Midwest AI Collective

# Midwest AI Collective : Think. Build. Share.

A practical meetup for professionals implementing AI in business, products, and operations. We meet to work through real challenges, explore what AI can actually do for your work, and learn from each other's experience—no lectures, just hands-on collaboration and practical guidance.

All experience levels are welcome. New to AI? That's fine. Bring your questions.

## Ground Rules

• No prior AI experience required
• Share freely
• You can contribute, ask, or just listen—no one is put on the spot
• We discuss vendor tools for fit and trade-offs only—no sales pitches

## Format

Focused Talk (15–20 min)
A short, practical session introducing something useful. Topics include effective prompting, what's new in AI, comparing tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, and Perplexity, and discovering what's actually possible with current AI.

Open Exchange (40–50 min)
Collaborative problem-solving. Share challenges, explore use cases, get feedback, and trade practical solutions. Discussion is guided to stay concrete and productive.

Takeaways (5–10 min)
Each person shares one thing they plan to try this week.

## Who Should Come

• You're using AI at work—or figuring out how to start
• You have questions, challenges, or want to explore what's possible
• You want practical insight and peer input, not hype
• You're open to sharing what you're learning

## What to Bring

• A question, challenge, or decision you're working on
• Examples of what you've tried (or are considering)
• A brief description of what you're trying to do and what success looks like—no sensitive details needed
• Openness to learn from others
• Laptop optional but useful!

## What You'll Get

Most people leave with practical next steps, useful links, and at least one or two things to experiment with this week.

Logistics
Every two weeks on Tuesday
Next dates: Nov 4, Nov 18, Dec 2, Dec 16
Time: 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM Central
Price: Free
Seat cap: 20