Partnered: In this powerful and deeply introspective podcast episode, we sit down with Shekhar Natarajan, Founder and CEO of Orchestro.AI, a business technologist with over 207 patents, decades of leadership across global Fortune 500 companies like Walmart, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Disney, and a radically different philosophy on how artificial intelligence should be built, deployed, and governed.Shekhar’s mornings begin at 4 a.m., not with emails, investor decks, or lines of code, but with classical Indian Tanjore painting, patiently layering gold leaf onto canvas, one meticulous step at a time. It is an unusual ritual for someone building cutting-edge AI systems, but for Shekhar, this discipline is not a contradiction. It is a reminder that meaningful creation, whether art or technology, demands patience, intention, and restraint.This episode goes far beyond surface-level conversations around “ethical AI” or “responsible innovation.” Shekhar introduces a compelling concept he calls Angelic Intelligence, which refers to systems designed not just to avoid harm, but to actively do good. In a world where speed, scale, and efficiency are rewarded above all else, he challenges listeners to ask a more uncomfortable question: What happens when machines optimise faster than humans can reflect on the consequences?Drawing from a life shaped by poverty, immigration, corporate power, and personal loss, Shekhar reflects candidly on the true cost of success. He speaks openly about building technologies that increased efficiency while eliminating thousands of jobs, and the moral reckoning that followed. In chasing optimisation, he realised, humanity often becomes an afterthought. These experiences eventually pushed him to walk away from conventional corporate success and build something fundamentally different.The discussion also addresses one of the most uncomfortable questions facing technologists today: What if profit-first AI wins? What if systems built purely for speed and efficiency outcompete value-driven models? Shekhar’s response is neither naive optimism nor philosophical detachment. Instead, he speaks about building structures, like ownership models, incentives, and governance frameworks, that protect values even within a capitalist system. His belief is clear: capital may own companies, but it should never own values.As the episode unfolds, listeners are invited to reconsider what “ethical AI” really means. According to Shekhar, avoiding harm is not the same as doing good. Ethical AI may stop damage, but Angelic Intelligence aims to amplify human goodness, like empathy, fairness, dignity, and compassion, especially for those who are invisible to systems optimised only for efficiency.Follow Shekhar Natarajan on social media to learn more about him and his take on today’s tech world:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shekharnatarajanofficialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/Shekharnatarajanofficial/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tomorrowtodayshowbysrn #ShekharNatarajan#OrchestroAI#AILeadership#EthicalAI#AngelicIntelligence#FutureOfAI#HumanCentricAI#TechLeadership#AIPhilosophy#StartupFounders#Fortune500#PodcastInterview#IndianLeaders#PurposeDrivenTech