User Research

**As we're having limited space at our host, we have set the maximum attendees to be 40 and enabled the waitlist. If you cannot make it to the event, please change your RSVP so someone else can take your spot!** Agenda 18:00 doors Open 18:20 welcome, doors closing soon 18:30 **Unbreakable by Design: The Secret Tech of Antifragile Software** 19:30 Networking 20:00 **Heaps of Trouble -- Debugging Java OOM** 21:00 networking **Unbreakable by Design: The Secret Tech of Antifragile Software** How to turn pressure into performance? Anti-fragility of a software characterizes the benefit derived from the variability in faults and errors that have effected the system. Dependable software systems can learn from incidents & poor practices, how to avoid and to deal with them, to increase availability and performance. Despite their growing complexity and increasing size, modern software applications must satisfy strict quality requirements that impose short defect fixing and release cycles. To reduce the developers teams workload, and pressure to produce high-quality software on time, many software engineering tools and concepts are subject to continuous extensive development and improvement. In this talk, we will take a closer look at the technical aspects of anti-fragile software systems and how teams deal with errors and reliability. Through the technical analysis of anti-fragility and resilience we will discuss the advantages and drawbacks of systems and techniques, and not at least the relation between anti-fragility in the development process and the anti-fragility of the resulting software product. The audience can expect the topics such as design & operating principles, fault tolerance, fault handling, e.g. automatic software repair, fault injections, and TDD. The overview of methods and principles should encourage developers to adopt anti-fragility and resilience principles into their software architectures. **About the Speaker** **Iryna Dohndorf** is a software engineer at Karakun, where she works on customer projects using the Java technology stack. With strong technical expertise, genuine curiosity, and a deep passion for computer science, she develops technologies that tackle the challenges of modern companies and today’s society. As an active member of the BaselOne Program Committee, the Devoxx UK Program Committee, and a frequent international speaker, she is dedicated to inspiring developers and supporting the growth of the global Java community. An enthusiastic interdisciplinary researcher and developer, Iryna has conducted research in modeling and optimization at TU Dortmund and has worked on software for autonomous driving, government agencies, and EU initiatives supporting the advancement of organic farming. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, and is passionate about swimming, skiing, and—most recently—cycling. Iryna’s recent articles include: * https://dev.karakun.com/2025/04/02/tdd-genai.html * https://dev.karakun.com/2024/06/26/ai-software-development.html * https://dev.karakun.com/2025/09/18/Kotlin-K2-Compiler.html * https://dev.karakun.com/2024/07/24/devoxxuk.html You can learn more about her software development work and research at: * https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=eIKkTkYAAAAJ&hl=en * https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/B00PULZWO8/ **Heaps of Trouble -- Debugging Java OOM** This presentation dives into the practical art of diagnosing Java OutOfMemory errors. We begin with a concise overview of how the Java heap is structured and managed, then move to the command line with jmap—demonstrating how to force heap dumps on demand and extract live histograms to spot memory hogs at a glance. Next, we switch to VisualVM for a hands-on look at opening, inspecting, and—crucially—comparing heap dumps to pinpoint leaks and growth patterns between states. The session culminates with advanced techniques: writing JavaScript snippets inside VisualVM to traverse the heap graph, filter objects, and automate custom analyses that go beyond the built-in tooling. Whether triaging a production incident or hardening an application, attendees will leave with actionable tactics to turn “heaps of trouble” into clear, debuggable insights. **About the Speaker** **Robert C Kahlert** is a Senior Software Researcher with Posedio. He hails from symbolic AI research and has worked on products and projects in pharmacology, defense, medicine, NLP and resource exploration. His interests include software engineering, compilers, cloud computing, knowledge representation and databases. In his spare time, he enjoys making the most of Vienna's amazing museums.

Hello Viennovans! Pickwick's is getting quizzical every monday night! You have a chance to win a round of shots, a 40€ bar tab and/or eternal bragging rights 😉 Teams of up to 6 people, reserve your spot today! Start time is 7! FREE SHOT FOR EVERYONE COMING FROM VIENNOVA!

PCE - "Philosophic Conversation in English" is a discussion event in English language which focuses on psychology, philosophy, self-consciousness and self-realization. The conversation is based on inclusive discussion rules. We will meet at at a restaurant where we will have a private room exclusively reserved for our event. At the beginning we will choose the two topics to discuss. Everybody can suggest a topic. Afterwards we will vote what topics to discuss. The person who suggests a winning topic will start the discussion by explaining his/her idea. Afterwards everybody gets his/her chance to make a statement. But you can also decide to remain silent and only listen, if you prefer that. We have a time limit for statements, so that everybody has enough time to speak. It is not allowed to interrupt somebody who is speaking. After a statement everybody can ask a question and the speaker will answer. After the first part there will be a 15 minutes break before we start the second part. Everybody is welcome to our event: We are interested in your thoughts and opinions! It is no problem if you arrive late and you can also leave whenever you want. Please don't bring pets to this event because the room is usually very crowded. Please make sure to register for the event to secure your seat! Please check out last event's topics via this link: [http://pce-topic.project-website.org](http://pce-topic.project-website.org/)

-Outdoor Functional Training for All Fitness Levels- Join us as we combine healthy, balanced movement with fun, gamified ideas to give you our unique FUNctional training! And in case that doesn’t really tell you what to expect, just think short intervals of exercise combined together in a playful and interactive way to help you strengthen your body in a sustainable way while allowing you to meet new people (and often even forget how hard you’re working out). As a reminder for those nervous about their fitness level: Everything we do, we do with all fitness levels in mind; so the exercises are always adjustable to your level and you’re always strongly encouraged to take it at your own pace - I mean, we’re not called My Pace for nothing! How to find us: We meet and train behind the calisthenics workout station on the Zirkuswiese of the Prater. Here a link to the location on Google maps: [https://maps.app.goo.gl/QdRPEaYTiavZbmVW7](https://maps.app.goo.gl/QdRPEaYTiavZbmVW7) Cost: In the interest of inclusivity, we've decided to make our sessions donations based here, so you're invited to pay what you can afford. If that actually makes you more uncomfortable and doesn't make it easier to come, know that we've received donations from €2 to €20 and they all made us very happy, because our primary goal is to get people moving and to show them it can be fun all in all. The money is secondary. One other thing that’s useful to know: - In the case of bad weather, we do have a back-up location that will protect us from the rain. Should we need to move, we will change the location of this event here. Please feel free to check back here before any event where you suspect bad weather or, even better, simply get in touch with us! We’re available via WhatsApp message (+436802355041) or email (office@mypace.at) If you'd like to know more about My Pace, feel free to visit our website at [https://www.mypace.at](https://www.mypace.at)

The biggest football tournament on earth is finally here! 🌍🏆 The FIFA World Cup 2026 is taking over the USA, Canada, and Mexico, and we are bringing all the action, energy, and stadium atmosphere straight to you. Whether you are a die-hard football fan or just love the unmatched vibe of a global tournament, this is the place to be! We are hosting our official World Cup Watchparties at **Pickwicks** – your favorite local pub with great screens, cold drinks, and an amazing community of sports lovers. At this evenings is **free choice of seats**! Enjoy your Watchpartie! 🥳 [Follow us on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/makingfriendsinvienna)❤️ [Follow us on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/makingfriendsinvienna)💙 Do you have questions? Write us on Instagram 🎉

The biggest football tournament on earth is finally here! 🌍🏆 The FIFA World Cup 2026 is taking over the USA, Canada, and Mexico, and we are bringing all the action, energy, and stadium atmosphere straight to you. Whether you are a die-hard football fan or just love the unmatched vibe of a global tournament, this is the place to be! We are hosting our official World Cup Watchparties at **Pickwicks** – your favorite local pub with great screens, cold drinks, and an amazing community of sports lovers. At this evenings is **free choice of seats**! Enjoy your Watchpartie! 🥳 [Follow us on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/makingfriendsinvienna)❤️ [Follow us on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/makingfriendsinvienna)💙 Do you have questions? Write us on Instagram 🎉

Ahead of Config, where a million new AI features will probably drop, we’re meeting to do a little reality check and talk about the current state of AI-assisted design. Yes, everyone feel overwhelmed. And no, you don’t have to deal with all that alone, wondering whether you’re on the right track. Let’s hear from 3 product designers sharing their experiences so far and chat together afterwards. ⚠️ Important: Spots are limited, so make sure to **[RSVP on the official Figma website only](https://friends.figma.com/events/details/figma-vienna-presents-ai-in-the-design-process-3-designers-share-whats-working/)**. We will use Figma guestlist for check-in, so please make sure you're registered there. **Agenda** 18:00 Come together & welcome drinks 18:15 Intro from Friends of Figma Vienna 18:30-20:00 Talks by speakers 20:00-21:00 Discussion, networking & chill **Speaker Lineup** Masha Popel, Lead Product Designer @ Storylane Xenia Tracenco, Senior Product Designer @ Refurbed Amirhossein Shamlou, Head of Product Design @ Eversports The vibe is casual and relaxed – think drinks and pizza with friends who just happen to love design🙌🏻 **Want to collab/host our next event?** Contact organizer via [anastasia@gromontova.com](http://anastasia@gromontova.com.)

We are living through one of the most transformative shifts in software development history. AI is accelerating the pace of change faster than our architectures, teams, and processes can keep up — and that raises hard questions we can no longer defer. This meetup brings together engineers, architects, and tech leaders to have an honest conversation about where we are headed. **Topics we'll explore:** * **AI Burnout & the Human Side of Acceleration** — What happens to developers when the tools move faster than the people using them? * **Supervising AI Models in Production** — Who is responsible when the model decides? * **Brain Drain & Talent Shifts** — Is the industry losing deep expertise to abstraction layers? * **The Future of SDLC** — How do we design software lifecycles when generation is instant but understanding is not? * **Future Interfaces** — What will human-computer interaction look like in 5 years? * **Mass Code & Maintainability** — Are we building a mountain of technical debt we will never be able to climb? * **Security by Architecture** — How do we ensure end-to-end security when the stack is more complex than ever? 📅 **Date:** June 16th 🕕 **Time:** 18:00 📍 **Location:** Accenture Börsengebäude, Schottenring 16, Wien 1010, Future Camp **Headline Speaker:** "How the SDLC changed with AI" , Michael Polonskiy **Panel:** * Michael Polonskiy, Accenture * Mathias, Dangl, Fab4mind * David Leitner, SQUER * Peter Jaschke, Accenture * Bernhard Goetzendorfer, AI Factory

**Requirements Engineering & AI** Wir haben für den 17.6. zwei grossartige Speakerinnen gewonnen, welche über Requirements Engineering & den Impact von AI berichten werden. Zwei Talks zum **Thema Agenten und Personas** und anschliessend Diskussionen dazu. **"KI goes Hollywood: Gib deiner KI eine Haltung und Rolle. Personas im Zeitalter von KI" von Christina Rohrmoser (LEAN-CODERS)** KI ist nur so gut wie die Perspektive, die wir ihr mitgeben. Doch in der Praxis passiert genau das selten: Personas werden halbherzig erstellt, falls überhaupt – und dann selten bis gar nicht verwendet. Und das, obwohl sie Gold wert sind, wenn es um die Nutzung von KI geht. Ein tiefes Personenverständnis ist der Schlüssel. Nicht als Steckbrief, sondern als fiktive Haltung. Egal ob KI, KI-Agent oder Agentic AI: die Persona ist immer relevant, da sie der KI mitteilt, in welchem Kontext eine Entscheidung zu treffen ist – und für wen. In meinem Talk zeige ich, nach welchen Kriterien eine Persona zu erstellen ist, damit KI die ihr zugewiesene Rolle spielen kann – und wie groß der Unterschied ist, wenn KI rollenlos bleibt. Denn ohne Haltung passiert genau das, was viele Anwender:innen bereits erlebt haben: Die KI antwortet – aber am eigentlichen Problem vorbei. **"KI-Agenten - eine neue Generation von Requirements Engineers?" von Brigitte Rafael** Chatbots sind bereits veraltet, KI-Agenten sind das neue Schlagwort. Wer nicht selbst schon einen Agenten gebaut hat, wird in IT-Kreisen mittlerweile schon fast schräg angeschaut. Aber was können solche Agenten wirklich und wie funktionieren sie? Der Vortrag bietet eine kompakte Einführung in KI‑Agenten – was sie sind, wie sie funktionieren und warum sie zunehmend eine ernsthafte Rolle spielen. Wie sieht das im Requirements Engineering aus? Da Agenten ja quasi alles können, können sie auch einen Requirements Engineer ersetzen? Ein Erfahrungsbericht über ein Experiment dazu rundet den Vortrag ab. **Die Sponsoren** 🏢 Location & Catering wird von [LEAN-CODERS](https://lean-coders.at/) bereit gestellt. **🎤 Call for Speakers & Sponsoren!** Und wenn du selbst etwas erzählen willst oder eine Idee für einen Talk hast, dann melde dich einfach. Auch suchen wir nicht nur Sprecher, sondern neue Lokationen zum Vortragen. 👉 **RSVP now!** Die Plätze sind begrenzt, also melde dich bitte an. Wie immer freuen wir uns sehr auf dich!

Dear AI Austrians, It’s time to get together again. **No agenda, no talks, no program.** Just good conversations, familiar faces, and meeting new people from the AI Austria community. Whether you’ve joined our meetups before or this would be your first one: you’re warmly invited. Come by for a quick hello or stay the whole evening — totally up to you. 📍Location: Gleis//Garten Eichenstrasse 2, 1120 Vienna 🕖 Time: From 18:30 - open end. Looking forward to seeing many of you there, AI Austria

Anlässlich des internationalen Yogatages finden in Wien im Juni folgende Heartfulness Events statt: Sonntag, 14.6. im Markhof 10:00 Uhr: Chair-Yoga-Session (ca. 15–20 Minuten) mit anschließender Meditation 11:00 Uhr: Kurze Kaffeepause mit kleinen Snacks 11:30 Uhr: Kurze Präsentation zum Thema „Ahimsa“ – das yogische Prinzip der Gewaltlosigkeit – mit anschließendem Austausch in der Runde ……… Sonntag, 21.06. im Markhof * 10:00 Uhr: Mit Leichtigkeit aufrichten (20–30 Minuten) Alexander-Technik Gruppenunterricht (20–30 Minuten) * 10:30 Uhr: Meditation mit anschließendem gemeinsamen Brunch ……… Ort: Markhof – Das Dorf in der Stadt Markhofgasse 19 1030 Wien Das Programm ist kostenfrei, Spenden für unser Zentrum sind herzlich willkommen. Wir freuen uns, wenn viele von Euch teilnehmen und diesen Prozess gemeinsam erleben!

Dear community members, our next XR Austria event is just around the corner! In collaboration with Niklas Kettner from [VR Expert](https://vr-expert.de/) and Olivier Schaffer from [vrei](https://vrei.at/), we are very excited to host a networking event to (re)connect XR developers and creators based in Austria. And as always, expect a fun time together and great conversations! Attendees will also get exclusive hands-on access to a next-generation XR headset by PICO brought by Niklas from VR Expert. As this cutting-edge technology has not yet been publicly released, interested testers are asked to indicate their interest in the RSVP: [https://vr-expert.de/vienna-xr-workshop-day/](https://vr-expert.de/vienna-xr-workshop-day/) as additional participation guidelines will apply. **AGENDA** • 18:00–19:00: Open doors & soft opening • 19:00–19:30: Welcoming words • 19:30–22:00: Networking, experience corners, snacks & drinks **EXPERIENCE CORNERS** Will be announced in the coming days **LOCATION** The event will take place at [HOIV - Home of Innovation, in the Arsenalstraße 11, 1030 Vienna](https://maps.app.goo.gl/BEQjiMgqLgk1L4YEA). Entrance via Hüttenbrennergasse (orange-colored driveway). The entrance is located at the back of the building. Free company parking is available in any open parking spaces (Barrier-free access and an elevator to the VR Lab on the 1st floor are available.) We look forward to seeing you there! ***•••Event hosted by vrei, supported by the Vienna Business Agency, VR Expert and PICO, powered by vrisch and immerea•••***

Developers, this one’s for you - We are rolling out a series of hands-on developer events around IBM Bob — the new AI-powered development partner designed to help you ship better code, faster. What makes these events stand out? 👩‍💻👨‍💻🧑‍💻🪩 Watch Parties in Berlin, Frankfurt, Ehningen, Vienna, Zurich... Join live sessions together with other developers — not just watching, but discussing, reacting, and learning in real time. Think of it as turning a webinar into a shared experience. The (Coding) Watch Parties will take place on \- 16th June\, \- 20th August\, \- 5th October and \- 1st December *The Watch Parties are free of charge. Tickets are limited.* 🥷🧙‍♀️🧝🪄 Hands-on + Community-first From hackathons to deep dives, these events are built to help you explore modern AI-driven development workflows and connect with peers. Bob is built to support everything from modernization to secure, enterprise-ready development. IBM Bob supports the entire SDLC — and these sessions show and guide you how it actually works in best practice. If you’re curious about where AI is taking software engineering next, this is a great place to plug in. We will add more Bob events to the calendar soon. Feel free to ***get subscribed to our Luma calendar* to stay uptodate for ALL upcoming events early on** and get registered for the events you like to join either here on Meetup or on our central Luma calendar: 👉 [https://luma.com/ibm_bob](https://luma.com/ibm_bob) **Download and try Bob 1 month for free**, get the trial here: 👉 [ibm.biz/try_bob_for_free](http://ibm.biz/try_bob_for_free)

## 🤝 Host Information A co-hosted event by ProductTank Columbus & Women in Product Columbus 💡 About the Workshop AI adoption is stalling across organizations — not because of a lack of motivation or tools, but because it's fundamentally a behavior design challenge. This hands-on workshop applies proven Behavior Design models and methods to help you move from a vague organizational wish to boost AI adoption to 3-5 concrete, testable interventions you can act on starting tomorrow. Whether you're a product manager, on a product team, or just someone trying to get AI to actually stick at work, you'll leave with a clear picture of what's worth focusing on, what to ignore, and how to drive real, sustained adoption — no guesswork required. 🛠️ What to Bring Laptop: Fully charged and ready to go. AI Assistant: Have your favorite AI assistant pulled up. (Dom will be using Claude, but feel free to use whichever assistant you prefer!) 🍕 Logistics & Perks Food & Drink: Pizza and drinks provided! Parking: Plenty of free spaces available on-site. ###

Rev. Steven Clevenger is an ordained spiritualist minister with over 40 years experience as a Spiritual Healer, Clairvoyant and Spiritual Teacher, educated and trained at the White Lily Chapel. Rev. Siobhan Wolf Shaffer is an ordained spiritualist minister and certified medium and healer with over 20 years experience. She began her development in 1988 in Pennsylvania and continued when she moved to Ohio in 1998 where she studied at Rays of Lights Church with Rev. Steven Clevenger. Our full worship services consist of an inspirational lecture, healing meditation, and messages from the spirit world that serve to demonstrate evidence of eternal life. Please visit our Official Church Website (http://raysoflightchurch.com) for more information.

Over a billion documents processed. Millions of Veterans impacted. Hundreds of thousands of employee hours saved. Faster decisions. Greater accuracy. More benefits in the hands of our disabled Veterans. We created Smart Search, the world’s largest consumer of Amazon Textract, right when GenAI began reshaping what’s possible. Since then, we’ve built a suite of AI‑driven solutions that transform this data into real, measurable outcomes—accelerating benefits decisions for our Nation’s Veterans. Join us for a focused conversation on how an outcome‑driven approach to AI is helping us boost accuracy, streamline workflows, and deliver faster results for those who have served. This is a follow up to the AWS re:Invent 2023 "Intelligent Document Processing with Gen AI for Public Sector" presentation. About Speaker: Cameron Williams is a Senior Technical Project Manager and cross-functional technical leader at Booz Allen Hamilton with 15+ years of experience architecting and evolving scalable, cloud-native systems, from greenfield development to complex enterprise modernization. https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameronw711/ **THANK YOU** *Franklin University* for hosting our meetup! To learn more about *Franklin University*, please visit their website: https://www.franklin.edu/ **DIRECTIONS** Franklin University Fisher Hall 300 E. Main St, Columbus, OH 43215 Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/jxjBA2hUmS5qrvhq8 Parking is FREE! Please park in Lot C in front of Fisher Hall. See attached map. NOTE: Map the address only. When mapping with Google Maps it may use the Fisher Hall at OSU, which is NOT correct. **Want to sponsor the pizza and/or bar tab?** Please contact me if you would like to sponsor this meetup's pizza and/or bar tab: angelo@mandato.com

Join the Columbus AI community for a special event. **Battle of the Personal Agents** is your chance to see what people are actually building with AI agents and personal automation systems. Whether you’re running OpenClaw, Hermes, or a completely custom solution, bring your agent and show the community how it works. We’re interested in real-world implementations: the problems your agent solves, how you use it day-to-day, how it’s hosted and managed, how you built it, and why you’ve chosen to keep using it. Live demonstrations are encouraged, so be prepared to show your code, architecture, workflows, and your agent performing real tasks. This is less about polished presentations and more about sharing practical experience, comparing approaches, and learning from one another. If you’d like to present, please contact Chris Slee (via meetup) before the event so we can allocate enough time for everyone’s demonstrations. Come ready to show what you’ve built, discover what others are doing, and maybe find a few ideas worth taking home. Whether you’re deep in the field or just getting curious, come connect with others building and exploring AI in Columbus. Sponsored by [Transform Labs](https://www.linkedin.com/company/transformlabs/) Sign up also accessible via [Transform Labs Luma](https://luma.com/transformlabshq)

Come chat about Atlassian tools and best practices at the Reynoldsburg Sunny Street Cafe and Breakfast is on Atlassian! Let's get the day started off with breakfast with your ACE Leaders! We're always excited to talk about Atlassian Products, share our knowledge and hand out swag! Come chat with us about new product news and anything you are working on within the Atlassian product stack. This is a great opportunity to come see what we are all about, hear new business news and share with other Atlassian users your questions and experiences. We'd love to see new and old friends come out to chat and learn about Atlassian! Agenda --- Moderators Kimberly Deal - Columbus Atlassian User Group Leader Kevin Stanley - Columbus Atlassian User Group Leader Greg Sprowls - Columbus Atlassian Community Leader Hosted By Kimberly Deal, Atlassian User Group Leader Kevin Stanley, Chief Everything Greg Sprowls, Agility Lead --- Global Partner Atlassian (http://atlassian.com) Millions of users globally rely on Atlassian products every day for improving software development, project management, collaboration, and code quality. Partner Atlassian --- For over a decade, Atlassian customers have come together to network, share ideas, solve problems, and find new ways to use Atlassian products. Today, more than 15,000 people take part in Atlassian community events in more than 30 countries. --- Complete your event RSVP here: https://ace.atlassian.com/events/details/atlassian-columbus-presents-rise-and-shine-with-atlassian-reynoldsburg-5/.

Title: Smart Search + AI: An Outcome-Driven Journey from IDP to a Suite of AI Register at the Columbus AWS meetup: [https://www.meetup.com/columbus-aws-amazon-web-services-meetup/events/313426379/](https://www.meetup.com/columbus-aws-amazon-web-services-meetup/events/313426379/) Over a billion documents processed. Millions of Veterans impacted. Hundreds of thousands of employee hours saved. Faster decisions. Greater accuracy. More benefits in the hands of our disabled Veterans. We created Smart Search, the world’s largest consumer of Amazon Textract, right when GenAI began reshaping what’s possible. Since then, we’ve built a suite of AI‑driven solutions that transform this data into real, measurable outcomes—accelerating benefits decisions for our Nation’s Veterans. Join us for a focused conversation on how an outcome‑driven approach to AI is helping us boost accuracy, streamline workflows, and deliver faster results for those who have served. This is a follow up to the AWS re:Invent 2023 "Intelligent Document Processing with Gen AI for Public Sector" presentation. About Speaker: Cameron Williams is a Senior Technical Project Manager and cross-functional technical leader at Booz Allen Hamilton with 15+ years of experience architecting and evolving scalable, cloud-native systems, from greenfield development to complex enterprise modernization. https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameronw711/ **THANK YOU** *Franklin University* for hosting our meetup! To learn more about *Franklin University*, please visit their website: https://www.franklin.edu/ **DIRECTIONS** Franklin University Fisher Hall 300 E. Main St, Columbus, OH 43215 Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/jxjBA2hUmS5qrvhq8 Parking is FREE! Please park in Lot C in front of Fisher Hall. See attached map. NOTE: Map the address only. When mapping with Google Maps it may use the Fisher Hall at OSU, which is NOT correct. **Want to sponsor the pizza and/or bar tab?** Please contact me if you would like to sponsor this meetup's pizza and/or bar tab: angelo@mandato.com

Most people still use AI like a search box: type one question, get one answer, repeat. But the next step is AI agents: systems that can take a goal, break it into steps, use tools, remember context, and produce useful work for a human to review. In this beginner-friendly session, we’ll demystify what AI agents actually are — without hype or jargon. We’ll walk through practical examples of how agents can help with research, planning, writing, coding, operations, and personal productivity. We’ll cover: * What makes an AI “agent” instead of just a chatbot * How agents break tasks into steps * Where agents are genuinely useful today * Where they fail, hallucinate, or need human review * How to design simple AI workflows for your own work * A live demo of an AI agent-style workflow from start to finish No coding experience required. This is for anyone who wants to understand where AI tools are going and how to use them more effectively right now. LOGISTICS AND PARKING: The talk starts at 7:00 PM. The first half hour is reserved for everyone to get set up and mingle. Free pizza and drinks! The cheapest parking option is to find street parking, which will only cost you a few bucks. Otherwise, park in the nearby veteran's museum lot for $8. It's highly recommended you avoid the nearby $15 garage parking.