isn't just a moment. For U.S. Soccer Federation CEO JT Batson, it's a launchpad. Batson joins Rapid Response to reveal what’s on the line for the US men's team, where things stand with Coach Pochettino's future, and why this tournament is nothing like the last time America hosted in 1994. He also makes the case that winning a World Cup and growing a
World Cup kickoff: Goals, greed, and geopolitics, with ESPN’s Sam Borden
As the World Cup kicks off this Thursday, scrutiny surrounds ticket prices, disrupted fan travel, potential ICE activity, and FIFA’s murky dealings. ESPN Global Sports Correspondent Sam Borden has covered this tournament from Brazil to Qatar, and he joins Rapid Response to break down the USA's real chance, what Iran's presence on American soil actually means, and whether hosting the world
Pioneers of AI: How fast can you upskill in AI? We did a sprint to find out.
We all feel the urgency: learn to use AI, or risk falling behind at work. And we all know there's an upside: AI can reduce tedious tasks, streamline operations, and boost output. But knowing is half the battle (maybe even less) and implementing AI needs to happen across an entire organization. So what does it take to start?Well, here at WaitWhat (the company behind this podcast!) we pause
A radical fix for the broken book business, with Madeline McIntosh
The book industry has a problem, and it isn't a lack of content. Madeline McIntosh spent decades navigating publishing's biggest upheavals, from the e-commerce revolution at Amazon to leading Penguin Random House as CEO. Now she's betting that the whole model needs to be rebuilt from scratch. She joins Rapid Response to explain why she walked away from one of the most powerful seats in pu
The race no one can win: AI’s anti-human crisis, with Aza Raskin
Big Tech is moving fast on AI. But who's watching out for the rest of us? Aza Raskin, co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, has spent years sounding the alarm about where the race to build powerful AI is actually taking us. He joins Rapid Response to expose the incentive structures quietly pushing Silicon Valley toward dangerous territory, and to make the case that it's not too
AI warfare and the race for a million-drone army, with Shield AI’s Brandon Tseng
From Ukraine to the Middle East, Shield AI's autonomous drones are deployed on the frontlines. Co-founder and President Brandon Tseng joins Rapid Response to take us inside the defense tech explosion and the fierce debate over AI in modern warfare. Tseng also confronts the hard questions: how seriously should we take China's military advances, can we trust the US and its allies to wield A
Why success destroys the companies we love, with Eric Ries
What if the way we think about business value, trust, and capitalism itself is fundamentally broken? Eric Ries’ The Lean Startup changed how a generation of entrepreneurs build companies. Now, Ries takes aim at some of the most sacred business assumptions today in his new book, Incorruptible. Ries joins Rapid Response to share what he witnessed firsthand in the clash between Anthropic and
Uber's swerve on gas prices, hotels, and a driverless future, with Andrew Macdonald
Few companies are a stronger barometer of the American economy today than Uber, and few executives have a clearer view of what's coming than President and COO Andrew Macdonald. He joins Rapid Response to share what Uber's real-time data reveals about consumer behavior amid surging gas prices, and what the company's rapid expansion into hotels and hospitality really signals about its ambit
The “invisible army” behind Amazon’s robotaxi revolution, with Zoox’s Aicha Evans
Robotaxis are multiplying across American cities… But are consumers actually ready to trust them? Zoox CEO Aicha Evans joins Rapid Response to talk about the company’s strategy as an Amazon subsidiary, its intensifying rivalry with Waymo, and why a new partnership with Uber could be the key to getting autonomous rides from novelty to scale. Evans also reveals why she recruits what she cal
A canceled commencement speech, and leading as an outspoken CEO
Oscar-nominated producer and Arcellx CEO Rami Elghandour was supposed to deliver an address to Rutgers University engineering graduates this week. But days before the ceremony, the school canceled his appearance after student objections to his social media posts around Palestine. Elghandour joins Rapid Response to speak out about free speech on campus, the personal cost of conviction, and
Duolingo’s battle for learning in an AI world, with Luis von Ahn
When Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn sent an internal memo about AI last year, he didn't expect it to go viral — or to ignite a firestorm about the future of work. Now he joins Rapid Response to unpack what he got right, what he got wrong, and what the backlash taught him about the real limitations of AI. Von Ahn also reveals why he's made a deliberate pivot in 2026: chasing users, not revenue
Hormuz fallout: Energy chaos is here to stay
The Strait of Hormuz crisis is reshaping energy markets in real time. But what's a short-term shock and what's a lasting structural shift? Amy Harder, National Energy Correspondent for Axios, returns to Rapid Response to map the true scale of the oil disruption, why demand destruction may be closer for American consumers than most realize, and why the strait may never fully reopen the way
Pioneers of AI: What is agentic commerce? Stripe’s CRO of AI explains.
What does a former skydiver have to say about getting started with AI? Go ahead and jump! While Maia Josebachvili doesn’t spend her free time leaping out of airplanes these days, she still is a firm believer in taking calculated risks. It's a mindset that's followed her to her role as Chief Revenue Officer of AI at Stripe, a financial services platform at the forefront of agenti
Mellody Hobson: When investors head for the exit, run to the fire
When markets drop and chaos hits, Mellody Hobson is determined to be brave. The co-CEO of Ariel Investments and former chair of Starbucks and DreamWorks joins Rapid Response to make the case that volatility isn't something to survive but to exploit. She shares the financial lessons she lives by, including a surprising admonition against making choices based on money, and why she sees wome
The Messy Parts: Gary Vee on forgiveness, living fearlessly, and the reality of AI
In this episode of "The Messy Parts," Gary Vaynerchuk opens up to host Maryam Banikarim about self-esteem, leadership, and what he believes is a growing crisis of “late adulthood.” Gary breaks down his philosophy on kind candor vs. radical candor, why fear is the real career killer, and how over-coddling may be delaying independence for an entire generation. If you’ve ever felt behind, af
The Devil Wears Prada workplace: Toxic or timeless?
As The Devil Wears Prada 2 hits theaters this weekend, Rapid Response explores the enduring business lessons inside the now 20-year-old original. Host Bob Safian is joined by two insiders who built their careers in the world the film depicts: Janice Min, CEO of The Ankler, and Sarah Ball, editor-in-chief of WSJ Magazine. Together they track how publishing, fashion and power have all shift
Maria Sharapova’s centre court tricks for the boardroom
Five grand slam titles. More than a decade as the world's highest-paid female athlete. But the fiercest competition Maria Sharapova describes may be the one she's navigating now. She joins Rapid Response to talk about her second act as an investor, entrepreneur, and podcaster — and what the court never prepared her for. She gets candid about the deals she's walked away from, the candy bra
Inside Artemis II and the next space race, with NASA’s Jared Isaacman
Just days after the record-breaking Artemis II splashed down in the Pacific, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman joins Rapid Response for a candid debrief on what comes next. An entrepreneur turned space chief, Isaacman gets frank about the agency's ambitions to build a permanent lunar base, put boots on Mars, and push the search for extraterrestrial life further than ever before. He also a
A first look at Samsung’s blueprint to win the AI era, with Mauro Porcini
AI redefining how products are both built and experienced, and Samsung is reimagining its place in the tech ecosystem. As Milan Design Week gets underway, Samsung's president and chief design officer Mauro Porcini pulls back the curtain on the company’s new design manifesto, and gets candid about their rivalry with Apple, the shift from hardware to human experience, and why a brand known
Ford's Jim Farley on beating China, and the storm nobody sees coming
With the Strait of Hormuz in crisis and gas prices surging, few executives are feeling the pressure more acutely than Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Farley. He joins Rapid Response to give a candid account of what the turmoil means for the auto industry, and for an iconic American brand navigating one of the most turbulent moments in its history. Farley gets frank about the China threat resha
LIV Golf’s gambit to rewrite global sports, with Scott O’Neil
Scott O'Neil has run NBA and NHL franchises. Now he's betting on a golf revolution. The LIV Golf CEO joins Rapid Response to reveal what it really takes to disrupt a legacy sport, the unique pressures of answering to Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, and why golf may be the most underleveraged business in all of sports. Plus, inside the startup mindset Scott’s instilling his team, and
The Guardian’s secret weapon against media’s collapse, with CEO Anna Bateson
While legacy news outlets like The Washington Post stumble, The Guardian keeps growing — but how? Guardian Media Group CEO Anna Bateson joins Rapid Response to pull back the curtain on the company's unusual ownership structure and the multi-revenue model fueling its resilience. Bateson also weighs in on the threat and opportunity of AI chatbots, the Jeff Bezos effect on media, and what ro
The “most stressed” wellness CEO, with Calm’s David Ko
What does it take to lead a meditation company without finding a moment’s peace? David Ko spent years as CEO of Calm, one of the world's most recognized mental health and wellness apps, helping millions manage stress. Now he's stepping down. Ko unpacks why he made the call, what the relentless pressure of the C-suite really does to a person, and how to draw the line between the kind of st
Humanize AI before it dehumanizes us, with Dr. Rana el Kaliouby at SXSW
AI is moving fast. But are we really keeping humans at the center? In this special live Rapid Response, recorded on stage at South by Southwest, host Bob Safian sits down with AI scientist, founder of Affectiva, investor at Blue Tulip, and host of Pioneers of AI, Dr. Rana el Kaliouby. Rana makes the case that human-centric AI isn't just a safety guardrail; it's the key to thriving s
The internet is breaking. So what’s next? with Cloudflare’s Matthew Prince
AI bots are on track to outnumber humans online by 2027. No one has a better line of sight into that shift than Matthew Prince — his company, Cloudflare, routes more than 20% of all internet traffic. Speaking live from SXSW, Prince reveals how AI is rewriting the economics of the web, how tech giants are scrambling to respond, and what it means for anyone running an online business. Plus,
Most Innovative Companies 2026: Who’s in, who’s out, with Fast Company’s Amy Farley
Who's really winning the AI race? And what does innovation even mean anymore? Fast Company’s Executive Editor Amy Farley joins Rapid Response to break down this year's Most Innovative Companies list — the surprising winners, the notable snubs, and the unexpected lessons hiding between Google, Gap, and Bad Bunny.Visit the Rapid Response website here: https://www.rapidresponseshow.com/
Crisis at Hormuz, and your $160b tariff refund clock, with Flexport’s Ryan Petersen
When global trade buckles, Ryan Petersen is the person executives call. The founder and CEO of Flexport returns to Rapid Response to offer a real-time account of the Strait of Hormuz crisis — what he's seeing on the ground, on the water, and across the supply chains straining under the pressure. Petersen also digs into the prospect of tariff refunds in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruli
Business History: From Tyrant to Tech Empire
William Shockley was a brilliant inventor and Nobel Prize winner, but he was a terrible boss. Paranoid, cruel, and obsessed with micromanaging, he drove away the team of young engineers — later called “The Traitorous Eight” — he had assembled in Northern California. They went on to pioneer silicon chips, create companies like Intel and AMD, and fund tech giants like Google and Slack. This
The GLP-1 economy is here, with Ro’s Zach Reitano
On this episode of Rapid Response, Ro CEO Zach Reitano joins the show to talk about what happens when a breakout drug becomes a full-blown market force. Since first appearing at the height of the Ozempic-Wegovy-Zepbound boom, Reitano has helped scale Ro into a leading provider of branded GLP-1s — grabbing headlines with a Super Bowl ad featuring Serena Williams and landing a major partner
The C-suite is messier than you think, with Maryam Banikarim
Career disruption is accelerating across the economy — and few people have navigated it more boldly than Maryam Banikarim. The former CMO of Univision, Gannett, and Hyatt, and host of The Messy Parts podcast, Banikarim joins Rapid Response to share hard-won wisdom about C-suite politics, and ultimately betting on yourself. Growing up in Iran during the time of revolution, Banikarim offers
The Oscars 2026 mark a big shift for Hollywood, with The Ankler’s Janice Min
Hollywood's biggest night is more than a spectacle — it's a stress test for an industry in freefall. Janice Min, CEO of The Ankler, joins Rapid Response to break down her Oscars predictions and what the show's upcoming move to YouTube signals about the future of mainstream media. Min also unpacks the Paramount-Warner Bros. deal that caught everyone off guard, what David Ellison's arrival
Stop waiting for clarity. Unfreeze and act, with Accenture’s Julie Sweet
AI disruption and geopolitical upheaval are forcing business leaders to make high-stakes decisions — fast. Accenture CEO Julie Sweet joins Rapid Response host Bob Safian to share what she's hearing from her 9,000 clients and the hard-won advice she's giving them. Sweet reveals why AI proficiency is now a requirement for promotion at Accenture, why she's doubling down on entry-level hiring
Logitech’s CEO treats AI like a board member
Logitech may be known for keyboards, webcams, and gaming gear, but CEO Hanneke Faber is going AI-first. On this episode of Rapid Response, she explains how she’s leading the hardware brand through an AI shift, approaching it as a leadership challenge, not just a tech one. Faber also shares lessons from competitive diving, navigating tariffs, and why she gave herself a 48-hour crash course
Rapid Recap: Iran, Anthropic vs. Pentagon, Paramount’s win, and more
Geopolitics is back at the top of every business leader's agenda — and the signals are coming fast. Host Bob Safian sits down with Rapid Response producer Alex Morris to cut through the noise and decode the stories shaping the business world right now: from Jeff Bezos' Washington Post shakeup and Jack Dorsey's AI-driven layoff memo, to a landmark Supreme Court tariff ruling and the Elliso
Remarkable People: How social media is rewiring childhood, with Jonathan Haidt
What happens when childhood is rewired by smartphones and social media? Jonathan Haidt breaks down how a single decade transformed attention, resilience, and the emotional lives of millions of kids. In this episode of Remarkable People with Guy Kawasaki, Haidt draws from his bestselling book The Anxious Generation, explaining why Gen Z’s spike in anxiety wasn’t random — and what we can do
Unrivaled is rewriting the business of women’s basketball
Women's sports are continuing to thrive. Record-breaking WNBA viewership, a flood of new brand investment, and now Unrivaled: the women's basketball league built by players, for players. Commissioner Micky Lawler joins Rapid Response to pull back the curtain on what it really takes to launch a high-stakes sports startup in the full glare of the public eye, from signing Sephora and Samsung
Hailey Bieber, AI and fast launches: how e.l.f. Beauty is winning
Tarang Amin took the helm of e.l.f. Beauty at a pivotal moment and helped turn it from industry underdog to category disruptor, with a retail footprint spanning Sephora, Target, Dollar General, and H&M — while outperforming much of the beauty sector. Amin breaks down the unconventional moves driving that growth, from lightning-fast product cycles and hands-on AI experimentation to cul
Uncovering the $7 trillion reputation economy
Corey duBrowa spent much of his career advising some of the world’s most scrutinized leaders — from Howard Schultz at Starbucks and Marc Benioff at Salesforce to Sundar Pichai at Google. Now, as CEO of global communications firm Burson, he’s helping executives navigate a charged marketplace shaped by AI disruption, ICE activity, and nonstop reputational risk. duBrowa explains why reputati
Masters of Scale: How to save a magazine, with The Atlantic’s Nicholas Thompson
When Nicholas Thompson took over as CEO of The Atlantic five years ago, the iconic magazine was in financial peril. Now, it's profitable, and subscriber and revenue numbers are growing. In this episode of Masters of Scale, Thompson joins host Jeff Berman to talk about the impressive turnaround, how media companies can weather AI disruption, and lessons from the world of long-distance runn
Super Bowl ads, Bad Bunny, and the business of cultural risk, with Autodesk’s Dara Treseder
The Super Bowl LX ad blitz was a big budget highwire act — from Anthropic's shot at OpenAI to Lady Gaga's homage to Mr Rogers, and Dunkin's nostalgia-fueled celeb fest. Autodesk CMO Dara Treseder returns to Rapid Response to break down what worked, what didn’t, and what the ads reveal about where marketing is headed next. Treseder unpacks the business impact of Bad Bunny’s halftime show,
Your Rich BFF dishes on dopamine spending and the new money minefield, with Vivian Tu
Why does uncertainty make us less rational with money? And who should we trust for financial advice online? Vivian Tu, financial educator and CEO of Your Rich BFF, joins Rapid Response to break down today’s personal finance risks and opportunities, from “lifestyle inflation” and the most common money mistakes smart people make to how Gen Z is navigating 2026 volatility and a shifting job
Padma Lakshmi’s secret to authentic leadership? Stop trying.
TV host, producer, author, and UN Goodwill Ambassador Padma Lakshmi joins Rapid Response with candid advice for business leaders on speaking out, showing courage, and staying true to themselves, particularly amid the Trump Administration’s violent immigration crackdown. A passionate voice at the intersection of food, culture, and identity, Lakshmi shares how she’s shaking up food media wi
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