Maui Small Business leaders get hands-on with AI to save time, drive growth

A small group of small business owners and leaders of non-profits gathered on Aug. 14 to grow their business with AI. The half-day workshop was hosted by Maui Economic Development Board and presented by Marc Rix, an international adviser, speaker, consultant and trainer.

A Maui resident and serial small business founder, Rix has guided some of the world’s largest organizations through major technology shifts and helps business leaders put AI to work in practical, human-first ways. 

“My goal was simple,” said Rix. “Help Maui’s business leaders separate AI myth from fact and apply AI in their organizations for fast, measurable results. Watching the room evolve from curious to confident to building real, working solutions before lunch proves that you can noticeably raise the tide on AI fluency on Maui in the right setting.”

Rix believes business leaders are being buried in AI noise, hype, and misinformation. The interactive workshop’s whole intent was to help them see through it and succeed with AI on their own terms.

Participants were asked to come prepared with a problem (or two) to solve. Rix helped them to build three “super skills” together, identify quick-win opportunities for AI in their own businesses, and had each leader build a working AI solution they took back to work that same day.

“This workshop was not about AI hype, tooling, or engineering,” Rix added. “It was about building business leaders’ AI intuition with practical, 80/20, people-first guidance. Attendees can now apply that intuition to implement quick-win AI solutions that get them significant time back to focus on the work that matters most.”

Wayne Wong, Director of Hawaiʻi Small Business Development Center on Maui took part and said, “The workshop struck an unusually effective balance: enough AI understanding to build confidence, enough hands-on practice to make it tangible, and a strong connection to the everyday realities of running a small business.”

Dan Ellis, President of Pacific Millworks added, “We loved the delivery, engagement, and how we used our own business problems, not a textbook.”

“The approach: hype-free, pitch-free, practical, and digestible, focused on one metric that matters: time back to focus on your most valuable work.” concluded Marc Rix. You can learn more about Rix at www.marcrix.ai

Stay updated on future workshops, meetings and events conducted by MEDB at www.medb.org

MEDB is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation established in 1982 with a mission to diversify Maui County’s economy, building pathways to innovation, jobs and opportunities for our residents.