
Nandan Mullakara | On the deception of clarity, and the challenge of scaling control | Episode #76
The Only ConstantShow Notes
In this episode, Lasse Rindom speaks with Nandan Mullakara, automation strategist and author, about the future of automation and how AI, RPA, and APIs are evolving - not competing. Their conversation moves from the practical to the philosophical, exploring what happens when orchestration itself becomes intelligent:
Why it’s not AI or RPA, but AI and RPA - and how the “AND operator” mindset might be the real key to modern automation and IT The difference between legibility and illegibility in business systems, and how AI challenges our instinct to make everything orderly Why AI doesn’t eliminate work but actually creates more of it - and what that means for digital maturity The coming tension between control and trust as organizations hand over decisions to machine intelligence How agentic automation could dissolve the boundaries between processes, people, and systems
It’s a conversation about cycles, complexity, and coexistence - and why, in Nandan’s words, RPA was never born and will never die.
Do you want to know more about Nandan Mullakare? Nandan Mullakara is a globally recognized leader in AI‑led automation and Agentic AI, ranked among the Top 200 World’s Most Influential Voices in AI by Favikon. He is co‑author of best‑selling books Agentic Artificial Intelligence and Robotic Process Automation Projects, cited widely across academia and industry (Google Scholar). He is featured in Onalytica’s Who’s Who in Automation. As the founder of Bot Nirvana, Nandan advises enterprises on Agentic AI and Intelligent Automation—from strategy and operating models to measurable outcomes. He also hosts the Bot Nirvana AI & Automation Podcast, ranked among the top shows in its category for pragmatic, practitioner‑first conversations. Previously, Nandan led Robotic Process Automation (RPA) practice and Application Managed Services (AMS) projects at Fujitsu Americas. He has driven initiatives for global companies such as Honeywell, BCBS, Canon, and Embraer. His insights and articles have been featured by esteemed outlets including Forbes, Solutions Review, Tech Report, and Packt. Explore interviews on Onalytica, Engatica, Excelcult, Coding over Cocktails, and Kieran Gilmurray.
More from The Only Constant
In this episode of The Only Constant, Lasse Rindom speaks with Andreas Pihl, medical doctor, author and one of Denmark’s leading voices on AI, diagnostics and digital health. Together, they explore what happens when generative AI enters the consultation room: from better-prepared patients and more accurate decision support to the risks of automation bias, deskilling and losing the human connection that healthcare depends on. Main topics they discuss include:
In this episode of The Only Constant, Lasse Rindom speaks with Peter Gostev, AI Capability Lead at Arena and creator of BullshitBench, an open-source benchmark that tests whether language models can recognise nonsensical questions rather than confidently inventing an answer. Returning as the podcast’s first solo repeat guest, Peter joins Lasse for a wide-ranging conversation on what has changed in AI, from model capabilities and coding agents to the organisational realities of accountability, governance and an overwhelming volume of AI-generated work. Main topics they discuss include:
In this episode of The Only Constant, Lasse Rindom marks episode 100 with four returning guests: Dr. Lorien Pratt, AI pioneer and decision intelligence expert; David Pontoppidan, Head of Business AI for SAP across the Nordics & Baltics; Ewa Zborowska, Research Director at IDC and one of Europe’s leading AI analysts; and Jason Stanley, Head of Applied AI Research at ServiceNow. Together, they move beyond the hype around AGI, singularity and agents to ask what it really takes for AI to create value in the enterprise. Main topics they discuss include:
In this episode of The Only Constant, Lasse Rindom speaks with Thomas Telving, philosopher, author and AI ethics commentator, whose work explores what it means to remain human in a world shaped by intelligent machines. Together, they examine the dreams, benefits, violence and dangers of AI - from better healthcare and automation to the subtle ways human relationships, judgement and social connection can be displaced by technology. Main topics they discuss include:
In this episode of The Only Constant, Lasse Rindom speaks with Dr. Rachel Wood, a leading cyberpsychology researcher, licensed therapist and founder of the AI Mental Health Collective. They explore what happens when AI becomes a mirror that always accommodates us - and why human relationships, friction and otherness remain essential to our wellbeing, creativity and capacity for discernment. Main topics they discuss include: