The AI-Curious
Students, career-switchers, anyone wanting to understand where this is heading. You don't need to be technical. You need to be interested.
By builders,
for builders.
In mid-Missouri.
A community meetup for people actually working with AI in mid-Missouri. Builders shipping real things, operators deploying it in their work, and the curious figuring out where to start. Come hang out, trade notes, and meet the people building the next thing next door.
Join our community of builders from:
// who we are
COMO AI is a community meetup for the people actually doing the work with AI in mid-Missouri — and the ones trying to figure it out alongside them.
We're not running it like a conference because mid-Missouri doesn't need another conference. No vendor pitches. No hype decks. No keynote parade. Just builders, pros, and the curious, at the same table, talking to each other.
Operators
The people deploying AI inside their org. Marketing, ops, legal, clinical, whatever. Figuring out what's hype and what's durable.
Builders
Engineers, founders, and tinkerers actively building with LLMs, agents, RAG, or anything adjacent. Come compare notes on what's actually working.
// next meetup
// what to expect
It's not a conference. There's no agenda. Walk in, grab a drink, find someone interesting, talk.
Conversations.
Not presentations. Just people.
Real discussions about what's being built, what's breaking, and what's actually shipping in mid-Missouri. No keynote parade, no q&a queue — just people talking shop with each other in the same room. Walk in, find a conversation that pulls you in, and stay as long as it's good.
Connections
Small enough that you'll actually remember names. Meet the people working on AI across Columbia, mid-Missouri, and the university.
Drinks On Us
Drinks are covered. Come thirsty, leave with new contacts and a few new ideas worth chasing.
Drop a Track
Got something worth sharing? Suggest a topic or volunteer to present at a future meetup. Five to seven minutes, no slides required.
// past meetups
What we've shipped.
A snapshot of COMO AI's first meetups. What got demo'd, who showed up, and what people walked out talking about.
● Meetup #01 · Sold out
March 11, 2026 · Shakespeare's Pizza
Inaugural meetup: intros, networking, and a Gamma AI demo
First wave of mid-Missouri builders, pros, and curious folks in the same room. Lightning intros, open conversation, and a walk-through of Gamma AI from someone using it for real client work.
Sold out in 48h
Gamma AI demo
● Meetup #02 · Happened
April 8, 2026 · Shakespeare's Pizza
Round two: the AI Mixtape drops
Second wave back at Shakespeare's. Debut of the AI Mixtape format — short tracks from mid-Missouri builders, followed by B-side table chats. Standing room only by the time the tracks rolled.
Full house
Mixtape Vol. 1 shipped
● Meetup #03 · Up next
June 25, 2026 · International Tap House
Round three: AI happy hour
Pure networking at International Tap House. No presentations, no schedule — just the mid-Missouri AI crowd in one room. Drinks on us.
RSVP open
Thu · 5–7:30 PM
// questions
Frequently asked.
Do I need to be technical to come?
No. About a third of the room on any given night isn't technical at all. Marketing leads, ops people, students, founders, attorneys, clinicians. The only requirement is curiosity. If you're using AI in your work or trying to figure out where to start, you belong here.
Is it really free? What's the catch?
It's really free. The Center for Transformative Tech at Trulaske covers the food and the venue, with help from a rotating list of community partners. There's no ticket, no upsell, no list-grab. RSVPing just helps us order the right amount of pizza.
Can I demo something I'm building?
Yes, please. Demos are 5 minutes max, no slides required, just show the thing. Email c4tt@missouri.edu at least a week before the meetup with a one-line description and we'll slot you in.
Who organizes COMO AI?
COMO AI is hosted by the Center for Transformative Tech at Trulaske College of Business, University of Missouri, and run as a community project. Meaning the people in the room shape what it becomes. We're not a chapter of anything bigger. We're not a recruiting funnel. We're mid-Missouri's AI room.
How often does this happen?
Monthly, on a weekday evening. Venues and formats rotate — Shakespeare's for AI Mixtape nights (short talks + networking), International Tap House for happy hours (pure networking). We're building out a full calendar through summer 2026. The COMO AI briefing (our newsletter) is the best way to hear about the next one as soon as it's locked.
// stay involved
Between meetups
Join the Discord
Where the community actually lives between meetups. Builders, operators, and the curious swapping notes, links, and working sessions from across mid-Missouri.
Open invite
Get on the mixtape
Drop a track
The AI Mixtape returns in June at Shakespeare's. Five to seven minutes on what you're building or just figured out. No slides required. Works-in-progress welcome — that's the whole point.
Volunteer to present
Signal boost
Share a resource
A long read, a tool, a paper, a workflow, a prompt that actually works. Send it in. We surface the best of it in the briefing below and credit you.
Send it over