From Sept. 14 to Sept. 21 the annual A2Tech360 is celebrating and showcasing advances in technology. Included in this celebration is a panel discussion lead by Digital Summer Clinic founder and EMU marketing professor, Bud Gibson. The panel will take place Thursday, Sept. 21 at the Spark East Innovation Center in Ypsilanti.
Titled “The Age of AI,” the event will discuss how to use artificial intelligence in marketing strategies.
One of the goals for this discussion, according to Gibson, is to dispel people’s fear of artificial intelligence.
“I hope that we demystify AI a little bit because people tend to think of something called the singularity,“ Gibson said. “It's sort of like the machine is going to become intelligent, it's going to take over, and then we're going to be in the land of Terminator. And no, we're not anywhere near that."
Gibson hopes local businesses and startups learn to leverage AI and understand its benefits. To help speak on this topic, marketing expert Ian Sherk, TechStak and My Unleashed Life founder, and Nicol Pasuit, will join the panel alongside Gibson. In addition, Pasuit will bring four interns from her Digital Summer Clinic team.
The Digital Summer Clinic is a paid internship for students interested in digital marketing. It is offered by Ann Arbor SPARK and The Center for Digital Engagement.
During their internship, these interns worked for Pasuit’s companies and used AI to help grow the businesses. She and the other panelists hope that others learn from these interns and their personal experience.
“I'm really interested in hearing their [the interns] thoughts and experience from their perspective with their background in marketing,“ Pasuit said. "How are they looking at this and using AI tools, how they are looking at AI, and how does that impact them as they actually move forward in their careers."
Pasuit and Gibson note just how important the interns are for the work they are doing.
“The interns play an integral role. They are really the people who do the work and then we have various folks to guide them…we try to bring everybody together,” Gibson said.
Charles Borus is one of EMU’s student and marketing interns for Techstak. Pasuit notes that he was instrumental in expanding her company. She hopes, like Borus, those with interest in AI will come and learn about all its capabilities.
“When people leave this event, I hope they have a new perspective on AI,“ Pasuit said. "If they came in with doubts about it, I hope that their questions will be answered."
Following this discussion panel will be a six hour workshop on Nov. 17. Hosted by the EMU Center for Digital Engagement, it will dive deeper into the topics discussed at Thursday's event. To find out more about the Digital Summer Clinic and its internships, visit the program's website.
