I've been invited to attend an upcoming event being held at one of most highly regarded think-tanks in the world, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab.
The summit, being produced by John Werner's Ideas in Action, is focused on the technology tsunami that is flooding the headlines - artificial intelligence, otherwise known as AI. It's being held in mid-April promises to be an inspiring conference with thought leaders from around the world, representing almost every major segment of business and academics.
The event is one of three annual events in the "Imagination in Action" series. There is one at Davos during the World Economic Forum that John and his team produce. The event itself is entitled "Forging the Future of Business with AI" it's being presented in conjunction with MIT Connection Science, Forbes, and Link Ventures, a high-profile, venture capital investment group.
The gathering is only a single day, but it is from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM so it will be a day jam-packed with information and inspiration. So with my Fin+AI perspective I'm going with an open mind to absorb all I can from these AI thought leaders.
The topics are far ranging; from "The Amazing Open Source Movement", to "How to Keep AI under Control", and everything in between. Of course with my fintech leanings I am most interested in the "GenAI in Finance", and "Insurance Reinvented". But I can learn a lot in all the sessions, the ideas and concepts from one industry segment can be reimagined, and reinvented in financial services.
I think all major business segments are included in and among the topics, and hearing the diversity of perspectives will be inspiring and will further fuel my passion for the conference I am developing on the convergence of Fintech and AI.
There is a large representation by financial services providers at this MIT AI event. Executives and experts from Prudential, Fidelity, Visa, Mastercard, TD Bank, Bain, Discover, Wells Fargo, EY, and Citi are all involved in the event. Many AI pioneers are also in attendance at the summit, with Perplexity, Nvidia, Liquid AI, Vuzix, Imagen and Maginative, as well as many others will be sharing their insights.
This high-level meetup also includes the major technology players who are focused on both providing and integrating AI into their existing platforms and products. Microsoft, Hugging Face, Meta, Walgreens, Google and Dell are all there.
Am I going to invite any of these high-profile speakers to participate in our Fin+AI event? Yes, of course, there will be many executives there that are a good fit for the show. But I'm going there to learn and make connections, I am not going to be "that guy" at this event. I'm there to learn and those who are meant to participate in the Fin+AI Conference will naturally gravitate to me.
There is also a boatload of well-known industry investors at the this event with Vinod from Khosla Ventures, as well as Glasswing Ventures, Arjuna Capital, Brewer Lane, and many others. The event will also include many industry experts from both MIT and companies such as GAI Insights, and IBM Research.
Oh and did I mention that there was going to be an AI Startup pitch competition at the event? The Imagination in Action, Startup Pitch and Demo is a great place to showcase your startup. Submit Your Imagination in Action Startup Pitch Here.
This is a unique opportunity to showcase your ideas and pitch among amazing speakers, including MIT professors, investors, media and many more attendees in the AI space. The pitches are in the morning and showcase from in the middle of the day. This could be a great opportunity for investment and other lofty dreams you are hoping to accomplish with your startup.
I don't think I need to impress upon you how lucrative this could be for a small startup that is focused on creating new marketshare in artificial intelligence. I'm excited about finding a few new, early-entrants to invite to the Fin+AI 2024 event.
All in all this is shaping up to be a great session with new speakers being added every day, with the event still a month away. I have reached out to every one of the speakers that accepts invitations to connect on LinkedIn that is participating in the event, with a note stating that I was going to be in attendance and that I looked forward to meeting with them.
I'll let my serendipity superpower take it from there. If you're attending the MIT summit, let's connect, I look forward to learning as much as I can about the innovations being unearthed using AI.