Video summary
On Tuesday, August 25th, the Shaping Our Appalachian Region organization convened an open forum in Whitesburg to explore how local businesses are integrating artificial intelligence into their daily operations. The event brought together employers and business owners who sought to network with one another while learning strategies to leverage AI as a tool for enhancing efficiency and automating routine tasks. Shaniqua Corley Moore, the Director of Tech Workforce, facilitated the discussion by highlighting the unique challenges and opportunities facing rural communities in this technological shift. Unlike the well-documented urban adoption of AI, the forum aimed to specifically understand how these technologies are being utilized within rural America to build stronger local economies.
A central theme of the gathering was the distinction between national AI trends and the specific needs of rural enterprises. Corley Moore emphasized that while there is significant awareness of AI in major cities, the focus here is on identifying practical use cases that directly impact rural businesses and their employees. The discussion centered on determining which skills are necessary for companies to succeed and progress effectively when adopting these new tools. By addressing the rural aspects of AI implementation, the group hoped to ensure that local businesses could move forward without falling behind, tailoring the technology's application to fit the specific economic landscape of Appalachia rather than simply copying urban models.
Despite the potential benefits, the forum also addressed valid concerns regarding the risks associated with adopting artificial intelligence in local settings. Corley Moore noted that arguments against AI use often stem from legitimate issues such as resource consumption and environmental impact, particularly regarding water usage and energy demands. She drew a parallel to the initial skepticism surrounding the internet and Google, suggesting that while there are valid objections, proper utilization of AI ultimately benefits organizations. The key takeaway was the importance of auditing current AI usage within an organization to prevent misuse and ensuring that every prompt generated is necessary, rather than replacing simple research with energy-intensive digital queries.
In conclusion, the open forum served as a critical step for local businesses to assess their readiness and ethical considerations regarding AI adoption. The dialogue encouraged participants to think critically about whether specific tasks truly require AI assistance or if they could be handled through traditional research methods to conserve resources. By balancing the drive for efficiency with responsible resource management, rural business leaders can harness the power of artificial intelligence to improve productivity without compromising sustainability. As reported by Nick Colvin for Mountain Top News, this initiative marks a significant effort to bridge the gap between emerging technology and the practical realities of small-town economic development.
Read the full video transcript
On Tuesday, August 25th, Shaping Our
Appalachian Region hosted an open forum
discussing how local businesses are
implementing AI in their workflow.
Employers and business owners were
present to network with one another and
learn how to potentially use AI as a
tool meant for improving efficiency and
performing more remedial tasks. Director
of Tech Workforce Shaniqua Corley Moore
gives us the details.
>> Today, we are meeting in Whitesburg,
honestly, to understand the rural
aspects of how employers and educators
are utilizing AI currently.
Knowing that there has always been a
national presence and an urban presence
around AI and how it's being used there.
But, with the Center on Rural
Innovation, because we focus primarily
on rural communities and helping them
build their economies, we are simply
trying to understand the use cases that
we're having in rural America and how AI
is impacting maybe their business or
their employees and what skills they're
trying to gain or what skills they need
to have in order for the companies to be
successful and to move forward in
progress when it comes to AI.
>> For those who argue against AI being
used in local businesses, Corley Moore
says there are risks that should be
assessed. Resource consumption should
always be considered when using AI for
any purpose.
>> When you're thinking about the World
Wide Web and the internet and when
Google came out, of course, there's
going to be an opportunity where
people are against it. But, ultimately,
if you utilize it properly and utilize
it correctly, it ultimately help your
company and help your organization and
help your business. comes to AI and
we're talking about over water usage and
consumption and things of that nature,
it's truly going to be around
what one of my colleagues said earlier
today is going back to that whiteboard
and thinking about how is AI currently
within my organization being misused,
how can we actually use it for its
efficiency.
And then, if let's say you're putting in
a daily prompt. Um, I don't know what
the statistics say for every prompt that
goes into an AI source
uh for water consumption. But let's say
you're putting in a prompt. Is this
something that actually needed to be a
prompt or is this something that you
could have researched without utilizing
AI?
>> Reporting for Mountain Top News, I'm
Nick Colvin.