The Confused Matrix: A Lived Experience
Don't be an AI lemming. Use it to automate the boring.I spent 21 years finding patterns in power grids and energy markets. Then I started brining vegetables and realized the same rules apply to everything.Complex systems fail quietly whether they're AI models, human bodies, electricity markets, or a jar of Cage Match Carrots. Most people get them wrong for the same reasons. I've spent two decades figuring out why.Right now, a lot of people are moving fast with AI and assuming it's working. Some of them are right. Some of them won't know they're wrong until the margin for error closes. I help you tell the difference.The problem isn't AI. It's letting AI think for you.
Spoken at: PJM Annual Meeting • Princeton Bar Association • Energy Storage Summit • EPRI • ESIG
Bring Laura to Your Conference, Firm, or Leadership Event
Available for:
Keynotes
CLE / Professional Education
Executive Workshops
Moderated Panels
Industry ConferencesAudiences leave with:
a grounded understanding of AI without hype, practical tools for spotting risk and bad automation decisions, memorable systems analogies they actually remember
SPEAKING*Upcoming
AI and the Modern Lawyer - Princeton Bar AssociationRecent Past
2025 EPRI MODTF Advisory Panel
2025 ESIG Fall Technical Workshop
2025 EnCon Forum
2025 PJM Annual Members Meeting
CIGRE US National Committee 2024TOPICS
Don't Be an AI Lemming
What AI actually is, why people use it wrong, and how to tell the difference between a tool and a crutch. For anyone who uses AI but isn't sure if it's using them back.The Difference Between What AI Is and What It Says It Is
AI marketing vs. AI reality. How to cut through the hype and actually understand what you're buying, building, or betting on.Complex Systems and Why They Break
Energy markets. AI models. Pickle fermentation. Human judgment. They all follow the same logic, and most people miss the warning signs. For STEM audiences, business leaders, and anyone who manages anything complicated.Inclusion and Belonging
I care about systems that either welcome people or erase them. How organizations, institutions, and communities can be designed to actually include people instead of just saying they do.Energy & Utilities — PJM-Sanctioned Topics
If you want me to speak on energy markets, electricity policy, or grid operations, submit a speaker request through PJM
WRITING
I write about AI, accidental wisdom, complex systems, and why institutions sleepwalk through their own decisions. Subscribe to The Confused Matrix for essays on finding patterns in everything.Recent pieces:The Portal
AI is the Doorman and I'm Stealing These Oranges
AI is Squirrels in the Freezer
Mansplaining AI to a Data Scientist
On Cement Geese, Dinosaurs and Suburban Governance
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Published Work
"Insights from PJM Interconnection's Exploration of Artificial Intelligence" — CIGRE Grid of the Future Symposium, 2024
"Predicting the Energization of New Transmission Equipment in PJM Using Natural Language Processing" — IEEE PES General Meeting, 2025