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Can AI fix the operating room? This startup thinks so | Equity Podcast

There’s plenty of hype around AI and robots in healthcare, but the problem that’s actually costing hospitals money right now is operating room coordination. Two to four hours of OR time is lost every single day, not because of the surgeries themselves, but because of everything in between from manual scheduling and coordination chaos to…

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There’s plenty of hype around AI and robots in healthcare, but the problem that’s actually costing hospitals money right now is operating room coordination. Two to four hours of OR time is lost every single day, not because of the surgeries themselves, but because of everything in between from manual scheduling and coordination chaos to guesswork about room turnover.

TechCrunch’s Equity podcast caught up with Conor McGinn, co-founder and CEO of Akara, the startup that recently landed a spot on Time’s Best Inventions of 2025 and is building what’s essentially air traffic control for hospitals using thermal sensors and AI.

Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction

00:54 – Air traffic control for ORs

02:35 – Where hospitals lose hours daily

03:54 – Selling into risk-averse hospitals

06:21 – Thermal sensors and edge AI

09:11 – NHS as proof of concept

13:16 – The AI under the hood

18:12 – Privacy benefits of thermal

21:22 – Infrastructure before robots

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  1. @podcast_growther

    December 26, 2025 at 1:42 am

    Hi TechCrunch Daily Crunch team, Merry Christmas 🎄
    I’m Tania — a professional digital marketer specializing in organic podcast growth and monetization. I follow TechCrunch Daily Crunch and value how you distill tech news into clear, insightful episodes.

    Today’s podcast space is highly competitive — many shows are already using strategic, organic growth methods to scale listeners, improve rankings, and unlock sponsorship opportunities. My approach focuses on real long-term audience engagement and authentic growth without bots or fake plays, helping strong podcasts become profitable brands.

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CNET

I Was in AWE of This Techie Art Exhibit (Ministry of Awe)

Scott Stein takes you inside the Ministry of Awe, Philadelphia’s immersive six story art experience. Go on a journey with him as he explores how technology and art meet in this space. Hear from the founders of Spatial Pixel, who explain what inspires them to combine AI with this physical art experience. 0:00 Entering the…

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Scott Stein takes you inside the Ministry of Awe, Philadelphia’s immersive six story art experience. Go on a journey with him as he explores how technology and art meet in this space.
Hear from the founders of Spatial Pixel, who explain what inspires them to combine AI with this physical art experience.

0:00 Entering the Vault
0:13 The Concept
1:07 Programmable Space
1:41 Interacting with AI
3:12 The Future of Immersive Tech

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#MinistryOfAwe #ImmersiveArt #PhiladelphiaEvents #SpatialAI #FutureOfTech #CNET #InteractiveArt #SpatialPixel #OldCityPhilly

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Science & Technology

Why Taskrabbit’s Founder Prioritizes Diversity Early │ Build Mode Podcast

As a founder or any team builder, diversity is best built at the start. As Taskrabbit founder Leah Solivan learned, procrastination leads to weaker teams and a harder effort later. We dive into all of her expert tips for builders and founders in the latest episode of our podcast Build Mode right here:

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As a founder or any team builder, diversity is best built at the start. As Taskrabbit founder Leah Solivan learned, procrastination leads to weaker teams and a harder effort later.

We dive into all of her expert tips for builders and founders in the latest episode of our podcast Build Mode right here:

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Science & Technology

Are orbital data centers all hype, or an actual AI infrastructure solution? l Equity Podcast

Tech companies are racing to build data centers in space, pitching orbital compute as the next frontier for AI infrastructure, even as the technical and economic realities remain far from clear. Add in OpenAI’s massive $122 billion round and Bluesky’s latest AI backlash, and the message is clear: The future of AI is being shaped…

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Tech companies are racing to build data centers in space, pitching orbital compute as the next frontier for AI infrastructure, even as the technical and economic realities remain far from clear. Add in OpenAI’s massive $122 billion round and Bluesky’s latest AI backlash, and the message is clear: The future of AI is being shaped as much by ambition and hype as it is by real-world constraints.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O’Kane unpack these massive capital bets, user backlash, and off-world compute plans along with Whoop’s major valuation and the literal downfall of robot Olaf.

Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:20 A humanoid Olaf robot collapses at Disneyland Paris
03:30 OpenAI raises $122B at an $852B valuation
11:30 Whoop lands $575M and bets big on wearable data
18:50 The risks (and value) of personal health data
23:00 Bluesky’s AI feed builder sparks backlash
30:00 Can Bluesky keep growing — and compete with X?
36:30 The race to build data centers in space
44:30 SpaceX, Starlink, and the business of orbital compute
49:30 Outro

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