The AI Lyceum

About The AI Lyceum

The AI Lyceum Podcast explores the intersection of artificial intelligence, ethics, and society, bringing together voices from academia, industry, and policy. Hosted by Samraj Matharu - AI ethicist certified by OxEthica, University of Oxford, Visiting Lecturer at Durham University, and founder of The AI Lyceum - each episode unpacks the real-world impact of AI on business, governance, and human values. Listeners can expect: ▸ Sharp discussions on AI ethics, regulation, and governance ▸ Insights from leading experts at OpenAI, University of Oxford and more. ▸ Practical perspectives on responsible AI adoption in business ▸ Philosophical reflections on how AI reshapes our world 🌐 Website: theailyceum.com (http://theailyceum.com) 🔗 Linktree: linktr.ee/theailyceum (http://linktr.ee/theailyceum) This isn’t just another tech podcast - it’s a space for critical thinking, practical wisdom, and future-facing ideas. Whether you’re a policymaker, business leader, or AI practitioner, The AI Lyceum Podcast equips you with the clarity to navigate AI responsibly. *The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individual speakers alone. They do not represent the views of The AI Lyceum, its host, or any affiliated organisations. Each guest participates in a personal capacity. The AI Lyceum and its host accept no responsibility or liability for any loss, damage, or actions taken in reliance on the content of this podcast.

Publisher

Samraj Matharu

Category

society & culture · technology

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

4 Sept 2025

Latest episode

24 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

37 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   24 Sept 2026

   Do You Really Need AI Agents? | Dr Quentin Reul

   Does every business need AI agents, or could a simpler workflow do the job better? In this episode of The AI Lyceum™, Samraj Matharu speaks with Dr Quentin Reul about AI agents, knowledge graphs and what it takes to turn enterprise AI experiments into useful business outcomes. Quentin explains why predictable tasks may not need autonomous agents, while deep research can benefit from systems that explore sources and adapt their approach. The conversation considers how to choose the right technology, assess its cost and measure whether it improves the problem you set out to solve. We explore AI hallucinations, critical thinking, explainability, smaller language models and proprietary business knowledge. Quentin illustrates why context matters through two companies with the same name: without distinguishing the businesses, an AI system can produce a convincing answer about the wrong organisation. We also discuss how knowledge graphs can help validate information extracted by language models, why AI answers need checking, and how human review, integration and maintenance affect the real cost of adoption. “Fall in love with the problem, not the solution.” Dr Quentin Reul EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 0:00 ➤ Recording Setup and Welcome 1:21 ➤ Introducing Dr Quentin Reul 2:37 ➤ Entities, Names and AI Hallucinations 5:08 ➤ How Language Models Generate Answers 8:37 ➤ Human Learning and AI 12:04 ➤ Do We Need AI Agents? 13:40 ➤ Deep Research and Agentic Workflows 17:03 ➤ Critical Thinking and Checking Sources 20:46 ➤ Tokens and the Limits of AI Reasoning 24:10 ➤ Knowledge Graphs and Validation 27:02 ➤ Can AI Be Explainable? 32:07 ➤ Additive and Subtractive Fine-Tuning 35:39 ➤ Synthetic Data and Model Costs 39:30 ➤ Chips, Infrastructure and AI Economics 45:37 ➤ Smaller Models and Business Context 46:58 ➤ The Hidden Costs of Operating AI 49:01 ➤ GPUs and the Infrastructure Behind AI 54:00 ➤ AI Agents and the Semantic Web 55:30 ➤ Defining the Business Problem 56:48 ➤ Measuring AI Value and ROI 59:34 ➤ Innovation and Practical Adoption ABOUT DR QUENTIN REUL Dr Quentin Reul is an AI strategist focused on knowledge graphs, generative AI, agentic workflows and responsible adoption. His work connects technical implementation with business needs, emphasising relevant context, validated outputs and measurable value. ABOUT THE AI LYCEUM™ The AI Lyceum™ is an independent community examining artificial intelligence through philosophy, science and public discussion. Hosted by Samraj Matharu | Certified AI Ethicist (University of Oxford) | Visiting Lecturer (Durham) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzZOR1oz-h8QglWZUCi-HhQ (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzZOR1oz-h8QglWZUCi-HhQ) Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/034vux8EWzb9M5Gn6QDMza (https://open.spotify.com/show/034vux8EWzb9M5Gn6QDMza) Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ai-lyceum/id1837737167 (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ai-lyceum/id1837737167) Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5a67f821-89f8-4b95-b873-2933ab977cd3/the-ai-lyceum (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5a67f821-89f8-4b95-b873-2933ab977cd3/the-ai-lyceum) Website: https://theailyceum.com (https://theailyceum.com) Personal website: https://samrajmatharu.com (https://samrajmatharu.com)

2. 

   10 Sept 2026

   Is AI Making Us Less Capable? AI Ethics with Professor Sven Nyholm #36

   What happens to human judgement when a chatbot can think, write and advise us at any moment? In episode 36 of The AI Lyceum™, Samraj Matharu speaks with Professor Sven Nyholm, Professor of the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence at LMU Munich and author of The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence: A Philosophical Introduction. They discuss why people often prefer chatbots that agree with them, even when the advice is shallow or wrong. Sven explains how AI can make difficult work quicker while reducing the effort through which people learn, develop judgement and become skilled. The conversation covers ChatGPT, AI sycophancy, moral advice, therapy chatbots, AI companions, loneliness, education, workplace productivity, artificial consciousness and meaningful work. Sven also introduces the “laziness trap”, where a tool designed to save time can work against the reason we used it. A student may finish an assignment without understanding the subject. A worker may produce something faster without mastering the skill. Someone may feel comforted by an AI companion while remaining lonely. The episode explores whether we are losing control of AI. “Wisdom is the sort of thing that usually takes time.” Professor Sven Nyholm EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 0:00 ➤ Introduction to Professor Sven Nyholm 2:31 ➤ How Sven Became an AI Ethicist 5:27 ➤ Safety, Rules and Self-Driving Cars 10:04 ➤ Aristotle, Human Virtue and Value Alignment 13:37 ➤ Why Chatbots Flatter Their Users 15:40 ➤ AI Summaries and the Loss of Critical Thinking 21:06 ➤ The Difference Between Morals and Ethics 23:29 ➤ ChatGPT, Therapy and Moral Advice 28:03 ➤ AI Companions, Relationships and Loneliness 33:15 ➤ How AI Changes Teams and Creativity 35:13 ➤ The Laziness Trap 37:26 ➤ Vibe Coding and Learning with AI 39:37 ➤ Finding the Right Place for AI 45:25 ➤ The AI Wager and the Risks of Moving Too Fast 50:39 ➤ Can Artificial Intelligence Become Conscious? 56:05 ➤ Can Humans Become Wiser Alongside AI? 58:23 ➤ Plato’s Cave and the Limits of Machine Experience ABOUT PROFESSOR SVEN NYHOLM Sven Nyholm is Professor of the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence at LMU Munich and a principal investigator at the Munich Center for Machine Learning. His work examines responsibility, agency, consciousness, human relationships and the effect of intelligent systems on everyday life. His latest book, The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence: A Philosophical Introduction, considers how AI changes old questions about moral responsibility, authorship, consciousness, meaningful work and the future of humanity. ABOUT THE AI LYCEUM™ The AI Lyceum™ is an independent community examining artificial intelligence through philosophy, science and public discussion. Hosted by Samraj Matharu | Certified AI Ethicist (University of Oxford) | Visiting Lecturer (Durham) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@The.AI.Lyceum (https://www.youtube.com/@The.AI.Lyceum) Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/034vux8EWzb9M5Gn6QDMza (https://open.spotify.com/show/034vux8EWzb9M5Gn6QDMza) Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ai-lyceum/id1837737167 (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ai-lyceum/id1837737167) Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5a67f821-89f8-4b95-b873-2933ab977cd3/the-ai-lyceum (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5a67f821-89f8-4b95-b873-2933ab977cd3/the-ai-lyceum) Website: https://theailyceum.com (https://theailyceum.com)

3. 

   24 Aug 2026

   How AI Is Changing Business - and the Human Skills That Still Matter | Dipika Sawhney, Google #35

   AI is making it faster and cheaper to build, test and launch new ideas—but it is not replacing judgement, resilience or humanity. Dipika Sawhney leads SMB growth for Google across EMEA, helping hundreds of thousands of small and medium-sized businesses gain practical value from AI-powered technology. Before joining Google, she spent more than five years at Amazon, held a senior strategy role at Salesforce and experienced the realities of building a company herself. She has also been recognised as one of the UK’s Top 100 Women in Tech and has spoken at the House of Lords about AI and access to technology. In this episode of The AI Lyceum™, Dipika joins Samraj Matharu to explain how AI is changing entrepreneurship, customer strategy and the skills businesses should hire for. As code becomes easier to produce and experimentation becomes less expensive, she argues that the real advantage will come from understanding genuine customer problems, exercising sound judgement and retaining the human qualities technology cannot reproduce. “AI is great, technology is great. Everything else that you have out there is a tool.” — Dipika Sawhney EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 0:00 ➤ Introduction and Dipika’s journey 4:10 ➤ Using AI to create real customer value 8:04 ➤ Resilience, ownership and kindness 12:40 ➤ How AI is transforming entrepreneurship 17:03 ➤ The human skills businesses should hire for 20:50 ➤ Short-term hype and AI’s long-term impact 23:30 ➤ Career advice for graduates entering the AI era 27:21 ➤ Humanity, technology and closing thoughts Hosted by Samraj Matharu — Certified AI Ethicist (Oxford) | Visiting Lecturer (Durham) The AI Lyceum™ is an independent community for responsible AI and innovation, bringing together 400+ members from OpenAI, DeepMind, Oxford, Google and more. Watch and listen: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@The.AI.Lyceum (https://www.youtube.com/@The.AI.Lyceum) Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/034vux8EWzb9M5Gn6QDMza (https://open.spotify.com/show/034vux8EWzb9M5Gn6QDMza) Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ai-lyceum/id1837737167 (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ai-lyceum/id1837737167) Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5a67f821-89f8-4b95-b873-2933ab977cd3/the-ai-lyceum (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5a67f821-89f8-4b95-b873-2933ab977cd3/the-ai-lyceum) Website: https://theailyceum.com (https://theailyceum.com)

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