Get Current Episode Show Notes

Monday, July 28, 2025

Episode Title: Trump's AI Action Plan Meets South Coast Innovation

Episode Summary:

This week's Get Current explores how Trump's ambitious AI Action Plan impacts our local tech ecosystem, China's Moonshot AI challenges Silicon Valley with the open-source Kimi K2 model, OpenAI's new Agent mode finally reaches most users, delivery robots start riding subways, and tonight's Coastal Intelligence investor event at Lodo Studios brings it all home to Santa Barbara.

Stories Covered:

1. Trump's AI Action Plan Released (July 23)

"Winning the AI Race: America's AI Action Plan" unveiled
Three pillars: accelerating innovation, building infrastructure, making US tech the global standard
Requirement for AI to be "objective and free from ideological bias"
Local impact: UCSB ACTION Institute funding, compliance for Invoca/MixMode

2. Moonshot AI's Kimi K2 Model (July 14)

1 trillion parameters (32B active) using sparse activation
Completely open source under MIT License
Outperforming GPT-4 on some benchmarks
Continues trend started by DeepSeek in democratizing AI access

3. OpenAI's ChatGPT Agent Mode

Released July 17, most Plus users got access last week
Can browse web, fill forms, plan tasks, analyze competitors
Requires user permission for major actions
Represents closed/gated approach vs. open-source alternatives

4. Robotics Goes Mainstream

Delivery robots in Shenzhen now ride subway to restock 7-Elevens
MIT develops device allowing anyone to train robots without coding
AI and robotics becoming genuinely accessible

5. Tonight's Event: AI Evening Investor Edition

Coastal Intelligence event at Lodo Studios
Focus on AI investment trends and opportunities
Part of summer series including HackLabs and AI 101 sessions

Local Companies/Organizations Mentioned:

UCSB ACTION Institute (NSF-funded cybersecurity AI research)
Invoca (AI-powered call analytics)
MixMode (AI cybersecurity)
Raytheon (local defense contractor)
Coastal Intelligence (community AI group)
Lodo Studios (event venue)

Key Themes:

Tension between US regulatory approach and Chinese open-source innovation
Democratization of AI through efficiency improvements
Local advantages: defense/aerospace proximity, academic research
Importance of in-person community building in AI development

Event Information:

AI Evening: Investor Edition

Date: Tonight (Monday, July 28, 2025)
Location: Lodo Studios, Santa Barbara
Host: Coastal Intelligence
Focus: AI investment insights and entrepreneur navigation

Production Notes:

Episode format: Duopod conversation between Mark (human host) and Alice (AI co-host)
Recording: Mark records segments with 20-second pauses
Alice's audio generated via ElevenLabs with 20-second breaks between segments
Post-production in GarageBand

Contact:

Website: CoastalIntelligence.ai
Next Episode: Monday, August 4, 2025

Trump's AI Action Plan Meets South Coast Innovation