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In this episode of Tech It From Me, I break down what was bought, why spectrum is the real currency of wireless, how direct-to-cell could change coverage forever, and who should be nervous (telcos, cloud giants, satellite startups). I also take a hard look at the risks ahead — regulation, debt, technology, and timing.

📌 What you’ll hear in this episode:

• Why spectrum is like “real estate” for wireless
• How direct-to-cell works (and what it could mean for your phone)
• The competitive shake-up for carriers and cloud providers
• The technical and regulatory hurdles SpaceX still faces
• What this deal signals about the future of connectivity

In 2025, scammers are using generative AI to clone voices, fake live video, and craft perfect emails that look like they came from your boss. In this episode, I explain why this year is the tipping point—cheap, powerful models, “scam-as-a-service,” endless breached data, and our comfort with synthetic media—and walk through real cases and a practical defence plan for individuals, families, and finance teams. You’ll leave with a checklist you can implement today.

In this episode of Tech It From Me, I break down:

• Why Meta needs Google’s AI infrastructure (and its custom TPU chips)
• Why this is a breakthrough moment for Google Cloud
• How AWS, Azure, and Google are competing in the next phase of the cloud wars
• What this deal reveals about the future of AI infrastructure spending
• The irony of “coopetition” as Meta and Google work together despite being ad rivals

If you’re curious about how AI is driving record-breaking cloud deals — and what this means for the future of technology — this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

📖 Read the full write-up: Meta’s $10B Google Cloud Deal Fuels AI and Cloud Wars

Mike also shares a personal note about earning the AWS Cloud Practitioner certification—how it boosted credibility, opened doors, and gave him the confidence to take on bigger projects.

You’ll learn:

• When certifications do pay off (cloud, data, cybersecurity)
• Why brand-name programs can disappoint if they’re not job-relevant
• How ATS filters work—and how certs help you get past them
• A step-by-step plan to pick and certifications that tell a clear career story

If you’re considering your next certificate—or wondering whether one you have is pulling its weight—this episode gives you an honest, data-driven guide.

📖 Read the full write-up: Do Certifications Help Your Job Search? Here’s When They Do

In this episode of Tech It From Me, Mike dives into:

• ⚖️ Head-to-head comparisons of open-source and proprietary AI models
• 💰 The true costs of running your own AI vs. paying for API access
• 🔍 Transparency & trust—why open weights matter for privacy and ethics
• 🚀 How community-driven development is pushing innovation faster than ever
• 🛡️ The security risks no one talks about when anyone can fine-tune a model

We’ll explore the advantages, limitations, and future potential of open-source AI—and why the next few years could shape a hybrid ecosystem where both open and closed models thrive.

🎧 Whether you’re an AI developer, IT leader, or just AI-curious, you’ll walk away with a clear view of where the AI race is headed.

📖 Read the full write-up: Open-Source AI: Can It Compete With the Big Players?

In this episode of Tech It From Me, Mike pulls back the curtain on the hidden price tag of building and running today’s most powerful AI models. From skyrocketing hardware costs and cloud provider lock-in, to the staggering electricity and water demands of data centers, this is the side of AI you don’t hear about in press releases.

Drawing on over 15 years of experience in the Engineered Environmental sector, Mike explains how these costs trickle down to businesses, consumers, and even local communities — and what can be done to make AI cheaper, greener, and more sustainable.

If you’ve ever wondered who’s really footing the bill for artificial intelligence — and how it might come back to you — this episode is a must-listen.

📖 Read the full write-up: The Real Cost of AI: Who’s Paying for the Compute Arms Race?

In this episode of Tech It From Me, I explore what that means, how it compares to strategies from Microsoft, Apple, Google, and OpenAI, and what it could mean for privacy, control, and everyday life. From Meta’s closed-source pivot to Microsoft’s Copilot push, we break down the competing AI philosophies shaping your digital future.

Whether you’re excited, skeptical, or a bit of both, this episode will help you make sense of the AI arms race we’re all living in.

🎧 Topics covered:

• Zuckerberg’s AI manifesto: personalized super-AIs vs centralized AGI
• Why Meta is walking back open-source AI
• Comparing AI strategies: Meta vs Microsoft vs Google vs Apple vs OpenAI
• What “personal superintelligence” could look like in real life
• The risks, rewards, and reality of trusting one company with your digital twin

📖 Read the full write-up: The Case for Personalized Superintelligence: Zuckerberg vs the AI Mainstream

From credential stuffing and phishing to sketchy Wi-Fi and reused passwords, we unpack the real-world tactics behind modern cybercrime. I'll share stories from my own experience as an IT leader, explain why behaviour is often the biggest security risk, and offer five practical things you can do today to protect yourself, without needing to be a tech expert.

Learn how to:

• Spot and stop phishing attacks
• Use a password manager like 1Password (not sponsored!)
• Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA)
• Stay safe on public Wi-Fi using VPNs like Cloudflare WARP
• And why security isn’t just about software—it’s about habits

If you’ve ever said “I’m not important enough to hack,” this episode is for you.

📖 Read the full write-up: Tech It to the Bank: How Cybercriminals Really Get Your Info

In this episode, I break down what drove Microsoft to this historic milestone and why it signals a new era in tech leadership. We’ll explore the four pillars behind Microsoft’s rise—Azure, Copilot, OpenAI, and enterprise trust—and how its strategic alignment with Nvidia is powering the future of AI.

This isn’t just about valuation. It’s about who controls the infrastructure of intelligence—and who’s building the future everyone else will run on.

🔹 Why Azure + AI is Microsoft’s power play 🔹 How Copilot is changing how we work 🔹 Nvidia’s behind-the-scenes role as the engine under the hood 🔹 What does this all mean for Apple, Google, and Amazon going forward

If you’re an IT leader, technologist, or want to understand the business of AI at scale, this episode is for you.

📖 Read the full write-up: Microsoft Joins the $4 Trillion Club: What It Means for the Future of Tech

In this episode, I break it all down in plain English—no math degree required.

✅ What LLMs actually are (and what they aren't) 🧱 How tokens work like building blocks of language 🧠 What transformers do—and why they changed everything 📍 How embeddings create a map of meaning 🔧 Why size isn’t everything when choosing an AI model 💼 Real-world business use cases across IT, HR, marketing, and more ⚠️ And why understanding these models is essential for leaders today

Whether you’re a tech veteran, a business executive, or just curious about AI, this episode will leave you smarter and better equipped to lead in the age of generative AI.

📖 Read the full write-up: Behind the Buzzwords: What Is a Large Language Model, Really?

In this episode of Tech It From Me, Mike Madole breaks down what’s really going on with Wi-Fi today—and why it still frustrates so many people. From invisible interference to overloaded devices, he unpacks the biggest culprits behind poor performance and shares practical fixes you can apply right now.

✅ Why Wi-Fi isn’t the same as your internet speed 📡 How signal interference and poor placement wreak havoc 🔌 The power of Ethernet backhaul—and why it’s a game-changer 🧠 What IP passthrough is and when to ask your ISP for it 🛠️ The tools Mike uses to diagnose and optimize his own home network 🚫 Why you should never run Ethernet through your cold-air return

Whether you’re tech-savvy or just tired of buffering, this episode gives you the insight—and the checklist—to finally make your Wi-Fi work the way it should.

📖 Read the full write-up: Why Wi-Fi Still Sucks in 2025 (And What You Can Actually Do About It)

In this episode of Tech It From Me, I reflect on how IT departments have evolved since the 1990s. From my early days teaching computers at New Horizons to the dot-com chaos of Teilhard Technologies, I’ve seen the IT function go from heroic help desk wizardry… to outsourced cost center… to something entirely new in the age of cloud and Augmented Intelligence.

We’ll talk about:

• The rise and fall of in-house IT
• How cloud and outsourcing changed everything
• Why I call it “Augmented” — not Artificial — Intelligence
• The real risks of deprioritizing IT in today’s cost-focused world
• And what I believe the next generation of IT leaders need to thrive

If you’ve ever worked in tech, relied on tech, or wondered where IT is headed next — this one’s for you.

🎧 Subscribe, share, and join the conversation. 📖 Read the full write-up: From Y2K to AI: How IT Departments Have Changed — And Where They’re Headed

You’ll hear about the breakthroughs, setbacks, and surprising twists that defined each era — from rule-based expert systems and early neural networks to the rise of machine learning, deep learning, and modern generative AI.

Along the way, I connect these milestones to the lessons I’ve learned through certifications in AI ethics, generative models, and machine learning — and share why understanding where AI came from is essential to making sense of where it’s going.

📖 Read the full write-up: The Real History of AI: From Turing to Transformers

In this episode, Mike explores:

• What watermarking is and how it works
• Why it matters for students, creators, and companies
• The risks, limitations, and ethical questions it raises
• How businesses may be forced to rethink vendor trust, compliance, and internal AI use

Is this the tool we need to fight misinformation and plagiarism, or the beginning of a surveillance culture in content creation?

📖 Read the full write-up: Watermarking AI: Will It Change the Way We Write Forever?

A company that started out making graphics cards for gamers is now worth more than Amazon and Google combined.

In this episode, I unpack Nvidia’s incredible journey:

• How a gaming GPU company became the backbone of AI
• The breakthrough moments that propelled their rise
• Why their chips are so critical for training and running AI models
• The risks that could threaten their dominance in the future
• And what Nvidia’s story teaches us about staying ahead of tech trends, building ecosystems, and preparing for disruption

Is Nvidia’s astronomical rise sustainable? Or are we heading into an AI bubble?

Tune in to find out.

💡 Listen now and let me know your thoughts. Is Nvidia’s $4 trillion valuation justified?

📖 Read the full write-up: Nvidia Hits $4 Trillion: How the AI Gold Rush Changed Everything

In this episode, I share my real experiences of being laid off twice and what I learned each time.

We’ll talk about:

✅ Why tech layoffs happen

✅ How to protect yourself legally and financially

✅ Why staying relevant goes beyond degrees and certifications

✅ The power of your network and keeping your LinkedIn up to date

✅ How leaders can retain great people in uncertain times

Plus, I’ll share the mindset shift that helped me build resilience and continue to grow my career after each setback.

📖 Read the full write-up: How to Build an IT Career That Survives Layoffs

In this episode, I break down:

• What the DST was and how it worked
• Why did Canada introduce it in the first place
• The risks, criticisms, and U.S. retaliation that followed
• Why the UK is standing firm while Canada backed down
• And my take on a better approach to ensure tech giants contribute fairly without hurting Canadian businesses and startups

💡 Bottom line: If we want to strengthen Canada’s digital future, is taxing it the solution, or is there a more innovative way to empower it?

📖 Read the full write-up: Canada’s Digital Tax Backtrack: Fair Play or Policy Fail?

Geoffrey Hinton, the “Godfather of AI,” says AI will replace everyone doing mundane intellectual work. That’s a bold claim.

But is it true?

In this episode of Tech It From Me, I break down Hinton’s recent comments, explore which jobs are genuinely at risk, and share why I don’t entirely agree that AI will take over everything, at least not yet.

I’ll cover:

• What Hinton actually said about AI and job losses
• Why empathy, intuition, and caring still matter
• Real-world examples of “mundane” jobs that require human judgment
• Where AI will inevitably take over (and why that’s not always bad)

If you’ve ever worried about AI replacing your job, this episode will challenge you to think differently about your unique strengths in an AI-driven world.

🎧 Listen now and let me know: Do you think AI can truly replace human nuance?

Want the full write-up? Read the companion article: Will AI Replace All Mundane Jobs? My Take on Geoffrey Hinton’s Bold Claim.