A WORKSHOP SERIES BY THE FRONT ROOM

Southfield
Business AI Lab.

Put AI to work on a real business task.

Bring a task, a question, or an idea you want to test. Work through it with AI, check the result, and decide what to keep or improve.

For founders, solo owners, and people with ideas across industries and stages. Rooted in Southfield, open to Metro Detroit.

See the next workshop ↗

Led by Johnny B. Gaines III. You don’t need an established business or a technical background.

Concept image of four adults sharing ideas around two laptops at a warmly lit table. — AI-generated concept: people and setting are illustrative.

NEXT WORKSHOP · A SERIES BY THE FRONT ROOM

Bring one task.
Make real progress.

THURSDAY · NOVEMBER 12, 2026 · 12:30–2:30 PM EST · DOORS OPEN 12:15

Southfield Business AI Lab

A free working lunch to put AI to work on one task from your business. Use Manus 2.0 to work toward a draft you can review and refine.

Bring a landing page to draft, an outreach list to organize, a research question, or a workflow to map.

Free to attend. Lunch included. Limited to 15 seats.

YOUR AFTERNOON, PUT TO WORK

Two hours.
Your actual business.

Where: Oakland Commons One, First-floor conference room
20700 Civic Center Drive
Southfield, MI 48076

Bring: Your laptop, charger, and one real task from your business.

The goal: A new perspective on how AI could help in your business, grounded in a draft you can review and refine.

Independently organized by The Front Room with Manus credits support. Not an official Manus event.

THE FRONT ROOM · BEYOND THE TASK

Your business.
A new perspective.

Make room for what comes next. Build a brief around your priorities, see where AI could help, and leave with one practical experiment to try.

SIX QUESTIONS. YOUR OWN STARTING POINT.Open your workspace

the front roomBUSINESS AI LAB / FIELDWORK

Private, in this page

What would you like to change?

Choose everything that matters right now. We’ll keep the overlaps visible and help you find one useful place to start.

CHOOSE ALL THAT FIT0 selected

Get things in orderMake the work less scattered or inconsistent.Make everyday work easierReduce the effort in something I do often.Handle more without doing it all myselfBuild a dependable way to get work done.See what else the business could becomeExplore a new offer, audience, or way to deliver value.Find out whether an idea is worth pursuingGet evidence before I invest more in it.

A LITTLE CONTEXT HELPS

Choose all that fit. You can add or remove a choice before continuing.

0 of 6 questions answeredGUIDED REFLECTION · NOT LIVE AI

A guided, rule-based reflection, not a live AI agent or a validated diagnostic. No email needed. Your answers stay in this page’s memory, aren’t sent or saved, and clear when you reload.

Five lenses. No fixed order.

Open any part to see where it can help. Your starting point is one way into the whole framework.

Clean the Mess

Is Your Business Ready for AI?

Get the task, information, and responsibilities clear before adding another tool.

Find the Leverage

Where Should AI Actually Go?

Choose a useful place for AI to help, and decide what should stay with a person.

Build the Intelligence

From Chatbots to AI Agents

Connect a repeatable job to trusted information, clear permissions, and human oversight.

Beyond the Business You Have

What Does AI Make Possible?

Explore what your knowledge and relationships could become: a new offer, market, or way of doing business.

Prove It

The 14-Day AI Business Experiment

Turn an idea into a small test with a spending limit and evidence that tells you whether to continue.

PRACTICAL AI, IN PLAIN ENGLISH

Start with
something real.

The focus changes from workshop to workshop. Work might include:

AN IDEA TO TEST

Test an idea.

Sketch who it could help and what it would do. Use AI to draft a concept and questions to take into real customer conversations.

SOMETHING TO SHARE

Make a first draft.

Work on a landing page, service description, or research brief. Check the facts and refine it before sharing it with anyone.

A REPEATING TASK

Rethink a routine.

Map the steps in a task you do often. Identify where AI might help, what it would need, and where a person should review the work.

OPTIONAL INDIVIDUAL HELP

Need help with
your own project?

Email Johnny B. Gaines III with what you’re trying to do and where you’re stuck.

Individual help is separate from workshops and the free Social Club. Scope, timing, and price are agreed before work begins.

Ask Johnny about individual help ↗

Before you pull up a chair

Do I need to know how to use AI?

No. We’ll explain the tools in plain language and work through how to check their output. Each workshop listing explains what to bring.

How do I join a workshop?

Use the registration link for the workshop you want to attend. Each listing has its own details and any ticket price. Joining the free Social Club list does not reserve a workshop seat.

Can I join the community without attending a Lab?

Yes. Join the Social Club free and come to the gatherings that interest you. Selected events are ticketed separately. Workshops and individual help are optional.

Where does the Lab meet?

Check the venue on each workshop listing. The Front Room’s permanent home for work and gatherings is still in development, with no confirmed location or opening date.