TRAIL: Technology, Real-world AI, and Learning

TRAIL has wrapped up its first season, and before we head into winter I want to look back and say thank you.

When I started TRAIL, the goal was simple. I wanted to give people in our community a place to get their hands on AI tools, try them out, and leave with something useful. That was the plan on paper. Each session was a workshop, but more importantly, it was a conversation. People brought their questions, their doubts, their work problems, and their curiosity, and the room worked through them together. Through all of it, what I cared about most was whether we helped someone. If you walked out of a session with a little more confidence or a new way of thinking about your work, TRAIL did what it was meant to do.

Early on, Tom Stergios pointed out that TRAIL could also be TRIAL. That stuck with me the whole season, because it was true. I set out with a goal to help, and with nearly every session we were trying something new. Some things worked and some didn’t. We adjusted the format, rethought how much to demo and how much to let people build, and learned as much from the room as the room learned from us.

Our final session on strategy was a fitting place to land. It turned into a small, honest conversation about our state, our public lands, the ethical use of these tools, and what the future might look like. What stood out to me was how many voices this conversation needs: the skeptics, the pros, the people firmly against, and everyone somewhere in between. That is what makes Montanans great. We are invested in this place, we want to protect and preserve it, and we take seriously our role as stewards of its resources. AI is no different. We need everyone at the table.

Thank you to everyone who showed up, asked hard questions, and stayed after to keep talking. Thank you to Tom Stergios and Kate Pace at Craton for partnering with us and co-facilitating. Thank you to the Montana High Tech Business Alliance and Blackfoot Communications for supporting the series, and to Missoula College for hosting us at the River Campus.

We are taking a winter break to rest and refocus. In the coming months we will reach out for your feedback, and what you tell us will shape what TRAIL looks like in Season 2. In the meantime, we will keep partnering with people and organizations across the state to push this conversation further.

Until next time, I hope the AI trail you’re on has good footing, a few switchbacks worth the climb, and a view at the top that pays off the effort. And if you reach a fork and aren’t sure which way to go, you know where to find us.