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DTSTART;TZID=America/Halifax:20260326T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Halifax:20260326T200000
DTSTAMP:20260605T214658
CREATED:20260323T232513Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260323T232513Z
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SUMMARY:🧜‍♀️ AICHR | Connections & (grocery) carts
DESCRIPTION:Meet people and pick up your weekly groceries.\n🤝 A casual networking hangout in the grocery store cafe\nChats\, connections\, & grocery carts is a relaxed\, social-first networking event for curious\, friendly people across Hampton Roads who enjoy good conversation and knocking out life errands at the same time.\nThis is not a lecture.\nThis is not a pitch night.\nAnd you definitely do not need to “prepare” anything.\nIt is simply a low-pressure space to meet new people\, have real conversations\, and casually connect while wandering the aisles and picking up your weekly groceries.\nWhether you are deeply into AI and automation\, adjacent to tech and creativity\, or just someone who enjoys thoughtful conversations with interesting humans\, you belong here.\n✨ What to expect\n– Casual\, open networking with a mix of builders\, creatives\, technologists\, founders\, students\, and professionals\n– Easy\, organic conversations while shopping at your own pace\n– Light\, optional conversation prompts to help break the ice if you want them\n– No presentations\, no panels\, no pressure to “network correctly”\n– A friendly\, welcoming environment for all backgrounds and experience levels\n– Come as you are. Grab a cart or a basket. Pick up dinner for the week. – – Meet a few new people along the way.\n👥 Who should attend\nChats\, Connections\, & Grocery Carts is for:\nPeople who enjoy meeting others without forced networking vibes\nBuilders\, creatives\, technologists\, and curious minds\nAI\, automation\, no-code\, and tech-adjacent folks\nStudents and career switchers exploring what is next\nFounders\, consultants\, operators\, and professionals\nAnyone who likes good conversation and low-stakes socializing\nIf you enjoy thoughtful chats and meeting people in unexpected places\, you will fit right in.\n🏪 Why a grocery store\nYou were probably going to the store anyway.\nHosting this event in a grocery store keeps things human\, practical\, and approachable. It removes the pressure of traditional networking and turns it into something simple\, efficient\, and a little fun.\nTwo errands. One cart.\n💡 Why this event exists\nCommunity grows best in relaxed\, everyday spaces.\nChats\, Connections\, & Grocery Carts exists to create an easy\, human-centered way for people to connect without titles\, talks\, or expectations. It is about building relationships\, sharing ideas naturally\, and strengthening the local community one conversation at a time.\nCome say hi. Leave with groceries. Make a few new connections along the way.\nℹ️ Other bits of info & FAQs\nThis is a free community event\nDrinks or food are available for purchase depending on the venue\nPhotos or videos may be taken for community and marketing purposes\nCome solo or bring a friend\n​​​​Is there free parking in the area? Yes. Wegman’s has got lots of spots available in their many parking lots.\n​​​Is this free? Yes\, but space is limited. Make sure to RSVP.\n🤝 Organizers & partners\nOrganizers\nThe AI Collective Hampton Roads\n​Platinum partners\nTechArk\nRegent University\nECPI University\nHampton Roads Chamber Foundation\nBronze partners\nAssembly\n757 Collab\n🌍 ​Our parent org\nThe AI Collective is a global non-profit community uniting 150\,000+ pioneers – founders\, researchers\, operators\, and investors – exploring the frontier of AI in major tech hubs worldwide. Through events\, workshops\, and community-led research\, we empower the AI ecosystem to collaboratively steer AI’s future toward trust\, openness\, and human flourishing.\nAll attendees and organizers at events affiliated with The AI Collective agree to our privacy policy and are subject to our code of conduct. Additionally\, by registering for this event\, you agree to The AI Collective Hampton Roads chapter photo & video policy. \nShare this location:
URL:https://newportnewsva.com/event/%f0%9f%a7%9c%e2%99%80%ef%b8%8f-aichr-connections-grocery-carts/
LOCATION:Wegmans Cafe\, 4721 Virginia Beach Blvd\, Virginia Beach\, VA\, United States
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ORGANIZER;CN="%F0%9F%A7%9C%E2%80%8D%E2%99%80%EF%B8%8F The AI Collective Hampton Roads":MAILTO:aicollectivehr-announce@messages.meetup.com
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Halifax:20260319T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Halifax:20260319T203000
DTSTAMP:20260605T214658
CREATED:20260316T232306Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260316T232306Z
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SUMMARY:🧜‍♀️ AICHR | Guardrails for Gen AI: From Policy to Practice
DESCRIPTION:Guardrails for Gen AI: From Policy to Practice\nHow to constrain AI systems without killing their value\nEveryone uses the word “guardrails.” Almost nobody means the same thing.\nThis co-presented session brings together AI strategy and cybersecurity expertise to break down what guardrails actually are\, where they belong in your AI systems\, and how to implement them without crippling the tools your teams rely on. We will cover the strategic layer — governance\, risk classification\, and authority boundaries — then dive into the technical layer with hands-on walkthroughs of real guardrails frameworks like NVIDIA NeMo Guardrails and Guardrails AI. Whether you are a business leader trying to deploy AI safely or a security practitioner trying to contain it\, this session gives you a practical\, layered approach you can take back to your organization immediately.\nWhat you’ll learn\nWhy traditional security assumptions break down with AI systems\nThe three layers of AI guardrails: governance\, architecture\, and implementation\nHow to treat AI agents as high-risk identities using least privilege and Zero Trust principles\nWhere guardrails actually get enforced — at system boundaries\, not in prompts\nReal tools and frameworks for building guardrails into AI pipelines\nWhat guardrails can and cannot do — honest limitations and tradeoffs\nHands-on homework: get started with Guardrails AI and NeMo Guardrails in 15 minutes\nThis is not about adding a system prompt and hoping for the best. It is about building AI systems that fail safely and stay auditable.\nYour speakers\nAndrew Stafford is a Fractional Chief AI Officer and Director of Technology and Global Alliances at The AI Collective. He works with executive teams to establish clear ownership of AI decisions\, focus on real ROI\, and avoid unnecessary risk\, tool sprawl\, and hype-driven strategy. Andrew brings 25 years in tech spanning Amazon\, NASA\, and five startups to the strategic and architectural side of AI security.\nKen is a security practitioner with ISSA Hampton Roads. He brings deep hands-on experience in security engineering and implementation\, and will lead the technical deep dive into guardrails tooling\, configuration\, and real-world limitations.\nTogether\, Andrew and Ken will walk you through a complete guardrails framework — from policy to architecture to working code — blending strategic thinking with practical implementation.\nWho should attend?\nCISOs\, security architects\, and IT leaders responsible for AI risk\nDevelopers and engineers building or deploying AI agents and applications\nProduct managers and business leaders evaluating AI tools for their teams\nSecurity practitioners curious about the AI threat model\nAnyone responsible for AI governance\, compliance\, or acceptable use policies\nTechnical professionals who want hands-on experience with guardrails tools\nNo prior AI security experience required\, but familiarity with basic AI concepts is helpful.\nWhy this matters\nAI systems collapse data\, logic\, and control — and traditional security was never built for that. The real danger is not bad AI. It is trusting non-deterministic systems with authority. Organizations that get guardrails right will deploy AI faster and safer. Organizations that skip them will learn the hard way. This session is about making sure you are in the first group.\nFAQs\nIs there free parking? Yes. There is plenty of free parking available on the ECPI University campus.\nIs this event free? Yes. Space is limited\, so please RSVP and cancel if your plans change.\nWill food or drinks be provided? Light snacks and drinks will be available.\n🤝 Organizers & partners\nOrganizers\nThe AI Collective Hampton Roads\n​Platinum partners\nTechArk\nRegent University\nECPI University\nHampton Roads Chamber Foundation\nRetail Alliance & Retail Alliance Foundation\nBronze partners\nAssembly\n757 Collab\n🌍 ​Our parent org\nThe AI Collective is a global non-profit community uniting 150\,000+ pioneers – founders\, researchers\, operators\, and investors – exploring the frontier of AI in major tech hubs worldwide. Through events\, workshops\, and community-led research\, we empower the AI ecosystem to collaboratively steer AI’s future toward trust\, openness\, and human flourishing.\nAll attendees and organizers at events affiliated with The AI Collective agree to our privacy policy and are subject to our code of conduct. Additionally\, by registering for this event\, you agree to The AI Collective Hampton Roads chapter photo & video policy. \nShare this location:
URL:https://newportnewsva.com/event/%f0%9f%a7%9c%e2%99%80%ef%b8%8f-aichr-guardrails-for-gen-ai-from-policy-to-practice/
LOCATION:ECPI\, 5555 Greenwich Rd\, Virginia Beach\, VA\, United States
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ORGANIZER;CN="%F0%9F%A7%9C%E2%80%8D%E2%99%80%EF%B8%8F The AI Collective Hampton Roads":MAILTO:aicollectivehr-announce@messages.meetup.com
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260305T183000
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DTSTAMP:20260605T214658
CREATED:20260302T231152Z
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SUMMARY:🧜‍♀️ AICHR | Build night
DESCRIPTION:🏗️ A space to build. A place to belong.\nBuild Night is a casual\, high-energy working session in downtown Norfolk designed for builders\, founders\, creatives\, technologists\, and the AI-curious.\nNo panels. No long talks.\nJust real people\, real projects\, and real momentum.\nTed Patterson will be hosting and facilitating the evening\, making introductions\, helping people find collaborators\, and creating space for meaningful conversations and hands-on building.\n🔧 What you can do at Build Night\nWork on your startup idea\nVibe code with others and get live feedback\nBuild AI agents\, automations\, or no-code tools\nRefine your portfolio\nTalk through a career pivot into AI\nWhether you are actively shipping something or just exploring your next move\, this is your room.\n⏰ Arrival details (IMPORTANT)\nTed or someone on the AICHR team will be downstairs to welcome everyone.\nDoors will be open and we will be receiving guests from 6 PM to 6:30 PM.\nAfter 6:35 PM\, latecomers may not be able to access the building\, so please plan to arrive within that 30-minute window.\nPublic parking is free for two hours\, which makes it easy to drop in\, plug in\, and get to work.\nWho this is for\nBuilders who want community while they create\nProfessionals exploring AI and automation\nStudents building their first portfolio pieces\nFounders looking for feedback\nYou do not need to be an expert.\nYou just need to show up ready to build.\nℹ️ Other bits of info & FAQs\nThis is a free community event\nDrinks or food are available for purchase depending on the venue\nPhotos or videos may be taken for community and marketing purposes\nCome solo or bring a friend\n​​​Is there free parking in the area? Yes. Parking is available along E. Main St and in downtown Norfolk for free after 6pm. If street parking isn’t available\, parking will also be available at the Waterside garage and Fountain garages. To learn more\, head on over to Downtown Norfolk’s parking & transportation page → https://www.downtownnorfolk.org/business/parking-and-transportation\n​What the closest free parking garage to the event?\nThe Freemason Street Garage\n​​​Will anything else be provided?\nSome light snacks & drinks may be provided by AICHR\nYes\, but space is limited. Make sure to RSVP.\n​\n🤝 Organizers & partners\n​\nOrganizers\nThe AI Collective Hampton Roads\n​Platinum partners\nTechArk\nRegent University\nECPI University\nHampton Roads Chamber Foundation\nBronze partners\nAssembly\n757 Collab\n🌍 ​Our parent org\nThe AI Collective is a global non-profit community uniting 150\,000+ pioneers – founders\, researchers\, operators\, and investors – exploring the frontier of AI in major tech hubs worldwide. Through events\, workshops\, and community-led research\, we empower the AI ecosystem to collaboratively steer AI’s future toward trust\, openness\, and human flourishing.\nAll attendees and organizers at events affiliated with The AI Collective agree to our privacy policy and are subject to our code of conduct. Additionally\, by registering for this event\, you agree to The AI Collective Hampton Roads chapter photo & video policy. \nShare this location:
URL:https://newportnewsva.com/event/%f0%9f%a7%9c%e2%99%80%ef%b8%8f-aichr-build-night/
LOCATION:Assembly\, 400 Granby St\, Norfolk\, VA\, United States
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ORGANIZER;CN="%F0%9F%A7%9C%E2%80%8D%E2%99%80%EF%B8%8F The AI Collective Hampton Roads":MAILTO:aicollectivehr-announce@messages.meetup.com
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