Podcast Summary: "Using AI at Work" Episode 65

Title: Using AI at Work to Transform Learning and Leadership with David Martelli
Host: Chris Daigle
Guest: David Martelli (Founder, Guild Hall Studios)
Release Date: August 18, 2025

Overview

This episode explores how AI—particularly generative AI—is transforming learning, education, and leadership. Chris Daigle sits down with David Martelli, an experienced systems engineer-turned-educator and founder of Guild Hall Studios, to discuss individualized AI-powered learning pathways, how to introduce generative AI to children, the evolving role of education, and practical advice for business leaders and parents navigating this changing landscape.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. David Martelli’s Background and Path into AI for Learning

• [02:12] David describes moving from systems engineering (Dept. of Defense, startups) to education due to burnout and a desire to teach differently.
• Developed individualized learning programs as Head of Computer Science and Engineering at a Boston-area school, including makerspaces and project-based learning.
• COVID forced a shift to remote, scalable support—leading to the founding of Guild Hall Studios as an AI-assisted learning platform for individualized pathways.
  • “Guild was meant to be an AI-assisted software and learning platform that understands your capabilities, your background, the things you did...and just your interests as well. And it would map out individualized learning pathways.” – David [03:15]
• Runs six schools; experiments with education models to refine AI’s role in learning.

2. Introducing Generative AI to Children: Methodologies & Parental Involvement

Key Approach: Start with Play and Purpose

• Let kids "play" within safe boundaries: Gamification, connecting AI tools to their tangible interests or goals. (E.g., 3D printing business idea, creating music, VR game concepts)
• “Kids like to play, so within the safest realm you can let them play...Have them start with a purpose before you just throw it at them.” – David [06:07]

Parental Involvement is Key

• Parents should be involved both for safety and modeling curiosity:
  • Investigate "unexpected" AI output together, teaching resilience and research mindset.
  • “Generative AI is a conversation that you should have. Not a just ‘give me this and I get whatever you give me.’” – David [07:25]
• Balance exposure to novelty and appropriateness; use incidents as teachable moments.
  • “I'm not necessarily going to shelter my kids from [weird AI things]...Let’s figure it out. And that gets them involved in how do we research why it’s doing what it’s doing.” – David [09:26]
• Interest and adoption varies: Don’t force it; revisit when the child’s skills or motivations mature.

Practical Examples

• Business project: Daughter used generative models to create 3D meshes and design logos.
• Music: Used Suno AI to create original songs as a creative outlet.
• Coding/game development: Assisted by AI, but adjusted when complexity exceeded readiness.

3. The Debate: AI in Schools—Cheating or Essential Skill?

• Contrasting school policies: Some encourage, others forbid AI as "cheating."
  • Chris’s view: AI is an essential tool; fluency will be required in any future role. [12:38]
  • David: Each technological advance in history was criticized as "cheating" by the old guard. The role of education should focus on preparing kids for their future, not preserving the past.
  • “Your job as a teacher is about the kids—how you feel about [AI] doesn’t necessarily matter.” – David [13:49]
• Rapid change: It's impossible to envision the world or jobs children will face.
  • “It is impossible for you to understand what the world...will look like...So, like, have an open mind. AI is currently being utilized in almost every single field.” – David [17:10]
• Parents should engage in conversations and advocate through PTOs if necessary.

4. New Paradigms in Learning: Recall vs. Resourcefulness

Old Model:

• Immersive, long-term learning, mastery for instant recall (10-week executive programs, academic expertise).

New Model:

• The skill is no longer just knowing—it's knowing how to quickly access and apply information via AI.
• “I don’t even need to know the information. I just need to know how to get the information. And recall is not part of that equation...” – Chris [19:09]
• The focus for both kids and business leaders: Become "expert level users" of AI.

5. Rethinking the Purpose of School in the AI Era

• Schools are best at social/emotional teaching, not always at real-world industrial skills.
  • Teachers often lack direct industry experience.
  • Trade/technical schools as exception: teachers with real industry backgrounds [28:04]
• “Teachers at the moment are in a position where they're better at teaching the social emotional skills...than they are ever going to be at teaching the real-world industrial skills.” – David [27:00]

AI’s Role:

• Individualized purpose- and pace-driven learning
• The ability to cross-reference competencies to the student’s interests and context
  • “Imagine that you have a system that can cross reference every place that skill...is being used. Now you're able to say...what is the shortest path for me to learn this using concepts I already understand?” – David [31:53]
• AI as a tool for equity: quieter or less confident students get individualized attention via AI tutors.
• Rethink “one size fits all” curriculum; learning same concepts via diverse modalities.

6. The Biology of Learning and AI’s Impact

• AI can accelerate knowledge acquisition by referencing what the learner already knows—scaffolding new concepts onto existing frameworks.
  • “The brain learns...when [it] needs to reference something that already exists in order for it to take hold...having a system that can understand what you already know and reference new concepts to those will make your knowledge acquisition substantially faster.” – David [33:11]
• Importance of guided autonomy, resilience, and “playful failure” in learning (video game analogy).

7. AI-Driven, Accelerated Learning Models: Critique and Implications

• Referenced AI-driven Austin school: only 2 hours/day on learning, top percentile outcomes.
  • Is speed the goal, or what’s done with the "extra time"?
  • “Are all they doing is trying to do the same thing everyone else is doing, but faster? That seems like a terrible waste...If you could have done it shorter, do it shorter because you have other crap you could be doing.” – David [39:59]
• Real success = using accelerated learning for deeper projects, application, creativity—not just faster test scores.

Emotional/Social Maturity Concerns

• Early advancement (e.g., 13-year-old seniors): intellectual ≠ emotional/social readiness for older peer groups.
  • “Emotionally and socially, I'm not ready for what the peers who did it the traditional way are doing. This is correct.” – Chris [44:13]
• Solution: Scaffold social/emotional skills concurrently; create industry and mixed-age collaborations.

8. Bridging Education and Industry: Preparing for Future Work

• Traditional school: students lack context for what they learn.
• Industry spends 1–2 years upskilling new hires; those with real project experience are more desirable.
  • “Industry is like, well, these are the kids we're getting, so I guess we'll take them. And then we're going to...spend a year to two years upskilling them. And it's the kids that went off and did the projects...that tend to get the jobs.” – David [45:21]
• Real workforce is mixed in age and experience—kids must be comfortable communicating across these divides.

9. The Global, Multi-Modal Future of Learning

• Example: Multilingual, multicultural immersion schools to prepare kids for global collaboration.
• AI and cultural/social fluency will be core to navigating the global workplace.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Generative AI is a conversation that you should have. Not a just ‘give me this and I get whatever you give me.’”
  – David Martelli [07:25]

• “Your job as a teacher is about the kids—how you feel about [AI] doesn’t necessarily matter.”
  – David Martelli [13:49]

• “It is impossible for you to understand what the world...will look like...So, like, have an open mind. AI is currently being utilized in almost every single field.”
  – David Martelli [17:10]

• “I don’t even need to know the information. I just need to know how to get the information. And recall is not part of that equation...”
  – Chris Daigle [19:09]

• “The brain learns...when [it] needs to reference something that already exists in order for it to take hold...having a system that can understand what you already know and reference new concepts to those will make your knowledge acquisition substantially faster.”
  – David Martelli [33:11]

• "AI is a lot like magic in anime... The clearer your vision is, the clearer the thing that you can create is, the better that thing will be."
  – David Martelli [36:41]

• “Allow that immersion to happen. It's where they're going to be eventually anyway.”
  – David Martelli [49:27]

• “What are we actually preparing these kids for, right? ...It's not a skill or competency education anymore, right? Because they can get that from anywhere in a moment’s notice...”
  – David Martelli [50:26]

Resource Recommendations

• For Parents:
  Play with your child, use AI tools together, be open-minded, and be unafraid to explore the new—model curiosity and resilience.
• For Educators:
  Focus on human and social skills, guide students to leverage AI as a tool, and facilitate individualized paths.
• To Learn More / Connect with David:
  • Guild Hall Learning: guildhalllearning.com
  • “Dojo” – AI-assisted ad hoc lesson/learnings platform by Guild Hall
  • Full machine shop, VR, art, and design studios available for hands-on creativity and building

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:12 – David’s journey: From engineering to AI-powered individualized learning
• 06:07 – How to introduce generative AI to kids
• 09:26 – Handling AI weirdness/output with children
• 13:49 – Old guard vs. new paradigm in education; is AI “cheating”?
• 19:09 – Recall vs. resourcefulness: What’s an “AI expert” today?
• 27:00 – Teachers’ roles: Social/emotional skills trump industrial skills
• 31:05 – AI redefining how and what we learn; multi-modal, cross-referenced concepts
• 33:11 – Neural implications of individualized AI-driven learning
• 39:59 – Critique of “faster” AI schools and the importance of using gained time wisely
• 44:13 – Early advancement: intellectual vs. social readiness
• 45:21 – Connecting classroom learning to work-world needs
• 49:27 – Global, multicultural, and technical immersion in education
• 50:26 – Big-picture: What are we preparing kids for in the AI era?
• 54:21 – Final advice: Parents should play, explore, and model learning with their children.

Final Thoughts

Both Chris and David agree there are no easy answers; the educational paradigm is fundamentally shifting. AI empowers massive acceleration and individualized learning, but also demands a renewed focus on human connection, play, and adaptive skills that transcend any single technology. For parents and business leaders alike, the key is to stay engaged, stay curious, and lead by example.

“Just recognize that it’s tough. And it’s kind of supposed to be.” – David Martelli [54:49]

For more resources, visit: guildhalllearning.com and usingaiatwork.com