The AI Report Live with Liam Lawson

• Low Ego, High Grit: How Salesforce Lands MASSIVE AI Partnerships | Nick Johnston

  Nick Johnston is the Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Business Development at Salesforce, where he leads strategic relationships with major technology companies including OpenAI, Anthropic, AWS, Google, IBM, and Workday. In this conversation recorded during Dreamforce 2025, Nick shares how Salesforce closed 12,500 Agentforce deals and navigated the complexities of announcing major partnerships like the expanded OpenAI integration that brings Salesforce's Agentforce 360 directly into ChatGPT. He reveals his unique approach to building win-win partnerships grounded in customer demand rather than competitive positioning.Key Topics Covered:How Salesforce builds customer-driven partnerships with tech giants like OpenAI, Anthropic, AWS, and GoogleThe three core hiring values that create high-performing partnership teams: low ego, high curiosity, and gritWhy uncomfortable conversations are essential for building trust and creating impactful partnershipsUsing AI tools to position partnership proposals and draft joint press releases with strategic clarityThe Dreamforce partnership strategy and how compelling events drive deal executionCareer lessons from coaching varsity football wide receivers and celebrating team achievement over personal winsLiving in Buenos Aires for six months and the value of full cultural immersion for partnership workWhy getting customer-facing experience early in your career is the best foundation for any roleThe interview question that reveals hero culture versus team players in partnership rolesBalancing partnership work across multiple departments including product, marketing, operations, and salesHow human experience will become the ultimate competitive moat as AI automates routine tasksThe "be great" daily philosophy and applying the same standards to yourself that you set for your teamEpisode Timestamps:03:07 - From college football to coaching varsity wide receivers at Torrey Pines High School in 200605:47 - The vibes and trust mentality: lessons from undersized teams that outperform expectations07:26 - Three core hiring values: low ego, high curiosity, and grit in partnership teams09:15 - Six months in Buenos Aires learning Spanish through full immersion with Spencer Stuart12:49 - Customer-driven partnership strategy: building frameworks from market demand to product integration16:15 - The customer-centric approach at Dreamforce and delivering the Agentforce agenda with partners18:04 - Using AI to write joint press releases, position partnerships, and create mutually beneficial proposals21:27 - Career advice for new graduates: get as close to the customer as possible in sales or customer success roles24:56 - Why human experience and the arts will be the ultimate differentiator as AI automates work28:02 - Parenting lessons and the "be great" daily motto for building confidence and pushing through challenges29:06 - Why do you do what you do: achieving hard things in team settings and making family proudAbout Nick JohnstonNick Johnston is the Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Business Development at Salesforce, where he has spent over 12 years advancing from Customer Success Director to leading strategic technology partnerships. He holds an MBA from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and a BA with honors in International Relations from UC Davis, where he also played college football. Nick has been instrumental in establishing major partnerships with OpenAI, Anthropic, AWS, Google, IBM, Workday, and other leading technology companies to deliver integrated customer experiences through Salesforce's Agentforce 360 platform.ransformation and agentic AI.Partner Links:Book Enterprise Training — **https://www.upscaile.com/**Subscribe to our free newsletter — **https://www.theaireport.ai/subscribe-theaireport-youtube**

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• Building Real AI Humans: The Future is NOW

  Try AI Pals today: http://tavus.io/pals-launch?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=theaireportIn this candid conversation with Quinn Favret, and Hassaan Raza, Co-Founders of Tavus, we dive deep into the future of human computing and how AI is learning to communicate like humans. Quinn walks us through their inspiring San Francisco office—a museum of vintage computing that fuels the company's innovation culture.Topics Covered:0:00 — Introduction & Office Tour2:15 — Building an Inspiring Workspace for Innovation5:45 — The Evolution of Human-Computer Interaction (CLI → GUI → Human Computing)8:30 — What is "Human Computing"? The OS for Human-AI Interaction12:00 — The Waltz of Communication: Understanding Turn-Taking, Tone & Body Language15:20 — Tavus Technology: Perception, Understanding, Reaction & Action20:45 — Introducing Tavus Pals: AI Companions That Reach Out to You25:30 — Real-World Impact: The AI Santa Story & Accessibility30:15 — Ethical AI: Human-First Design & Responsibility35:00 — The Future of Work: Invisible Interface & AI Coworkers (10-20 Year Vision)42:30 — Addressing Job Displacement & Automation47:00 — Building an International, Culturally Diverse Team52:15 — What Makes a Great Tavus Hire: Passion, Craft & Opinions57:45 — Employee Challenges That Changed Company Direction62:00 — The "Why Do You Do This?" Question & Personal Motivations67:30 — Closing Remarks & GratitudeKey Takeaways:Human computing is the next frontier: machines that understand you instead of you learning to understand machinesEffective communication involves far more than words—tone, timing, facial expressions, and body language all matterTavus Pals represent a new category of AI application: emotionally intelligent, proactive, and truly conversationalDiversity of perspective—cultural, generational, educational—is critical to building AI that works for everyoneThe future workplace will have AI coworkers that feel as natural to interact with as human colleaguesTimestamps & Chapters:Vintage Computing Culture & InnovationThe Evolution of Computing InterfacesHuman-Centered AI Design PhilosophyReal-Time AI Perception & UnderstandingTavus Consumer Products & APIEmotional Intelligence in AIEthical Considerations & ResponsibilityFuture of Work & The Invisible InterfaceBuilding an International TeamHiring for Passion Over BackgroundLegacy & ImpactWe explore conversations with founders, technologists, and innovators shaping the future. This episode features Quinn Hassan discussing how Tavus is reimagining human-computer interaction through emotionally intelligent AI.#AI #Tavus #HumanComputing #FutureOfWork #AICompanions #Innovation #TechPodcast #FounderInterview #Startups #EmotionalIntelligence

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• Are AI Agents About to Replace Your Job? | Nancy Xu, Salesforce

  How a Former Startup Founder (Nancy Xu) is Building the Future of AI Agents at Salesforce Agent ForceJoin us for an insightful conversation with a Salesforce Agent Force leader who previously founded Moon Hub and holds a PhD in Computer Science from Stanford. In this episode, Nancy Xu reveals her unconventional hiring strategies, including asking candidates "what tabs are open in your Chrome browser," and shares why relentless curiosity is the top signal she looks for when building AI teams. Discover how she transitioned from startup founder to enterprise AI leader while maintaining a culture of trust and autonomy.Nancy Xu breaks down the future of work with AI agents, explaining how we'll all transition from "producers" to "directors" as agent orchestration becomes central to every role. Learn about Salesforce's trust layer for Agent Force, the importance of humans in the loop for iterative agent improvement, and why the next 100 years of AI development represents humanity's greatest opportunity since mapping the world. This conversation offers tactical hiring advice, leadership insights on managing impatience as a strength and weakness, and a compelling vision for how AI agents will transform customer experience roles.Key Topics Covered:Unconventional interview questions that reveal candidate curiosity and passion beyond traditional resumesThe three intangibles to look for when hiring: relentless curiosity, mastery of craft, and passionWhy future roles will focus on "what and why" rather than "how" as AI agents handle executionAgent orchestration frameworks including MCP and ATA for agents working with other agentsThe critical role of humans in the loop for continuously iterating agent objective functionsHow trust operates as the number one value at both Salesforce and startup environmentsLeadership philosophy of hiring great people and giving them autonomy within clear directionManaging impatience as both a greatest strength and weakness in leadershipThe blending of research, product, and engineering roles in AI-native companiesWhy this moment in history is humanity's chance to positively impact the course of civilization through AIEpisode Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction and unconventional hiring philosophy01:42 - The Chrome browser tabs question and looking beyond traditional resumes03:21 - Hiring for curiosity in a world where jobs will transform in two years05:15 - From producers to directors: The future of work with AI agents07:18 - Comparing culture at Salesforce Agent Force vs Moon Hub startup09:28 - Operating from trust: Lessons from Stanford PhD program on autonomy11:02 - Greatest weakness: Managing impatience as a founder turned enterprise leader13:14 - Advice for 21-year-olds: Pursue passion and blend across departments15:54 - Why now is the perfect moment in human history to work on AI17:10 - Closing thoughts on making positive impact through AI developmentAbout the Guest:This episode features Nancy Xu, a product and engineering leader on the Salesforce AgentForce team who previously founded Moon Hub, an AI-powered talent platform. She holds a PhD in Computer Science from Stanford and brings systems thinking and mathematical rigor to building enterprise AI agents. Her work focuses on agent orchestration, trust layers, and enabling humans to work alongside AI at scale.About Salesforce/Agentforce:Salesforce Agent Force is an enterprise AI agent platform that enables businesses to deploy autonomous agents across customer service, sales, and operations. Built with trust as the number one value, Agent Force includes enterprise-grade governance, security, and a trust layer that handles compliance at scale. The platform focuses on agent orchestration, allowing multiple agents to work together while keeping humans in the loop for strategic direction

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• How Smarsh Used Agentforce 360 Platform to Automate 56% of Customer Support

  #SalesforcePartner Rohit Khanna on AI Agents in Customer Service: How Smarsh Achieved 56% Deflection with Agentforce 360 Platform. Rohit Khanna, Chief Customer Officer at Smarsh, reveals how AI agents are revolutionizing customer service automation in financial services compliance. In this episode, learn how Smarsh implemented Salesforce Agentforce to achieve 56% deflection rates, 20% productivity gains, and transformed their customer support operations without hiring additional level-one support representatives.Discover the complete strategy behind deploying AI agents in regulated industries, from building proprietary compliance models to implementing data governance layers that ensure accuracy and regulatory compliance. Rohit shares insider insights on personalizing AI agents (meet "Archie"), managing the transition from chatbots to intelligent agents, and preparing teams for the future of agentic workflows in customer service.Key Topics Covered:- AI Agent Implementation - How Smarsh deployed Agentforce for customer service automation- Real Results - 56% deflection rate, 20% efficiency gains, 25% faster resolutions- Financial Services Compliance - Building AI models for market manipulation, fraud detection, and surveillance- Data Governance - Critical frameworks for deploying AI agents in regulated industries- Personalization Strategy - Why naming the agent "Archie" dramatically increased adoption- Future of Work - From human-in-the-loop to agent-in-the-loop workflows- GenAI vs Purpose-Built Models - When to use general purpose vs specialized compliance AI models- Customer Experience - Balancing automation with trust in financial servicesEpisode Timestamps:00:00 - Introduction to Rohit Khanna and Smarsh02:44 - What is Smarsh? Compliance technology explained04:13 - Building AI from the inside out: Proprietary vs partnered models07:33 - Agentforce implementation journey and challenges12:26 - Results: 56% deflection rate and productivity gains15:25 - The power of personalization: Why "Archie" matters18:21 - Trust and data governance in regulated industries22:11 - Data governance layers and policy management25:49 - Human-in-the-loop vs agent-in-the-loop29:10 - Upskilling teams for the AI-powered future32:11 - Intelligent agents for financial crime detectionAbout Rohit Khanna:Rohit Khanna is the Chief Customer Officer at Smarsh, overseeing global customer support, consulting, migrations, managed services, and Smarsh University. With nearly six years at Smarsh, Rohit has led the company's transformation into AI-powered compliance solutions, managing teams across the Philippines, India, Belfast, Costa Rica, UK, and US.About Smarsh:Smarsh is the leading compliance technology provider for regulated industries, specializing in electronic communications archiving, surveillance, and AI-powered financial crime detection. For 20 years, Smarsh has been the trusted custodian of communications data for major financial institutions worldwide, using proprietary AI models and GenAI agents to detect misconduct, reduce false positives, and ensure regulatory compliance.Resources Mentioned:- Salesforce Agentforce- Salesforce Agentforce for Service- Digital Reasoning (acquired by Smarsh)---Book Enterprise Training — [https://www.upscaile.com/](https://www.upscaile.com/)Subscribe to our free newsletter — [https://www.theaireport.ai/subscribe-theaireport-youtube](https://www.theaireport.ai/subscribe-theaireport-youtube)---What's your experience with AI agents in customer service? #AIAgents #CustomerService #Agentforce #Salesforce #ComplianceTechnology #FinancialServices #GenAI #CustomerExperience #AIAutomation #AgenticWorkflows #DataGovernance #FinancialCompliance #CustomerSupport #AIinBusiness #Smarsh

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• AI Agents Fail at 95%—Here’s How Salesforce Fixes Trust | Ariel Kelman

  Subscribe to the newsletter — https://newsletter.theaireport.ai/subscribeBook Enterprise Training — https://www.upscaile.com/Salesforce CMO Ariel Kelman reveals how customer-centric marketing, AI agents, and trust shape the future of enterprise technology. Learn leadership lessons from Amazon, MicroStrategy, and building marketing teams that embrace AI innovation at scale.In this exclusive interview recorded at Dreamforce, Ariel Kelman—President and Chief Marketing Officer at Salesforce—shares his journey from data warehouse consultant to leading marketing at one of the world's most influential enterprise software companies. Discover how the "have you talked to customers" philosophy from Amazon's Andy Jassy transformed his approach to B2B marketing, and why trust has become the cornerstone of successful AI agent deployment.Ariel breaks down the evolution of AgentForce, Salesforce's AI agent platform, and explains why enterprise AI requires more than impressive demos—it demands accuracy, security, and customer success at scale. You'll learn practical insights about hiring for intellectual curiosity over technical skills, building transparent resource allocation systems, and why failure is "the inseparable twin sister of innovation."⏱️ TIMESTAMPS:0:00 - Introduction1:03 - From Data Warehouse Consultant to CMO: Career Journey2:50 - Andy Jassy's Customer-First Philosophy at Amazon4:08 - The Foundation of Customer Success in Marketing5:46 - Trust, CRM, AI, and Data: The Four Pillars7:20 - Building Trust as a Marketing Leader8:56 - Introducing AI Agents to Enterprise Customers10:31 - What Trust Really Means in AI12:02 - President + CMO: The Dual Role Explained13:11 - Training Teams Through Inspiration, Not Just Education14:52 - Hiring for Intellectual Curiosity and Humility17:04 - Creating a Culture Where Failure Leads to Innovation18:45 - How Leaders Use AI Daily at Salesforce20:09 - The Joy of Product Marketing20:50 - Why Do You Do What You Do?💡 KEY TAKEAWAYS:Why customer obsession beats technology-first marketing every timeHow to build trust in AI agents for enterprise deploymentThe hiring questions that reveal intellectual curiosity and low egoWhy 95% accuracy isn't good enough for customer-facing AIHow Salesforce uses 17 customer success stories to market AgentForceThe difference between consumer AI and enterprise AI grounded in dataWhy transparency in resource allocation builds team trust🎤 ABOUT ARIEL KELMAN:Ariel Kelman is the President and Chief Marketing Officer at Salesforce, where he leads global marketing strategy for CRM, AI, and enterprise technology solutions. Previously, he held leadership roles at Amazon Web Services, Oracle, and MicroStrategy, bringing over 20 years of experience in B2B technology marketing and sales engineering.📢 RELATED VIDEOS:Mia Jordan, GTM AI Executive at Salesforce (https://youtu.be/pFOAlZNL_U0?si=2BMuatBIpC0biXZ0)Saket Srivastava, Asana CIO (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TryfgNj3D4&t=1s)🏢 ABOUT THIS SERIES:This interview is part of our Dreamforce leadership series, featuring conversations with C-suite executives shaping the future of enterprise technology, AI innovation, and customer experience.#Salesforce #CMO #AIAgents #AgentForce #MarketingLeadership #EnterpriseAI #B2BMarketing #CustomerSuccess #TrustInAI #Dreamforce #TechLeadership #ProductMarketing #CRM #AIInnovation #MarketingStrategy

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