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Willie

Background

  • OpenTeams team member
  • Applied AI Society founding contributor
  • Advocates for practical, solution-oriented AI applications
  • International perspective (mentions Europe and Africa AI development)

Applied AI Society Philosophy

Four Core Principles

Willie articulated four key principles for Applied AI Society:

  1. Solutions Oriented: "Not this automate. Let's put a chat bot solution. People have different problems. They want to start a small business. They want to help with the studies. They want to help writing a book"

  2. Social: "Should be social because humans are social beings regardless of our ethnicity, creed, borderlines, language, whatever"

  3. Adaptable: "Learn from our lessons learned and always in constant movement"

  4. Practical: "It should be useful for whatever purpose. I want to finish my degree in optometrics. I want to be a person, my class writing, whatever purpose"

International Perspective

Global AI Development

  • Observes Europe developing independent AI approach: "They don't want to follow China or the US black boxes, they're doing their own AIs"
  • Notes Africa developing独立路径:"Africa also on their own thing"
  • Sees opportunity in regions "super hungry to get this initiative"
  • Describes Europe as having "soil more fertile" for Applied AI Society approach

Vision for Applied AI

User-Centric Approach

  • Emphasizes diverse use cases beyond business automation
  • Values human-centered design
  • Focuses on practical applications for real problems
  • Advocates for cultural and geographic diversity in solutions

Community Building

  • Understands importance of global perspective
  • Recognizes different regions have different needs
  • Values inclusive approach across borders and cultures
  • Sees opportunity in underserved markets

Strategic Insights

Market Observations

  • Europe seeking alternative to US/China AI dominance
  • Africa developing independent AI capabilities
  • Different regions have different adoption patterns
  • Opportunity exists where current solutions don't fit

Key Quotes

On Core Principles: "Four points that I will always keep to heart... solutions oriented... social... adaptable... practical"

On Global Opportunity: "I see the soil more fertile in Europe where they don't want to follow China or the US black boxes"

On Practical Application: "It should be useful for whatever purpose. I want to finish my degree in optometrics... whatever purpose"

Connection Points

  • OpenTeams organization
  • Travis Oliphant's team
  • International AI communities
  • Applied AI Society founding team

Potential Value

  • International market insights
  • Understanding of non-US AI development
  • Practical, user-focused perspective
  • Global community building experience

Transcripts

Transcript IDDateSummary
2026-01-09-applied-ai-communities-sync2026-01-09Group sync on Applied AI Society Q1 strategy; joked about Gary "starting a cult," noted Latin American Epiphany celebration

Interaction History

  • 2026-01-09: Applied AI Communities Sync with Gary, Kamila, Thomas, Tyler, and others discussing Q1 strategy and chapter scaling.
  • 2025-11-24: Applied AI Society planning meeting with Gary Sheng, Travis Oliphant, Emma Merrill, Inessa Pawson, Tyler Hoff, and Josh Oliphant. Articulated four core principles for Applied AI Society and shared insights on international AI development patterns.