Cincy AI Week Recap
184 million passwords exposed, Get your products discovered by ChatGPT
Yes, I am behind on getting this to you but for a good reason as I was at Cincy AI Week last week.
Wow! How do you capture 3 days of a magical conference?
Cincy AI Week: A Recap of Innovation, Impact, and Community
What happens when a city leans into AI with open arms and bold ideas? You get a sold-out, energizing, and people-first experience like Cincy AI Week.
Over three packed days, our city showcased why the Midwest has something to say about the future of AI. This wasn’t just a conference, it was a movement. This is the second year and you can feel the moment.
A HUGE shoutout to Jon Salisbury, Carl Fraik, Summer Crenshaw, Zach Huhn, Christi Brown for their vision and leadership and ALL the volunteers and sponsors that made this all happen. It is not an easy task. THANK YOU!!!
Over 1000 attendees, 175 speakers, and 150 volunteers. 🙌
High Level Agenda Overview
Day 1: Smart City Summit (Intelligent Region)
• Regional AI infrastructure, data ecosystems, and smart collaboration. I had a chance to share our survey results from our State of AI for our region. Time to do another one soon.
• Cintrifuse Demo Night featuring local AI startups and products
Day 2: Business Summit (Intelligent Teams & Organizations)
• Keynote by Pete Blackshaw, CEO of BrankRank.ai, on the "Answer Economy." I was honored to introduce Pete who I have admired and respected for many years.
• Women in AI & Tech Breakfast with over 200 women. A few of us were asked to share a vulnerable story and give encouragement. I was honored to share my story of growing up in a small town in Kentucky, struggled in school as I don’t learn from books, reframing failing is just learning when having to close my business in 08/09 and restart over 10 years ago and it is who not how when we are navigating business. Who do you know that has walked this path before and can provide insights. I left them with if I can do it, so can you! Rather it be entrepreneurship, leadership or navigating AI.
• Workshops on AI strategy and workplace transformation
• AI for Nonprofits Panel Jeremy Brown from Talbert House, Benita Capers from Last Mile, James McIntyre from YMCA and myself was moderated by Morgan Koth from Big Kitty Labs.
Day 3: Agentic AI, Systems & Workflows
• AI demos, use-case panels, and all things Agentic
• Hands-on learning around AI adoption, automation, and governance
Top Takeaways from #CincyAIWeek
1. The Answer Economy Has Arrived
Pete Blackshaw set the tone with a keynote on how AI is disrupting traditional search.
Gartner predicts over 50% of organic search traffic will vanish by 2028 due to AI tools.
Takeaway: Brands must pivot from "showing up" to "showing answers."
2. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) Is the New SEO
Content needs to be deep, structured, and credible because AI is now the gatekeeper.
Takeaway: Replace fluff with clarity and credibility. Google won’t be the only search box that matters. I wrote on this topic as well: https://kendratech.substack.com/p/answer-engine-optimization-versus
3. Responsible AI Is Cincinnati’s Brand
Panelists didn’t shy away from ethics, governance, and bias.
Takeaway: We can’t move fast and break things anymore. Cincinnati is helping lead the way in building fast and building right.
4. AI Is a Mental Load Reducer
Several speakers shared how AI lightens the burden not just the workload by handling emails, summarizing meetings, and automating draining tasks.
Takeaway: AI can free up headspace, not just hours.
5. Prompting Is the New Excel Formula
Prompt engineering came up repeatedly as a core skill.
Takeaway: You don’t need to code you need to know how to talk to your AI coworker.
6. Custom AIs, GPTs and Digital Workers Are Here
There was excitement around training GPTs with internal knowledge for automation, customer service, and operations.
Takeaway: Businesses are moving beyond using AI, they’re now building with it.
7. Start Creating, Not Just Consuming
From custom GPTs to AI-enhanced workflows, attendees were challenged to become builders, not just users.
Takeaway: Don’t wait for the perfect use case. Start with a real need and explore.
8. Cross-Sector Collaboration Is Driving Progress
Speakers and attendees came from healthcare, education, nonprofits, manufacturing, and civic institutions.
Takeaway: AI isn’t just a tech issue, it’s a business, workforce, and community opportunity.
9. AI for Good Was Front and Center
Sessions highlighted how nonprofits and civic leaders are using AI to boost impact and reach.
Takeaway: AI is helping do more with less, and putting heart into innovation.
10. Community Is the Real Power Source
Many people shared vulnerability, “I almost didn’t come because I thought I didn’t belong.”
They left feeling energized, included, and curious.
Takeaway: The human side of AI was stronger than ever. “AI is human problem not a tech problem.” ~Kendra Ramirez
11. Diversity of Talent and Voice Matters
From an 11-year-old to a 70-something leader, the age and background diversity stood out.
Takeaway: AI belongs to everyone. And everyone belongs at the table.
12. Women in AI Brought the Fire
This was my favorite session. Over 200 women and not a dry eye in the room. Many women shared powerful stories, asked the community for help and full of leaders from all sectors.
Takeaway: This isn’t a side track. Women are shaping AI’s direction and lifting each other along the way.
13. Local Startups Are Rising Fast
Local tools like BrandRank.AI, Pieces, Narratize, Synapsa, Qualz.ai and Tembo.
Takeaway: The AI startup scene in Cincinnati is alive and well and worth watching.
14. Sold Out and Just Getting Started
Event sold out, with over 1000 attendees and 175 speakers and a momentum that shows no sign of slowing. The team I mentioned above are bringing these AI Weeks to Atlanta, Nashville, Columbus, Tampa, and etc.
Takeaway: This was only year two. The road ahead is incredible. Get involved in your city!
A few other items that stood out:
Stop standing on the sidelines. The time is to take action was yesterday.
AI innovation outpaces adoption: Adapt quickly!
$1B "one-person" unicorns are coming before 2030.
AI Agents are exceeding human performance in many areas and soon there will be more Agents than humans.
AI Agents may hire and pay humans for specialized tasks.
I have so many notes.
What's Next?
Watch for updates on AI Blueprint for Cincinnati, a collective vision for our region’s intelligent future developed by the Cincinnati AI Catalyst.
Join local communities like CincyAI for Humans, Cincinnati AI Catalyst, or AI Tinkerers. Attending MidwestCon on September 10 & 11 in Cincinnati, OH.
Keep asking: “Where could AI help me serve better, work smarter, or reduce friction?”
Cincy AI Week wasn’t just a tech conference. It was a snapshot of what happens when curious people, smart systems, and community values collide.
Let’s keep building. Let’s keep learning. Let’s keep showing the world what Cincinnati can do with AI.
184 million passwords exposed Google, Apple and more!
Like we don’t have enough to worry about already. Ugh. https://nypost.com/2025/05/28/tech/major-data-hack-nabs-184m-passwords-for-google-apple-more/
Get Your Products Discovered in ChatGPT
ChatGPT’s new Search & Product Discovery feature lets customers ask for product recommendations in plain language (e.g., “best running shoes under $100”), and see curated, clickable results with images, descriptions, and links right inside ChatGPT.
Why a business should fill out the form:
By submitting your product catalog, your brand can show up organically in these high-intent shopping conversations no ads, just smarter visibility when it matters most. Early participation means less competition and valuable referral traffic.
https://openai.com/chatgpt/search-product-discovery/
2025 AI Adventures
New events are added weekly. Since our community spans over 32 states, we’re making it easier than ever for you to join the conversation from anywhere. These virtual sessions are designed to be interactive and packed with real use cases you can apply immediately.
June
June 20 from 9-12 EST. Introduction to AI in partnership with Max Technical Training. This is a virtual live class led by Kendra Ramirez. Several hands on exercises in class. This class is eligible for Tech Cred which is reimbursed by the State of Ohio. Reimbursement process is easy. https://maxtrain.com/artificial-intelligence/general-artificial-intelligence-and-business-applications/introduction-to-ai/
July
July 1 CincyAI from 3-5 EST at UC Digital Futures building. Free to attend. In person only. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1407748927939?aff=oddtdtcreator
July 16 Technology First AI Simplified Workshop from 8:30-10:30 in person in Dayton, OH. https://www.technologyfirst.org/event-6074735
July 24 Fort Thomas Google Marketing and AI for Social Media from 12-1 in person. https://business.nkychamber.com/events/Details/fort-thomas-business-council-merging-google-marketing-with-ai-for-social-success-1267924?sourceTypeId=Website
I love answering your AI questions. Feel free to message me.
Where AI and inspiration collide!
Kendra Ramirez
KendraRamirez.com
We provide AI Speaking and Training, AI Readiness Assessments, AI Strategy, AI roadmap and implementation, and AI Coaching for small to mid-size businesses and nonprofits.
**For those new to my work, I have been in tech my whole career. Over 15 years of running my digital agency (website, social media, and lead generation) and 7 years of helping businesses navigate AI. Over the past two years, I’ve had the privilege of leading over 100 training and speaking sessions, empowering businesses to embrace the transformative potential of AI. My passion lies in simplifying complex technologies to help organizations grow, innovate, and thrive in an ever-changing landscape.
I am so excited that you are on this journey with me! Thank you! 🤗
I have been writing weekly about AI here for over two years. You can search all of my enewsletters here if you are looking to brush up on a certain topic. kendratech.substack.com
Always informative!