Thinking Like a Viewer: YouTube Lessons from MIT

Rishab Malhotra and author Anna Esaki-Smith discuss how higher ed's self-inflicted cost and pricing problems, combined with a global demographic decline and shifting views on the value of a college brand versus skills, are driving consolidation and forcing institutions to adapt—though she remains optimistic about the traditional college experience's enduring value.

JC talks with Element451's Ty Fujimura and Encoura's Matt Ellis about AI governance and ROI in higher ed, plus a deep dive into the new Encoura Connect partnership bringing predictive enrollment intelligence together with agent-driven CRM.

Jaime Hunt welcomes a special guest, Dave Hunt, to celebrate his new role as the Senior Strategic Advisor for AI Enrollment Marketing and Brand at Solve Higher Ed. The conversation moves beyond the typical discussion of marketing tactics to explore the philosophy of professional growth and strategic leadership within higher education.

Howard Heevner says the real giving problem is a 30-point gap between alumni satisfaction with their education and with the post-grad relationship—alumni who feel known give far more—and AI can't fix that without trust.

Ardis Kadiu of Andi tells Brian Piper that most institutions remain stuck in early-stage "skills" rather than true autonomous agents, argues human taste and leadership-driven work redesign matter more as AI handles production, and predicts that by 2027 the "harness" around models—not raw intelligence—plus the gap between AI capability and organizational adoption will define success, while also touching on AI's impact on learning assessment and his own family-AI venture, Andi.