Why EV and AI Adoption Depend on Better Communication with Jess Shanahan

This long-form episode of Wicked Problems is a conversation about how EV and AI adoption share the same communication problem: the people designing and promoting these technologies tend to foreground complexity that users neither need nor value.

Toby Corballis and e-mobility communications specialist Jess Shanahan examine why clearer, more human communication matters—from selling electric cars to introducing AI inside organisations.

Their conversation also moves beneath the messaging. Legacy systems, reactive leadership, weak AI literacy and poorly designed change all shape whether new technology creates value or merely adds cost and risk.

Key themes:

• Closing the gap between what organisations want to say and what their audiences need to hear
• Making EV communication relevant to mainstream drivers rather than technical enthusiasts - How AI-generated content converges towards sameness and plausible-sounding errors
• Cognitive offloading and the erosion of critical-thinking capability
• Why legacy automotive manufacturers struggle to move at software speed
• The danger of reactive transformation and indiscriminate AI adoption
• Shadow AI, data risk, model choice and the need for practical AI literacy
• Designing technology that is straightforward without concealing meaningful choice

Chapters:

00:00 - Jess introduces her background
00:40 - How a memorable EV press stunt led to a career in the electric mobility sector
02:04 - What the 49 Collective is and why it matters for women in EV
04:22 - Why EV marketing often misses the mark with mainstream drivers
06:22 - B2B messaging needs to speak to people, not just organisations
08:10 - How AI output can sound convincing while still being wrong
10:28 - Cognitive offloading - what happens when AI does too much thinking for us
16:06 - Legacy automotive versus newer EV brands and their very different structures
17:28 - Why modern EV companies can iterate faster with software-style operating models
18:55 - Why legacy manufacturers are pushing for more time and more regulatory flexibility
21:06 - Why people, not just process, determine whether transformation succeeds
22:27 - Why piling new technology onto old systems often fails
23:01 - Why the ICE vehicle fleet means legacy businesses cannot simply be switched off
24:29 - Why reactive companies chase quick wins instead of building a stronger strategy
27:06 - When AI is the wrong tool and why risk tolerance matters
29:26 - How uncontrolled internal usage drives token bills through the roof
31:50 - The problem of shadow AI and accidental data breaches
32:49 - AI literacy requirements and why boards cannot claim ignorance
33:41 - Jess on training organizations in AI risk, prompting, and output checking
35:11 - Model drift and the challenge of choosing the right AI model for the job
38:39 - Should AI interfaces be smart enough to choose the model for the user?

Jess' Links:

• Jess Shanahan on LinkedIn
• Jess' Personal Website
• Jet Social, Jess' professional brand, closing the communication gap
• Charge Happy, a place to find the most interesting places to charge your car

Toby's Links:

- Toby Corballis on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tobycorballis/)

- Strategic Flow, Toby's consulting firm

Other Links mentioned:

The 49 Collective

Deloitte AI refund in Australia - The Guardian

The EU AI Act - European Commission

More episodes: https://wickedproblems.fm/