WHERE
CURIOSITY
MEETS
CREATION
The AI Salon began with a conversation—photographer Leah Fasten reached out to entrepreneur Kyle Shannon in late 2022 to talk about AI, creativity, and what was coming next. That conversation sparked a movement. One week later, ChatGPT launched. And on December 7, 2022, the first AI Salon meeting took place.
Since then, the Salon has grown into a vibrant and values-driven community of artists, builders, educators, and policy thinkers exploring the potential of generative AI. We come together to experiment, learn, and shape what’s next—with optimism, humility, and a shared belief that the future of AI should be co-created by the many, not the few.
Hosts
Kyle Shannon
Kyle Shannon is a digital pioneer who co-founded Agency.com and helped define the first generation of digital storytelling. Today, he leads Storyvine, a video platform empowering authentic storytelling at scale, and serves as co-founder of the AI Salon. Kyle believes AI is a transformation even more profound than the web, and he’s committed to helping people navigate this change with creativity and purpose.
Liz Miller Gershfeld
Liz Miller Gershfeld is a Chicago-based creative technologist and producer working at the intersection of storytelling, craft, and generative systems. Under her creative identity Not Liz AI, she creates short films, prototypes, and interactive tools using language models, image generation, and AI-assisted video.
With more than two decades producing visual campaigns for major brands and leading multidisciplinary teams, Liz brings a deep respect for ideas, process, and the human decisions behind every detail. She is delighted to co-host the AI Salon with Kyle, a community founded by Kyle and Leah that she has long admired. For Liz, the Salon has been central to her own evolving learning journey, and she is committed to helping steward a space where questioning, prototyping, and discovery shape how creative work with AI unfolds.
THE JOURNEY
SO FAR
The AI Salon was founded the week after ChatGPT launched and held our first meeting on December 7th, 2022. Our focus has been on providing our members community and training around generative AI, particularly post-ChatGPT, that empowers the 98.5% of people who are not engineers to access the power of AI and Machine learning.
Held first meetings in-person & online
~35 members
Launched the online community on Discord
~600 members
Migrated from Discord to Web-based community
aisalon.mn.co
#GPT4GOOD
24 hour GPT build-a-thon in conjunction w/#SheLeadsAI and build more than 150 non-profits
Kyle Shannon meets with Colorado Congressional delegation in DC to discuss the future of AI.
AI Festivus “AI for the Rest of Us”
36 speakers from 4 communities over 36 hours. 2,500 participants from all over the world. (~2000 members)
AI Readiness Project podcast launches
Hosted by Kyle Shannon & Anne Murphy (extension of AI Festivus) (~3000 members)
The future of AI is still up for grabs—join us
FRIENDS OF
THE SALON
We collaborate with aligned organizations, networks, and leaders who share our mission. Want to partner with us?