I have one more retired branded company podcast to recommend this week. In contrast to GE’s show from yesterday that was a bright but brief spark, today’s highlight is a show that delivered over 100 episodes starting in 2017. From Dell Technologies, it’s:

Trailblazers with Walter Isaacson

First of all, it’s a solid combination of brand and host. Dell continues to publish a network of shows tackling different aspects of technology. And Walter Isaacson has wide media credentials as an executive and author of blockbuster biographies, including the recently released one of Elon Musk.

Trailblazers released their last new episode in April 2023, but has continued to post encores of their favorite episodes since then. Produced with Pacific Content, it’s one of the shows that most consistently blows me away with the immersive storytelling and ability to teach something new about areas we already have exposure to. Each episode takes an area of life - like ice cream, dentistry, or board games - and shares the history of the technologies involved, going back as far as hundreds of years, and catching up to cutting edge innovations.

There are lots of great technology branded podcasts now, but I’d still point to Trailblazers as one of my favorites and a literal trailblazer in the format.