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- Meta's Llama Hackathon Hits Austin + $500K in Impact Grants 🦙
Meta's Llama Hackathon Hits Austin + $500K in Impact Grants 🦙
Austin's AI Ecosystem Expands: From Open Source to Healthcare Innovation
AITX Team
November 01, 2024
Hello everyone! AITX Team here with more updates this week.
If you’re new here, welcome! 👋 At AITX, we aim to:
Connect you with like-minded peers passionate about AI.
Provide a space for sharing ideas and receiving feedback on AI projects you’re building.
Share helpful tools and invaluable resources.
Before we jump into the regular news, a few housekeeping items:
November AITX Meetups:
Our upcoming meetups:
San Antonio Meetup: Tuesday, November 12 | sign up here!
Austin Meetup: Tuesday, November 19 | sign up here!
To stay in the loop on all our monthly meetups and other community organized events, subscribe to our AITX calendar here.
Check out our Community Directory:
We recently started a community directory where you can fill out your profile and find other members of the AITX community.
If you haven’t filled out your profile yet, please follow the link HERE and submit your information.
🦙 ATX Llama Hackathon Kickoff & Registration!
Meta and AITX are collaborating on the Austin Llama Hackathon
Save the Date: The Hackathon will be November 23rd - November 24th
👇️ The registration page is live! 👇️
✍️ Austin Llama Hackathon Kickoff Reception
When: Friday, Nov 22 | 5:00 PM-7:30 PM
Where: Meta Office. 607 West 3rd Street , Austin, Texas.
What: Meta and AITX are hosting a reception Nov 22 at Meta's downtown Austin office to celebrate the Austin Llama Hackathon (which starts the following day)
Join us for appetizers, drinks, demos, and a panel discussion about the value of open-source AI. Connect with other innovators and developers who are shaping the future of technology.
👉️ RSVP for the Reception here
đź“ž Call For Llama Impact Grants Application!
When: Apply before 11:59 pm PST on November 22, 2024.
Where: Learn more here
What:
Llama Impact Grants - Up to $500K for Hackathon Projects
• Open call for proposals
• Llama ATX hackathon participants eligible
• Grants support continued project development
👉Learn more: Llama Impact Grants Website
Special Deal đź’µ
Nov 7-8 over 500 AI teams will be flying into Austin for the 5th Annual MLOps World / Gen AI World Summit,
The organizers would like to offer AITX Hackathon participants a discount code AITXHacks for 100$ off all ticket types.
This includes food and drink for 2 days of sessions, socials, case studies, and workshop tutorials from LinkedIn, Shopify, Amazon, Lyft, Grammarly, Mistral et.
đź’ˇ Info
Date: Nov 7-8th in Renaissance Marriott, Austin TX. (free parking)
In this week’s edition you’re getting:
5 Upcoming Events
3 AI Community Stories
1 Community Highlight
So let’s jump in!
UPCOMING EVENTS
AI Agents Developer Meetup 🤝 (in collaboration with AITX)
When: Wednesday, November 6 | 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM CST
Where: 11044 Research Blvd building b suite 300 Austin, Texas
What: ​​Join us for our monthly SambaNova AI Agents Developer Meetup in Austin! We are excited to host you in our office and connect with the AI Developer Community in Austin. Food and drinks provided, so come to network with the Austin AI Developer Community.
When: Wednesday, November 6 | 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM CST
Where: Capital Factory 701 Brazos St · Austin, TX
What: In this session, Russ Somers will show you how to create a “GPTeam” using role-specific Custom GPTs to triple your marketing output. And trust us—this is more than just faster content creation. There’s so much potential waiting to be unlocked!
When: Thursday, November 14 | 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM CST
Where: 701 Brazos St 701 Brazos St · Austin, TX
What: Connect with other artists, creatives, and technologists and stay updated on the latest developments in the arts and AI-tech space.
When: Thursday, November 7 | 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM CST
Where: Wise Austin Office (@ the Domain) 10025 Alterra Parkway, FL 23 · Austin, TX
What:
In this session, you’ll learn:
How to determine when AI should be integrated into product solutions.
How to design transformative features that drive real impact.
Why understanding behavioral change is crucial for both user satisfaction and business success.
When: Wednesday, November 13 | 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM CST
Where: ACC - RGC 3000 1218 West Avenue · Austin, TX
What: This event combines networking, learning, and showcasing. It's our primary monthly event where the Austin LangChain and AI Middleware community gathers to learn, share, and collaborate.
From the latest project highlights to interactive Q&A sessions, there's plenty to inspire and connect over.
Stick around for the after-party mixer to keep the conversations flowing in a more relaxed setting! Enjoy special drinks, great company, and themed discussions to cap off an inspiring evening.
COMMUNITY STORIES
Shokworks, International Accelerator, and Austin AI Valley are joining forces to launch the Austin AI Lab, opening November 22nd downtown. The initiative aims to democratize AI access for Texas businesses of all sizes through a pay-as-you-go model.
Why it matters: This positions Austin to strengthen its status as a leading AI innovation center while making enterprise-grade AI tools accessible to local businesses that might otherwise get left behind in the AI revolution.
Need-to-know:
Lab offers AI Agents as a Service, Workflow Automation, and Data Analytics tools typically reserved for large corporations
International Accelerator will provide guidance for foreign-born founders entering the U.S. market
Partnership includes Shokworks (bringing 6+ years of AI expertise and 150+ product successes), International Accelerator, and Austin AI Valley
Pay-as-you-go model eliminates need for heavy upfront investment
Opens November 22nd in downtown Austin
Learn more here.
Austin-based Oracle is set to revolutionize healthcare with a new AI-powered electronic health record (EHR) system launching next year, marking a major evolution from their $28 billion Cerner acquisition.
Why it matters: This positions Austin at the intersection of healthcare and AI innovation, reinforcing Central Texas's growing reputation as a hub for transformative healthcare technology.
Need-to-know:
System features advanced AI capabilities including voice navigation, clinical documentation assistance, and intelligent patient data analytics
Oracle describes it as "a dynamic, evolving system of intelligence" rather than just a record-keeping tool
Company emphasizes this is a ground-up rebuild, not a retrofit of existing technology
Launch represents one of the largest AI healthcare initiatives from a Texas-based tech company
Integrates with Oracle's broader healthcare data intelligence ecosystem
Learn more here.
The Texas Tribune has rolled out an experimental AI tool powered by Google to help Texans navigate voting rules and procedures for the 2024 elections, making critical civic information more accessible through conversational AI.
Why it matters: This represents a practical application of AI for civic engagement in Texas, showcasing how local organizations are using AI to strengthen democratic participation and reduce barriers to voting.
Need-to-know:
Tool provides instant answers about Texas voting rules, ID requirements, and deadlines
Responses are based exclusively on verified Tribune reporting, ensuring accuracy
Built in partnership with Google, demonstrating growing AI collaboration in Texas media
Includes transparency features letting users verify source information
Part of a larger initiative to make election information more accessible to all Texan
Learn more here.
COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHT
This week we’re highlighting Cristian Pereyra.
Here’s a bit about him:
As the CTO at emBlueMail, I manage 4 development teams building on our Customer Engagement platform.
On the side, I also build consumer AI projects, and one of them, Kaption, has already attracted over 20K monthly active users.
Recently, we’ve accelerated development with access to Groq’s cutting-edge tech combined with Llama, enabling faster inference speeds and unlocking new use cases.
Checkout Cristian’s product Kaption HERE.
If you’d like to connect with him, you can reach him on LinkedIn HERE.
That’s all for now, folks!
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