The AI Edge Podcast: CRE & AI
Real conversations with founders, operators, clinicians, and service-based business leaders who scale through systems, innovation, and practical execution. Hosted by Louis Fernandes, Co-Founder of Edge Partners AI, this show dives into what it really takes to grow, adapt, and win in today’s fast-changing world — without the fluff, hype, or buzzword circus. This is not a “tech for tech’s sake” podcast. This is real-world AI & operations for real operators. 🚀 What You’ll Get in Every Episode Each conversation is a deep dive into: • The true drivers of scale (systems, processes, execution) • How founders and operators navigate uncertainty • The workflows, habits, and business mechanics behind growth • What’s breaking down inside today’s service businesses — and how to fix it • The practical role AI now plays in intake, reception, scheduling, operations, and customer experience • How leaders think, decide, hire, implement, adapt, and stay ahead Whether you run a dental practice, medical office, behavioral health clinic, med spa, home services company, or any business that relies on consistent operations and customer experience — these conversations will give you clarity, strategy, and an unfair advantage. 🧠 The Edge Philosophy Business gets easier when: • Intake is automatic • Communication is consistent • Customers never slip through the cracks • Teams aren’t drowning in admin • Owners have systems that run 24/7 • The business finally stops depending on YOU This show explores how leaders build that reality through: • AI receptionist systems • Workflow automation • Modern operations strategies • Scalable processes • Team efficiency • Customer experience design • Intelligent decision frameworks The goal is simple: Give you the “edge” you need to grow without burning out. 🎤 Conversations With People Who Are Actually Doing It Guests include: • Founders who built multi-location practices • Healthcare & wellness leaders improving patient experience • Home service owners scaling through systems • Behavioral health executives rethinking intake & operations • Med spa operators growing without chaos • Real estate + business leaders building for the long-term • Innovators using AI to remove bottlenecks, not jobs • CEOs & operators known for execution, not talk They share: What worked. What failed. What changed everything. And exactly how you can implement the same principles. 🔧 For the Operator Who Wants More This podcast is for you if you’re the kind of leader who: • Wants fewer bottlenecks and more freedom • Hates wasted motion and broken operations • Believes in systems over chaos • Knows AI can help but wants someone who speaks plainly • Wants to scale without adding more stress • Values real conversations over theory Every episode gives you a new lens, a new tactic, or a new way forward. 👑 About the Host Louis Fernandes is a founder, operator, and systems strategist who helps service-based businesses automate intake, reception, and operations using practical AI systems through Edge Partners AI. He brings a sharp, grounded, conversational approach — keeping the show relatable, tactical, and anchored in real experience. No jargon. No hype. No sales pitch. Just wisdom, strategy, and the truth about what it takes to grow a business today.
Episodes
A business can need warehouse space tomorrow.
So why can leasing it still take 12 weeks?
Emails. Phone calls. Spreadsheets. Attorneys. Site inspections. Negotiations. Documents moving between parties.
And after all of that, the signed lease often disappears into a drawer.
James Holbrook believes the problem isn't a lack of industrial real estate.
It's the infrastructure surrounding the transaction.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast,...
“Idrasil was ultimately born in a prison cell.”
After nearly two decades pursuing one idea, Steele Clark Smith III is still fighting to answer a controversial question:
Can cannabinoids move from the dispensary counter to the prescription pad?
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Steele, CEO of C3 Pharmaceuticals, for a conversation about pharmaceuticals, cannabinoids, opioids, regulation,...
AMERICA IS 90 DAYS FROM EMPTY GROCERY SHELVES
We assume the grocery store will always have food.
Kendell Lang believes that assumption is far more dangerous than most people realize.
After witnessing firsthand what happens when critical infrastructure and food supply chains fail, he's building a radically different model—one designed to make communities more food-independent while making regenerative agriculture economically via...
You can have a 720 credit score and still get denied.
And you can spend years chasing an 800 score without understanding what actually makes lenders say yes.
Dave Burgio believes most people are solving the wrong problem: the goal isn’t perfect credit. The goal is becoming fundable before you need the money.
You can have a 720 credit score and still get denied.
And you can spend years chasing an 800 score without understanding wh...
They both lost their jobs on the same day.
Two corporate careers. Two salaries. Gone.
Instead of immediately running back to another paycheck, Mike Deaton and his wife Ligia asked a much bigger question:
What if we built a life we actually controlled?
That question eventually led them to one of the simplest—and most overlooked—business models in real estate:
Buying vacant land below market value and reselling it for a profit...
Everyone is racing to automate more work.
But what happens when AI removes context, accountability, and the human experience?
Brooks Saye believes companies are asking the wrong question.
The goal should not be:
“How much can we replace with AI?”
It should be:
“How can AI help people make better decisions and spend more time with the people they serve?”
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits d...
Trillions of dollars in aging property infrastructure are still being managed through email threads, spreadsheets, phone calls, and human memory.
A pipe bursts. A manager starts calling plumbers. Residents wait for updates. Vendors send photos by text, sometimes. Board members have no visibility. And after the repair is supposedly finished, someone still has to ask:
“Did this actually get done?”
In this episode of The AI E...
Most companies are still figuring out how to use ChatGPT.
Guillermo decided to build something entirely different.
Instead of relying on off-the-shelf software, he created his own AI-powered operating system that automates research, outreach, reporting, underwriting, legal documents, and client intelligence, giving his brokerage an advantage that's difficult to replicate.
In this conversation, he explains why he believes the future be...
Would you let AI make a $50 million real estate decision...if you couldn't verify where the data came from?
Episode Description
Artificial intelligence is moving faster than ever—but what happens when it's making decisions based on data that can't be trusted?
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Matthew Schneider, President & CEO of Building, Inc., to explore one of the biggest chal...
Everyone is selling more data.
But what if the real competitive advantage isn't having more information.
It's making better decisions faster?
Most real estate investors spend hours bouncing between spreadsheets, comps, rental estimates, financing calculators, and market reports trying to answer one simple question:
"Is this actually a good deal?"
Andrew Weiss believes AI should eliminate that uncertainty—not create more of it.
...
Most people think real estate has already gone digital.
You can search for a house online, but once the search ends, the experience fractures across agents, lenders, insurers, contractors, rental platforms, service providers, and ownership tools.
Bobby Bryant believes that entire system is ready to be rebuilt.
After operating across mortgage lending, brokerage, title, education, and real estate technology, Bobby is now building Homhub...
At 28 years old, Kassie Smith walked into a business and offered to buy the company.
She had no money and no idea how she would make the acquisition happen.
When the owner refused to sell, Kassie gave him an answer he probably never expected:
“Okay. I’ll be your competition.”
That decision became the beginning of an extraordinary career building companies, shaping luxury destinations, and helping turn raw land into am...
Most people think construction projects fail because of bad labor, missed deadlines, or problems in the field.
Nick Johnson says they're looking in the wrong place.
According to Nick, the biggest failures happen long before construction begins—during planning, communication, and coordination.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Nick Johnson, Director of Business Development at RYZEC Buildin...
Everyone is waiting for interest rates to fall.
David Huey believes they're waiting for the wrong solution.
After helping finance billions of dollars in residential construction and thousands of homes across America, he argues that the housing crisis isn't being driven by interest rates, it's being driven by one simple reality:
We aren't building enough homes.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with D...
Everyone says AI is the next electricity.
GS Pannu disagrees.
He believes the better comparison is the Industrial Revolution.
Because AI isn't just creating smarter software.
It's building digital factories capable of automating entire industries.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with GS Pannu, Co-Founder & CEO of Trajan AI, to discuss why AI's future isn't about chatbots, it's about infrastructu...
Every company wants AI.
Very few are actually ready to use it.
According to venture investor Fabian Hediger, the biggest challenge isn't choosing the right AI model, it's whether your business has the data foundation to make AI useful in the first place.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Fabian Hediger, GP at Studio Alpha Capital, serial entrepreneur, and early-stage AI investor, to explore wha...
Most real estate companies outsource everything.
Property management.
Construction.
Operations.
Customer experience.
Josh Lugg built his company by doing the exact opposite.
At just 26 years old, he and his team built a vertically integrated real estate platform that sold more than $102 million in real estate while creating one of the fastest-growing companies serving the Notre Dame community.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, L...
Everyone keeps asking the same question:
Will AI replace people?
Theresa Leatherbury thinks we're asking the wrong question.
The real opportunity isn't replacing property managers.
It's giving them more time to build relationships that technology never can.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Theresa Leatherbury, President & CEO of Rachuba, to discuss how AI is reshaping property management wit...
Most people laughed at manufactured housing.
Major Hillard saw something different.
Starting with just $1,500, he bought a single mobile home, reinvested every dollar, and built more than $70 million in manufactured housing transactions, all while creating affordable housing and delivering strong returns for investors.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Major Hillard, Founder of MH Estates, to d...
Most businesses think they're implementing AI.
They're actually just adding another tool.
Joel Bechtel believes the companies that win won't have better AI models, they'll have better workflows.
That's exactly what he built.
In this episode of The AI Edge Podcast, Louis Fernandes sits down with Joel Bechtel, Founder of DealFlowPro and Co-Founder & CEO of Zuma Capital Group, to explore how AI is transforming commercial real esta...
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