Dave Clark unpacks the current state of supply chain and AI at Manifest 2025

Summary

In this insightful conversation, the speaker discusses the balance between government efficiency and maintaining oversight, the future of global trade and maritime shipping, and the innovative work their company is doing in data infrastructure. By leveraging machine learning and global supply chain data, the company aims to create a transformative data 'garbage disposal' that extracts value from existing systems and automates tasks. The speaker’s passion for improving global supply chains and the role of data in innovation shines through, offering a compelling vision for the future of business efficiency and technological advancement.

Takeaways

• 😀 Dave believes that making progress in government efficiency often requires breaking some eggs and taking risks.
• 😀 Government efficiency can be challenging to achieve in large organizations, and resistance to change is common.
• 😀 Maintaining proper oversight and control structures is crucial in pursuing government efficiency.
• 😀 Dave disagrees with the idea that we've reached peak global ocean volumes and believes global trade will continue to grow.
• 😀 He stresses the importance of using technology and innovation to reduce energy consumption per unit of consumption in global trade.
• 😀 Dave emphasizes that reducing consumption or living standards is not the solution to climate and resource issues.
• 😀 He envisions a future where technology allows us to achieve abundance through innovation while using fewer planetary resources.
• 😀 Augur, Dave's new company, is focused on solving data interoperability issues in supply chains by creating a robust data infrastructure.
• 😀 The company aims to automate data management through machine learning and large global supply chain datasets.
• 😀 Augur's goal is to create a 'garbage disposal' for company data, ensuring seamless integration and intelligent execution across supply chains.
• 😀 Dave is passionate about improving the way humanity works by addressing inefficiencies in supply chain data and bringing technological solutions to the forefront.

Q & A

What is the speaker's view on government efficiency?

The speaker believes government efficiency is important but difficult to achieve. They view it as a bit of an oxymoron, acknowledging the challenges of improving efficiency within large organizations. They also emphasize the necessity of breaking some eggs to make significant improvements, but caution that controls and oversight must not be violated in the process.

What does the speaker think about breaking things in the process of improving government efficiency?

The speaker is a firm believer in the idea of 'break some eggs to make an omelette.' They suggest that in order to improve efficiency or make significant changes, fast actions are needed, even if they disrupt existing structures. However, they stress the importance of balancing this with maintaining proper oversight and structural controls.

How does the speaker feel about the future of maritime shipping?

The speaker believes that maritime shipping will continue to grow, arguing that it is unlikely to decline, as global trade is essential for human advancement. They assert that while there is a need for more efficient use of resources, technological innovation will drive future growth in the sector.

What is the speaker's perspective on scarcity in relation to global challenges like climate change?

The speaker rejects the idea that scarcity is the solution to global challenges, including climate change. They believe that asking people to reduce their standard of living is not the answer. Instead, they argue that innovation and the reduction of energy use per unit of consumption will drive progress without the need for scarcity.

What is the speaker's view on the role of data in solving supply chain issues?

The speaker is critical of the overemphasis on data solutions in supply chains without tangible results. They mention attending conferences for years where the solution was always 'this is the year data will work,' yet no significant progress was made. They believe in creating a data infrastructure that can automate and make data interoperable to improve supply chain management.

What problem does Augur aim to solve, according to the speaker?

Augur aims to solve the problem of inefficient data management by creating a data infrastructure that extracts and automates data from existing systems. The goal is to improve the interoperability of data and build intelligent applications to enhance global supply chains.

What role does semantic intelligence play in Augur's vision?

Semantic intelligence is central to Augur's vision. The speaker emphasizes using large language models (LM) and machine learning (ML) to build semantic intelligence components. These components will automate the extraction and organization of data, ultimately improving data accessibility and enabling smarter decision-making in supply chain operations.

What does the speaker mean by 'garbage disposal for a company's data'?

The speaker uses the analogy of a 'garbage disposal for a company's data' to describe how Augur plans to handle and clean up the data from existing systems. The idea is to take unorganized or unused data and transform it into a more usable and structured format, similar to how a garbage disposal system processes waste.

What is the timeline for Augur's product launch?

The speaker mentions that Augur's team started in early January, and they are aiming to launch their minimum viable product (MVP) by May or June. The company is already working with a small team of 22 people.

What is the speaker's ultimate goal with Augur?

The ultimate goal with Augur is to revolutionize the way data is managed and utilized in supply chains. By improving data infrastructure and creating intelligent, automated solutions, Augur hopes to enhance global trade and efficiency, helping companies make better decisions and use resources more effectively.