Fireside Chat b/w VPs at Meta and Cisco: Way Forward for AI in Startups, Enterprises and Beyond

The above fireside chat was rerun on 2 different editions of our showcase with different live QnA sessions, both of which are in the video above

Two stalwarts engage in a no-bars discussion on AI. They have navigated through multiple technology changes over the years as founders and executives. Jagjit Chawla is VP at Meta and Vinod Muthukrishnan is VP and COO at Cisco’s Webex Customer Experience. Jagjit is a product leader who has delivered successful products that have scaled to millions (in some cases billions) of users. At Facebook, he leads Feed’s evolution into an AI-driven recommendations engine and turned Reels into a revenue driver. Earlier, at Credit Karma, he launched CK Tax, quickly growing it into a top-three tax product that sparked Intuit's acquisition. At Google he put his stamp on Chromecast and Google Home. Vinod began his career navigating ships in the merchant navy before founding Cloudcherry, which redefined the customer success journey. Cisco acquired Cloudcherry and after his golden handcuffs came off he joined Uniphore as Chief Customer Officer. After 3 years he is back at Cisco. A true captain, Vinod mentors founders and supports startups generously, embodying the pay-it-forward spirit of Silicon Valley. What unites Vinod and Jagjit is their shared passion for building teams, leveraging technology, and scaling businesses. Sara Zare moderated this panel. Sara is a product leader and has been passionate about tech and investing and has hosted numerous events all over the Bay Area.

Vinod: linkedin.com/in/vinodmkrishnan/

Jagjit: linkedin.com/in/jagjitchawla

Sara: linkedin.com/in/sarazare

01:10 – Introduction of Panelists and Moderator

04:00 – Career Stories and Industry Journeys

07:30 – Scaling AI and Automation in Products: Meta and Cisco Perspectives

12:45 – Data Problems and Organizational Memory in Enterprises

17:20 – Knowledge Summarization: AI for Workplace Documentation

20:40 – Product Development Practices: Demos Over Memos and Agile Mindset

26:00 – Experimentation, Risk, and Innovation in Teams

30:20 – Building and Hiring: Skills for Modern Product Teams

34:40 – Measuring Impact: ROI of AI in Customer Experience

39:10 – Corporate Engagement with Startups and Ecosystem Learning US Audience Q&A 42:05 – Q&A Session Begins

42:15 – Practical AI Use Cases in Growth and Operations

46:10 – User Experience and Product Relevance with AI

50:55 – How AI Is Changing Content and Media Creation

55:00 – Lessons from Experimenting with Product Practices

59:10 – What Makes Effective Product and Engineering Teams

1:02:35 – Personal Growth, Learning, and Skill Development

1:06:50 – Open Audience Questions and Discussion

1:15:00 – Q&A Session Wrap-Up APAC Re-run Q&A

1:15:40 – Transition: Welcome to APAC Q&A

1:16:00 – APAC Q&A Begins

1:16:20 – AI Careers and Talent Development in APAC

1:22:00 – Regional Innovation and Startup Insights

1:27:20 – Leadership Development and Quality of Life

1:33:20 – Extended Audience Discussion and New Questions

1:39:10 – Final Reflections, Practical Takeaways, and Closing Comments