Last night was a night to remember! Cruz Control kicked off the evening with live music and guests enjoyed delicious appetizers and beverages while connecting with fellow AI enthusiasts and checking out the demo tables.

At 7pm, the main event began with a series of captivating presentations.

• Doug Erickson and LeBaron Meyers used ChatGPT, Bard, and Claude to predict how Santa Cruz Works could transform the county with an infusion of $1B.

• David Dennis from Microsoft demonstrated how to launch a perfect marketing campaign using Microsoft’s AI products.

• Leilani Gilpin, an Assistant Professor at UC Santa Cruz, showcased groundbreaking AI projects from the university.

• Rich Taylor from Seek AI presented a demo on how AI can assist in effectively communicating and interacting with data.

• Craig Gieringer from Massed Compute highlighted the importance of empowering AI/ML engineers, students, and academics to develop AI solutions.

Following the presentations, Drew Meyer from Amazon led a fireside chat with Craig Vachon, CEO of AI Redefined; Sasha Ostojic, a Venture Partner at Playground Global; and Leilani Gilpin. These esteemed leaders discused AI from academic, venture capital, and private sector perspectives.

Be sure to check out our upcoming newsletter for recordings of the event. Thanks to all who joined us last night and thank you to MERGE4 for the gifts to our speaker and for their support of our community. If you see yourself in one of these photos (or have photos to share with us), feel free to share and tag us on social media!

Thank You Sponsors!

Astral AI, Biomotum, Demian Design, Insperity, Massed Compute, MERGE4, Newsworthy.AI, SapientX, Seek.AI, Studio Holladay, UC Santa Cruz, Wynn Capital, Ventana Surf.