Post by WOMEN x AI (WxAI)

At TechCon SoCal, we curated a panel on Rethinking Growth, Talent, and Discovery in the Age of AI. On stage, we brought together four distinct perspectives: 🎤 Summer Poletti (rhymes with spaghetti), Founder and CRO of Rise of Us, as moderator and revenue strategist 🎤 Alicia Shapiro, CMO of AI News, on media and discovery 🎤 Lolita Taub, Founder and General Partner at Ganas Ventures, on the investor lens 🎤 Ajantha Suriyanarayanan, Founder and CEO of MentalLoad AI, on founders, talent, and human behavior In her latest guest blog, Summer shares what happened before, during, and after the panel, and why the real ROI of events comes from the full relationship arc. Her takeaway: “The event is the seed. Everything else is the harvest.” Summer breaks down how she used AI before TechCon SoCal to identify high-potential people, personally wrote targeted outreach, protected her post-event calendar, and turned in-person conversations into follow-up meetings, podcast opportunities, and new collaboration pathways. The lesson for founders, operators, revenue leaders, and community builders: ➡️ Before the event: Use AI to focus your attention. ➡️ During the event: Stay open to the people no algorithm would flag. ➡️ After the event: Move quickly while the relationship energy is still alive. AI can help us prepare, prioritize, and see patterns, but relationships are still built through trust, presence, and follow-through. Read Summer’s full TechCon SoCal playbook on the WOMEN x AI blog. 💬 What’s one thing you do after an event to turn a great conversation into a real relationship?