A Wisconsin nonprofit created to educate business leaders about the impact of emerging technologies on their industries is switching to a for-profit model to better scale its growth and reach.
Advancing Artificial Intelligence in Wisconsin, or AAIW, launched years ago but reactivated in 2019 under a new mission and board of directors, is also changing its name to Advancing Digital, said CEO Oliver Buechse, who co-founded AAIW.
Buechse is the former chief strategy officer at Green Bay-based Associated Bank. He helped co-found AAIW to bring momentum around discussions and collaboration among Wisconsin business, tech leaders and educators on digital technologies and AI.
Under the revamped model, the nonprofit aimed to develop an online knowledge database about digital technologies, including AI, through sourced and curated content, expert analysis, best-practice models and use cases for industries like banking, health care, supply chain and logistics and manufacturing. The targeted audience for the database was small and medium-sized companies in Wisconsin that may not have the resources or time to invest in learning about AI, along with consulting firms who can use material from the database to educate clients.
The knowledge inventory didn't quite take off, but AAIW did create in 2019 regional teams of business leaders and entrepreneurs around the state that gathered quarterly to discuss tech.
As a for-profit, some of those functions will remain in place, Buechse said.
The pillars of Advancing Digital will be to create broad awareness about emerging tech through speaking engagements and seminars; help Wisconsin businesses learn how to adopt technologies through things like leadership workshops and digital literacy programs; continue building regional communities and teams; and curate events.
Buechse, who was recently named Executive in Residence for Digital Transformation at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's School of Business, is planning a digital transformation expo in Wisconsin for late 2020.
