Inspiration Station | 2026 Real Good Workshop
Hi there friends! Hope you are doing Real Good. Last week was Real Good AI’s second annual workshop. This was an exciting time for us because the team and the board had never actually been in the same physical room before.
We met at a rental house in Orlando and used the giant, but flickery TV in the main area to project slides and lead discussion. We spent two days in deep discussion and the passion and excitement in the room was absolutely infectious. I’m excited to share a quick summary of the workshop.
First, we looked back at all we had accomplished in the past year. Even though the organization has gone through a lot of changes since last year, we accomplished pretty much what we set out to do plus so much we never imagined. We went through every program we had developed including our research, the REAL rating system, our live stream interviews, social media, coloring pages, our volunteer programs, and other secret (ok not so secret but I’m trying to make you curious and excited) creative projects that mix science and art. We set 47 specific milestone goals for these projects, which is a hugely ambitious goal. That means we pretty much have to meet a milestone every week. Now it won’t be equally spread throughout the year, but I am so confident that the team will accomplish these goals and make you and the whole community proud.
Then we discussed fundraising from every avenue so we can keep the organization thriving. In particular, there was much discussion about what corporate sponsorships might look like for our organization. We want to be extremely careful because we really appreciate the crowdfunded and community led nature of our organization, and we want to be protective of how rare that is, especially in AI. We are excited to make Full STEAM ahead bigger and better for you this year so we are happy to hear any ideas you have for raising funds for the organization.
All the team members showed major accomplishments from this last year and set SMART (Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant Time-bound) Goals. If you’ve done these before, you know they can be SO boring, but our multitalented team has exciting things planned for 2026. We were all on the edge of our seats. For example, Dr Imène is attending a conference held by the International Association for Safe and Ethical AI (IASEAI) in Paris next week to talk with research professionals about the REAL rating system. Dr Eric plans on writing an album of original music for us to use, and Mayleen is finishing her PhD this year. (Congrats almost Dr!)
The next day was opened with an official board meeting where the budget was approved and other very official matters were addressed. We then talked the whole day about everything in the organization from administrative procedures, dream guests we would like on our streams, to what we can improve this year. We even threw around an idea of streaming our scientific research meetings because it’s actually so interesting to hear the impressive work and the serious but fun discussions around the science. Now these won’t be hitting Twitch anytime soon, I bring it up only to demonstrate how creatively we’re thinking and how we are attempting to change the entire paradigm of what a research institution looks like.
The day after the workshop, we all went to Disney World together to celebrate our success and hang out. (Don’t worry, we did NOT use nonprofit funds for this!!!) Thank you for supporting us and allowing us to have the best and most passionate organization. If anyone can change the world, I truly believe it is this team!
