Bots and Boards kicks off with the man who was warning everyone about AI back when nobody wanted to hear it. Charles Jennings, author of Artificial Intelligence: Rise of the Light Speed Learners and former CEO of NeuralEye, joins Natalie and Chelsea to explain what AI really is, why researchers call it a black box inside a black box, and what “math cookies” have to do with training it. He also lays out a plan overseas aimed squarely at wood products that the industry should be watching. Then the practical stuff: whether the doomers have a point, how to get a skeptical company to use AI without trying to boil the ocean, and the question everyone’s asking at dinner, whether AI can ever be conscious. He even splits his own firewood, so he counts as one of us. Like and subscribe so you don’t miss parts two and three, and reach out anytime at lumberslingers@gmail.com.