Our Events
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Featured BTS Events
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Workshops, Happy Hours & More
Virtual AI Series: Impact by the Numbers: AI for Data, Dashboards & Evaluation
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Calebria Webb, creator of From IP to Impact, leads a hands-on session on how AI can transform how we measure and communicate success. This workshop focuses on turning complex data into clarity—simplifying impact tracking, automating reporting, and visualizing outcomes that tell your story powerfully. Participants will learn how to build dashboards that update automatically, use AI to clean and categorize data, and communicate measurable results to stakeholders with confidence and ease.
Meet Your Host – Calebria Webb, Founder of From IP to Impact
Calebria Webb is the creator of From IP to Impact, a learning consultancy that helps subject matter experts turn what they already know into training and digital products that scale. She blends strategy, creativity, and people-centered design to make knowledge easier to teach, learn, and monetize.
With a passion for transforming expertise into impact, Calebria teaches organizations and entrepreneurs how to design systems that scale knowledge, bridging the gap between insight and execution through strategy, storytelling, and smart use of technology.
Virtual AI Series: Sales & Success with AI: Outreach, CRM & the Customer Journey
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Cynthia Lee explores how AI is reshaping sales and service, making every customer interaction smarter and more intentional. This workshop will uncover how to automate outreach, optimize CRM data, and elevate every stage of the customer journey. Participants will learn how to craft targeted outreach and follow-up campaigns using AI insights, improve CRM segmentation and accuracy, and leverage predictive analytics to enhance the customer experience from end to end.
Meet Your Host – Cynthia Lee, Founder of Sovereign Vista
Cynthia Lee is a communications and marketing strategist with a passion for storytelling, innovation, and entrepreneurship. As the Founder of Sovereign Vista, she helps clients elevate their brand presence through strategic content, digital marketing, and AI-assisted creative solutions.
Cynthia’s career bridges journalism, marketing, and project management, equipping her to craft campaigns that connect audiences, strengthen communities, and drive measurable growth. With a focus on clarity, creativity, and impact, she empowers organizations and entrepreneurs to harness AI as a partner in building authentic, scalable customer relationships.
Virtual AI Series: AI for Impact: Fundraising, Grants & Nonprofit Storytelling
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Marc Alexander explores how AI can empower mission-driven organizations to raise more funds and tell stronger stories. From grant writing to donor management, this session shows you how to do more good with less effort. Participants will learn how to identify funding opportunities, personalize donor communications, and track impact metrics to clearly demonstrate results.
Meet Your Host – Marc Alexander, Founder of Lite Tuition and Co-Founder & CEO of Lite Raise
Marc Alexander is a visionary leader and accomplished serial entrepreneur dedicated to fostering innovation in business and community impact. As the Founder of Lite Tuition and Co-Founder and CEO of Lite Raise, Marc is transforming how students access education and how nonprofits fundraise, creating tools that unlock long-term growth and sustainability.
Beyond his ventures, Marc serves on the Board of Directors for FreeStar Financial Credit Union and the Amour Women Foundation, advocating for financial literacy and empowerment in underserved communities. A past president and active member of a leading Kiwanis club, Marc has received the Hixson Award for his outstanding service to youth and community development.
Named a 2025 Most Valuable Entrepreneur by Corp! Magazine and recognized among Macomb County’s 40 Under 40, Marc is also a published author, motivational speaker, and social entrepreneur. His mission is rooted in using technology to drive systemic change, leading with vision, empathy, and a passion for helping others rise.
Virtual AI Series: AI Operations Hacks: Automate, Schedule & Streamline You
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Nilda G. Thomas, MBA, CEC, CEA, explores how AI can simplify the unglamorous but essential parts of running a business. This session will demonstrate how to automate repetitive tasks, optimize scheduling, and strengthen HR functions to free up time for strategy and creativity. Participants will learn how to build custom automations, use AI to improve team communication and scheduling, and design practical HR and workflow systems that scale efficiently.
Meet Your Host – Nilda G. Thomas, MBA, CEC, CEA, Chief Certified AI Officer & Trainer
Nilda G. Thomas is an award-winning Certified AI Consultant and the Founder of Business AI Consulting (BAIC), a firm that helps organizations transform operations and build an AI-ready workforce through practical, role-based training.
Recognized as an AI trailblazer in business and workforce development by the Women of Heart Awards, Nilda champions inclusive innovation in AI. Her blend of business insight, marketing expertise, and technical proficiency—rooted in an MBA in eBusiness and certifications as an eCommerce Consultant and eMarketing Analyst—makes her a trusted advisor to corporate and philanthropic leaders.
She is the Amazon #1 bestselling author of AI for Executives: A Blueprint for Success, Innovation, and Growth and Business Transformation: The Impact of an AI-Educated Workforce. Her work has been featured in national publications, and her flagship framework, AI WorkforcePRO™, under the BAIC brand, serves as a model for inclusive, future-ready innovation across sectors.
Through her leadership and training programs, Nilda Thomas continues to position organizations and individuals for measurable ROI, sustainable transformation, and equitable participation in the future of work.
Virtual AI Series: Navigating the Legal Frontier: Responsible AI for Startups
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as David Thomas, Partner at Honigman LLP, leads an insightful conversation on navigating the legal frontier of artificial intelligence. This session explores how AI is transforming the legal landscape for startups and small businesses, from intellectual property and contracts to compliance and data governance. Participants will learn how to harness AI’s potential while understanding its limits, legal risks, and the importance of human oversight in responsible AI adoption.
Meet Your Host – David Thomas, Partner, Honigman LLP
David Thomas is a Partner at Honigman LLP in Detroit, where his practice focuses on strategic counseling and guidance in intellectual property law. In addition to litigating complex patent matters in key jurisdictions across the country, including the District of Delaware, the Eastern and Western Districts of Texas, the International Trade Commission, and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. David counsels clients on domestic and international patent strategies and prosecutes patents in the mechanical, electrical, and software arts.
With deep expertise at the intersection of technology, innovation, and intellectual property, David helps startups and established organizations navigate the rapidly evolving legal and policy landscape surrounding AI. His work emphasizes practical, ethical, and forward-thinking approaches to protecting innovation in a technology driven world.
Virtual AI Series: Team Training Elevated: AI for Upskilling & Learning at Scale
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Tamara M. Allen, MSML, explores how AI can transform team development through personalized, scalable learning. This session will demonstrate how organizations can use AI to design adaptive learning paths, build knowledge bases, and develop “train-the-trainer” models that foster continuous growth. Participants will learn to identify the right tools for team enablement, design human-centered AI learning systems, and create a culture of experimentation and progress through AI literacy.
Meet Your Host – Tamara M. Allen, MSML, Certified Life & Career Coach and Founder of AlignaWorX, Inc.
Tamara M. Allen is a Certified Life and Career Coach, AI Integrationist, and Founder of AlignaWorX, Inc., a skills-based nonprofit dedicated to advancing AI literacy and workforce readiness for non-tech professionals. Founded under Allen Coaching Group, AlignaWorX delivers generative-AI-infused training that helps individuals and organizations integrate technology into everyday work and life.
Through her signature Coaching the Coach methodology, Tamara equips leaders, coaches, and career teams with practical systems for embedding AI into coaching workflows—enabling sustainable employee growth and development. Her mission centers on human-centered transformation, bridging workforce strategy, coaching, and AI innovation to help people thrive in an evolving digital workplace.
Virtual AI Series: AI & Community Building: Engage, Empower & Tell Your Story
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Khayla McClinton explores how AI can help communities thrive where technology meets heart. This session will demonstrate how artificial intelligence can enhance engagement, deepen belonging, and support storytelling that strengthens ecosystems. Participants will learn how to measure and grow community engagement with AI tools, personalize communications that foster inclusion and connection, and collect and share member stories with AI-driven content support.
Meet Your Host – Khayla McClinton, Founder & CEO of McClinton Scholars Mentoring Program; Co-Founder & CEO of SRA Media; Co-Founder of the Atlanta Book Festival; and Director of Summit Operations at STEMSoulcial
Khayla McClinton is a career-fluid leader and community architect who builds spaces for connection, learning, and growth. She empowers underrepresented youth pursuing STEM careers through the McClinton Scholars Mentoring Program, helps individuals tell their stories and showcase their work with SRA Media, and cultivates spaces for young millennial and older Gen Z readers and writers to connect, learn, and grow through the Atlanta Book Festival.
Bridging science, media, education, and events, Khayla leverages artificial intelligence as a tool to build community, expand access, and amplify voices. Her work ensures that the spaces she builds are inclusive, equitable, and designed to help everyone thrive.
Virtual AI Series: Ethics & Guardrails: Navigating AI Safely & Responsibly
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The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or organizational impact. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you’re building a business, leading a team, or driving a nonprofit mission, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Join us as Raymond Martin III and Shayla Unik Davis lead a powerful discussion on the ethics of artificial intelligence—where power meets responsibility. This session explores how to navigate the ethical implications of AI, from data privacy to bias prevention, and how to protect your organization as technology continues to evolve. Participants will learn how to recognize ethical risks in AI design and use, establish internal guidelines for responsible adoption, and balance innovation with transparency, accountability, and trust.
Meet Your Hosts – Raymond Martin III, Cybersecurity Professional; and Shayla Unik Davis, Founder & CEO of Unik HR Solutions
Raymond Martin III is a certified cybersecurity professional with over five years of experience in information system security and cyber risk management, specializing in cyber engineering and ethical hacking. He is driven to advance technical expertise, promote cyber awareness within digitally enabled communities, and create educational pathways that elevate competence and accountability across the cybersecurity profession. With a passion for protecting data integrity and empowering others to understand the risks and responsibilities of emerging technologies, Raymond’s work bridges technical precision with community impact.
Shayla Unik Davis is a dynamic Career Confidence and Development Coach with over a decade of experience in human resources. A certified HR professional (SHRM-CP since 2019), she built her career empowering people through purpose-driven hiring, inclusive leadership, and transformative career growth. Having successfully led a full HR department and recruited for diverse roles up to the C-suite, Shayla believes skill, integrity, and potential outweigh credentials alone.
When AI began reshaping the world of work, Shayla chose to partner with it—not compete against it. Through Unik HR Solutions, she now teaches business owners and job seekers how to use AI ethically and responsibly—to enhance productivity, streamline hiring, and amplify career storytelling while preserving the human connection. Her workshops blend HR expertise with modern AI literacy, equipping individuals and organizations to thrive in the evolving digital landscape.
Together, Raymond and Shayla bring a balanced, human-centered perspective to AI ethics—bridging technology, leadership, and integrity to help organizations innovate responsibly.
Virtual AI Series: Creative Work & AI: Design, Video, Music & Storytelling
Meet Your Host – Emmanuel Afolabi, Filmmaker & Founder of Fola Studios
Emmanuel Afolabi is a Detroit-based filmmaker, creative director, and founder of Fola Studios. With over a decade of experience in storytelling, he has produced branded content, documentaries, commercials, and social campaigns for brands including Shinola, Apple, Bedrock, and Nike.
His work blends cinematic craft with real human emotion—bringing dignity, voice, and vibrancy to every subject he captures. At Fola Studios, Emmanuel is building more than a production company—he’s creating infrastructure for Detroit’s creative community. As a full-service studio, Fola takes ideas from concept to delivery while ensuring every project, big or small, keeps people at the center.
Virtual AI Series: Product Lab: AI-Powered Prototyping, Feedback & MVP
Join us as Erin Lawler, Founder and Product Strategist of ErinVentures, leads an interactive session on how founders and creators can leverage AI to accelerate the product development journey—from concept to MVP. This workshop walks through how to use AI to rapidly prototype ideas, gather user feedback, and design smarter, more user-centered solutions. Participants will learn to apply AI tools to test and refine products efficiently, analyze customer insights for informed iteration, and integrate AI-driven intelligence into their product roadmap and customer experience.
Virtual AI Series: AI Research Deep Dive: Market Scans, Competitive Insights & Best Practices
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AI Research Deep Dive: Market Scans, Competitive Insights & Best Practices
The Virtual AI Series is designed to equip innovators, entrepreneurs, and professionals with the practical tools and insights needed to grow their skill set, business, or corporate toolkit. Through interactive sessions and real-world applications, participants will learn how to integrate AI to streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Whether you're building a business, leading a team, or exploring new career opportunities, this series will help you harness the power of artificial intelligence to work smarter and scale faster.
Stay ahead of the curve with AI-powered tools that transform how you research and strategize. This session, hosted by Sorilbran Othello Stone, will show you how to automate data collection, track competitors, and identify emerging opportunities with ease. Learn to turn raw data into actionable insights—so you can make smarter, faster, and more confident business decisions.
Meet Your Host - Sorilbran Othello Stone, Strategist + Founder, Five-Talent Strategy House
Sorilbran Stone is an AI Visibility Strategist and founder of Five-Talent Strategy House, where she helps founders and high-potential businesses engineer visibility and revenue through search and AI. She developed V.E.R.B. - Visibility Engineering for Revenue Building, a strategic methodology linking visibility to business outcomes. She also leads the Detroit Visibility Study, which examines how the city’s entrepreneurs are adapting to an AI-driven marketplace. Her work bridges storytelling, strategy, and technology to make visibility intentional and scalable.
Workshop Series: Getting Started with NSF | A Founder's Guide to Research & Innovation Programs with Javier & Darrell Presented by Black Tech Saturdays
The National Science Foundation (NSF) offers early-stage funding through its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs—also known as America’s Seed Fund. In this session, founders will get an inside look at how these programs work, what makes a strong application, and how to position your startup for success. We'll be joined by founders who have secured NSF funding, walking through their journeys and sharing lessons learned on how to unlock this powerful source of non-dilutive capital.
Workshop Series: Own the Spotlight | Mastering Media Readiness with Josh Landon
Unlocking Funding: How to Source Pitch Competitions, Grants, Solicitations, and Accelerators
Ready to find the right funding to grow your startup? This tactical session is designed for early- to mid-stage founders looking to cut through the noise and confidently pursue capital. We’ll break down key funding types—pitch competitions, government grants, solicitations, and accelerators—and show you exactly where to find them. You’ll learn what makes a strong application, how to avoid common missteps, and how to build a toolkit that makes you funder-ready. Walk away with a clear strategy and a list of actionable resources to help your journey!
Workshop Series: Go-To-Market Strategies for Founders with Justin Turk Presented by Black Tech Saturdays
Bringing a product to market takes more than a great idea—it requires a clear plan. This interactive workshop will help founders break down the core components of a winning go-to-market (GTM) strategy. From identifying your target customer to refining your unique value proposition and selecting the right sales and marketing channels, you'll learn how to craft a strategy that aligns with your business model and growth goals. Perfect for early-stage founders looking to launch or scale smarter.
Workshop Series: Funding Strategies & Sourcing Workshop with Nina Archie Presented by Black Tech Saturdays
Unlocking Funding: How to Source Pitch Competitions, Grants, Solicitations, and Accelerators
Ready to find the right funding to grow your startup? This tactical session is designed for early- to mid-stage founders looking to cut through the noise and confidently pursue capital. We’ll break down key funding types—pitch competitions, government grants, solicitations, and accelerators—and show you exactly where to find them. You’ll learn what makes a strong application, how to avoid common missteps, and how to build a toolkit that makes you funder-ready. Walk away with a clear strategy and a list of actionable resources to help your journey!
Moments That Sparked Change
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Event Recaps
Over the years, we’ve hosted thousands of attendees across Detroit and beyond through immersive events that bring together technologists, creatives, investors, founders, and community leaders. Black Tech Saturdays continues to shift what’s possible when culture, technology, and purpose collide. Our events aren’t just about access, they’re about reimaging the future!
Explore our past events
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Notable Speakers
From visionary founders to Fortune 500 execs, these are the changemakers shaping the future of tech, business, and community. Their insights have inspired the next wave of innovation.
Meet the Changemakers
Join the Movement.
Build the Future.
Opportunities, connections, and community are waiting. Join BTS and be part of what’s next.