Videos • BC + AI Ecosystem

AI Healthtech Diagnostics: Smarter Home Test Kits | BC Founders Day Vancouver

Vancouver AI at BC Founders Day—how do human relationships power startups in a world of AI? Host Kevin Friel chats with James Dean Waryk on healthtech, AI test kits, and why networking still wins. Join the BC + AI Ecosystem Association: https://bc-ai.ca/membership/ ------------- Live from the Vancouver Convention Centre (West Building), this Vibe Lounge episode brings together startup wisdom and real-world AI. Host Kevin Friel interviews James Dean Waryk, fractional CEO/CFO/COO, angel investor, and founder of LifeScape Bioscience Inc. James shares how he helps founders scale... from AI-enhanced home test kits to AI + robotics in manufacturing... and why human-to-human relationships remain the ultimate growth engine. About the guest: James Dean Waryk - Founder, LifeScape Bioscience Inc.; fractional operator & angel investor. Mentions: Clenotech Diagnostics & Pharmaceuticals Inc. (AI-assisted interpretation of analog home test kits), Unique Media House Inc. About the show: Vibe Lounge @ BC Founders Day highlights builders at the intersection of AI, community, and culture across British Columbia. 📍 Chapters 00:00 Live intro — Vibe Lounge @ Vancouver Convention Centre (West) 00:20 Meet guest: James Dean Waryk (LifeScape Bioscience) 00:40 What LifeScape does (reselling healthtech; e-commerce + retail) 01:07 Client spotlight: Clenotech home test kits → AI-enhanced app 01:39 Scale of analog test kits (global demand) 02:00 Fractional CEO/CFO/COO model; multi-client portfolio 02:12 Non-healthtech client: construction/HVAC aiming for 10× growth 02:33 Passion, energy, and competing for the top 1% 03:31 48-year journey: events → consulting → angel investing 05:21 Discipline + emotion: mindset that wins 05:53 Today’s climate & the power of networking 07:04 AI tools via global coder teams (non-coder perspective) 08:05 Seniors & AI: overcoming fear; start with a hobby niche 09:12 AI + robotics in manufacturing (vision, sensors, cost) 09:59 How to reach James (LinkedIn; name spelling) 10:18 Sign-off from BC Founders Day #VancouverAI #BCAI #EthicalAI #StartupBC #AICommunity

Stable Diffusion AI VFX & No‑Code Game Engine: SIGGRAPH Vancouver Report

SIGGRAPH Vancouver mini report: generative VFX spoof and a no‑code game engine that builds worlds in one click. Which demo surprised you more—the Stable Diffusion/Nuke fake TV spot or the AI‑assisted procedural worlds? ------------ SIGGRAPH week in Vancouver was electric. In this lightning share from the Vancouver AI community meetup, we spotlight two rapid‑fire demos: a generative VFX spoof built with Stable Diffusion + Nuke and a sneak peek of a no‑code game engine that spins up procedural worlds, physics, and one‑click publishing. The last three weeks have been absolutely wild in AI film. Here’s the quick-hit roundup: - WAN 2.2 dropped with day-one ComfyUI support. 1080p, true 24p output, dual-adversarial modeling for big-picture flow and tiny details in tandem. Local models are officially nipping at the heels of the big boys. - Runway Aleph is sneaking out of partner-only land — conversational editing of uploaded video. Angle changes, style shifts, mood tweaks… just by telling it what you want. - Luma Labs Modify hit the scene with instruction-based video manipulation, giving precise post-control inside their ecosystem. - Nano-Banana (Google’s new engine under Gemini 2.5) slid into ComfyUI. Multi-reference workflows are looking crazy consistent. This could be the new standard for character and scene coherence. - Ludus AI is experimenting with vibe-coded Unreal Engine blueprints. Big potential for virtual production and 3D workflows. - ComfyUI MCP servers went live, letting you spin up and stress-test custom local pipelines. - TouchDesigner LOPs now tie LLMs straight into realtime visual, audio, MIDI, and DMX wizardry. SIGGRAPH 2025 Vancouver highlights: - Lightcraft compositing + vibe-coded 3D sets, straight off an iPhone. - Bria AI: ethically trained API toolset. - GripTape Nodes: modular workflows running at AWS scale. - Creadev: rapid Unreal mockups for XR and film pre-viz. - ActionVFX: stock assets + training courses marrying GenAI and Nuke. - Autodesk Wonder Studio: now with a free tier, bridging GenAI and VFX. - And because “one release week” is never enough: - ElevenLabs launched into music gen. - MidJourney rolled out HD mode. - Blackmagic added 360° / Apple Immersive support. - Tencent upgraded Hunyuan 3D. - DeepMind teased a world model for environment gen. ⚡ Takeaway: It’s no longer just “what can these models spit out?” The game is shifting fast toward control, consistency, and production-readiness. 👤 Featuring • John — VFX compositor/director/photographer — AI‑assisted fake TV shopping spot (Stable Diffusion, AUTOMATIC1111, Nuke) • Ahmed — game dev veteran (ex‑engineering manager, instructor) — “Creative” no‑code engine: procedural terrains, water/cloth/rope physics, destruction, AI‑guided walkthroughs, multi‑platform publish 🌱 Why it matters for BC + AI Grassroots creators in B.C. are testing what’s possible at the boundary of VFX, games, and AI tools. This episode captures that hands‑on energy—and invites you to build with us. 👉 Join the community • Vancouver AI Meetups → https://luma.com/vancouver-ai • BC + AI Ecosystem Association newsletter → https://bc-ai.ca/ 🔔 Support the work Like, subscribe, and share with someone exploring ethical, creative AI. Comment below: what should we deep‑dive next? CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro — SIGGRAPH Mini Report (Vancouver AI) 00:40 SIGGRAPH vibe + cross-meetup at Northeastern University 01:30 Guest intro: John Mutter (VFX compositor/director) 01:50 Generative VFX demo — Stable Diffusion + Nuke (fake TV spot) 03:20 Takeaways: AI-assisted compositing workflow & tools 03:40 Guest intro: Ahmed — “Creative” no-code game engine 04:20 Procedural open worlds: vegetation, water, weather systems 05:10 Physics stack: cloth, rope, rigid bodies, destruction 05:55 Gen-AI text-to-scene & AI-guided interactive walkthroughs 06:30 One-click publishing, platforms, October release + film cohort invite

AI in Canadian Manufacturing — Sam Pirzadeh (Pioneera Ventures) | BC Founders Day Vancouver 2025

AI in Canadian manufacturing at BC Founders Day, Vancouver. How do we modernize legacy factories—analytics, automation, or policy clarity first? -------- Live from the Vancouver Convention Centre, this Vibe Lounge chat dives into AI adoption in Canadian manufacturing with Sam Pirzadeh, Managing Partner at Pioneera Ventures. We cover modernization after acquisition, factory analytics, data & hardware sovereignty, tariffs, interprovincial trade, and why Alberta + Ontario matter as hubs. If you’re a BC founder, operator, or builder working at the intersection of AI, industry, and policy, this one’s for you. Join the community: • Come to our monthly Vancouver AI meetups | • Subscribe and tap the bell for more interviews and AI-in-industry stories. • Organizers & speakers: get involved—reach out via our channel About page. — BC + AI Ethos: We uplift ethical, inclusive, land-honouring innovation across disciplines and communities in BC. Credits: Host: Kevin Friel Vancouver AI Vibe Lounge. Guest: Sam Pirzadeh (Pioneera Ventures). Filmed at BC Founders Day 2025. 📍 Chapters 00:00 Intro — Vibe Lounge @ Vancouver Convention Centre 00:20 Why attend BC Founders Day 00:53 Pioneera Ventures: acquiring & modernizing manufacturers 01:44 Implementation anxiety vs. AI as an assistant 02:32 Factory data → analytics across production/warehouse/procurement 03:16 From knowledge extraction to operational wins 03:25 Sam’s background: manufacturing + software + tech integration 03:45 Why Canadian manufacturing now (post-outsourcing realities) 04:48 Competing globally via automation & tech integration 05:03 Data sovereignty → toward hardware sovereignty 05:43 Tariffs & the case for market/supplier diversification 06:44 Interprovincial tariffs and competitiveness 07:56 Hubs: Ontario (market) + Alberta (cost base) 09:18 Capital needs & upgrading existing plants 10:11 Using what’s “in our backyard” responsibly 10:34 How to reach Sam / Pioneera Ventures 11:12 Outro + invite to Vancouver AI meetups

Love in the Code: AI Ethics, Advocacy & Community — Vancouver AI Meetup #20

Vancouver AI Community Meetup #20 — land, love, learning, and launch. Featuring Love Now Media’s Jos Duncan on AI ethics & advocacy, Peter Bitner on the future of work, and Rival’s data storytelling hackathon winners. Plus: BCAI (BC AI Ecosystem Association) launch, Ethos Lab EDU, Surrey AI, and SIGGRAPH demos. 📄 Full Description Welcome to Vancouver AI Community Meetup #20 — a night grounded in place and propelled by purpose. Opening & Land We gathered in the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples, welcomed by Gabriel George with story and Eagle song. Keynote — Love Now Media Jos Duncan (Philadelphia) shares a values-led path for love & AI: transparent AI use, mission-aligned ethics policies, and a new AI Advocacy Initiative to reduce harms (IP, environment, labor) and uplift what’s working. Future of Work — The Upgrade Peter Bitner (upgrade.ai) on upskilling as the bottleneck, AI literacy frameworks, and building cultures where experimentation + critical thinking thrive. Rival Data Storytelling Hackathon • Projwal — “semantic maps + roundtable voices” that let clusters debate each other. • Sev Raskin (Bear × Bunny) — AGI Data Interface: choose-your-own-adventure insights with dynamic viz and narration (Hall of Fame inductee). • Dean Shev (aka Chaz) — full album generated from BC AI survey + meetup transcripts; 17 tracks turning community data into music. Community Launch Introducing the BC AI Ecosystem Association (BCAI) — a nonprofit container for meetups, hackathons, EDU, creative industries, public sector collabs, and more. Join, contribute, and help shape an ethical, inclusive AI future in BC. EDU & Sub-Communities • Ethos Lab — youth AI experimentation (Grades 8–12) + EDU meetup. • Surrey AI — hands-on monthly sessions (games, “AI or Not?” challenges). • SIGGRAPH Snaps — community demos incl. John Mutter (gen-video compositing) and Ahmed (Creative: no-code, multi-platform game engine). Calls to Action • Join BCAI and our WhatsApp/meetup ecosystem. • Check out Rival/Reach3 data sets and demo projects. • Support Ethos Lab youth cohorts. • Subscribe for talks, hackathon showcases, and ethical AI resources.

Peter Bittner on the Future of Work, Upskilling & AI Adoption

Join the BC AI Ecosystem Association: https://bc-ai.ca/membership/ Next Vancouver AI meetup: https://luma.com/vancouver-ai What actually changes at work when the AI buzz fades? Peter Bittner maps the future of work: AI literacy, culture shifts, and the skills that still pay rent. ----- Incoming transmission from the Vancouver AI community: Peter Bittner unpacks the real future of work beyond model hype. This talk dives into AI literacy, change management, safe-to-fail cultures, and why upskilling (hard + human + domain) is the only durable strategy. We touch Amara’s Law, hype cycles, workforce fears, and practical pathways for leaders and teams to build capability without losing the plot. You’ll learn: - Why “AI projects don’t work” is usually a people & process problem - A grounded definition of AI literacy for teams (policy → practice) - The skills stack: prompting, automation, basic coding literacy, domain expertise - How to build safe-to-experiment cultures that actually ship value - The human edge: judgment, critique, ethics, communication—still undefeated If you’re in BC: some cohorts have tuition support via community partners ask the organizers for current details. 👉 If this helped, like, comment how your org defines AI literacy, and subscribe for more Vancouver AI meetups and workshops. Links & Next Steps: • Watch the AI Literacy & Upskilling playlist next • Join the Vancouver AI Community newsletter for event drops and cohorts • Share this with one leader who can greenlight a pilot 📍 Chapters: 00:00 Intro & meetup context 00:46 Community over content 02:40 Hype vs reality (GPT-5) 03:56 Amara’s Law: long game 07:55 Upskilling is the bottleneck 09:40 Culture shift & safe-to-fail 10:58 What is AI literacy? 11:55 Skills stack: prompt • automate • code basics 16:56 Humans in the loop(s) 20:12 Q&A highlights 27:10 Closing remarks Vancouver AI is a community building practical AI literacy in BC. Join the meetup, newsletter, and cohorts for hands-on upskilling across domains. #VancouverAI #FutureOfWork #AILiteracy

Vancouver AI Hackathon Winners: Data Maps, Real-Time AGI Interfaces & a Community Album

- Join the BC AI Ecosystem Association: https://bc-ai.ca/membership/ - Next Vancouver AI meetup: https://luma.com/vancouver-ai Vancouver AI Hackathon winners turn BC survey data into stories—one builds semantic maps, another an AGI-style data interface, and one drops a full generative album. How should we use AI to turn human data into action.... and art? --------------- Incoming transmission from the future Vancouver AI community meetup: three projects, one theme—data storytelling that moves people. From an interactive semantic map + round-table voices (Proal/Praj) to a real-time intelligent data interface (Sev + April AI) to 17 original tracks translating BC survey responses into music (Dean “Chass” Chev), this episode shows what happens when community, creativity, and AI collide. What you’ll see • Visualizing long-form responses as clusters + narrated “table” debates • An AGI-style interface that guides you through insights in real time • A generative album built from community transcripts + BC AI survey vibes Why it matters British Columbians’ hopes and fears about AI deserve more than static decks. We’re exploring ethical, human-centered ways to make data speak—so communities, policymakers, and builders can act. Timestamps below · Comment your favorite project · Subscribe for Vancouver AI stories 🔔 Subscribe & join the newsletter for meetups, hackathons, and data storytelling tools. 📧 Collab/Speaking: https://bc-ai.ca/contact/ ⚠️ Note: survey data shown is not weighted; it reflects raw panel responses. Credits Hosted by the Vancouver AI community · Supported by Rival Technologies/Reach3 · Featuring Prajwal Prasanth, Sev (Bear & Bunny) + April AI, Dean “Chazzzzzz” Shev. Calls to action 👉 Drop your pick for “Most Impactful” and why. 👉 Share this with a friend building AI for community good. Hashtags: #VancouverAI #DataStorytelling #GenerativeAI #BritishColumbia #RivalTechnologies #AIEthics

BC +AI Ecosystem Association Office Hours Community Call: 9/05/25

First official BC + AI Ecosystem nonprofit community coaching call. Twenty practitioners building real infrastructure for AI transformation in British Columbia. What happened: - BC AI Ecosystem nonprofit officially operational - Government stakeholder recognition secured - NASA Space Apps Hackathon partnership announced (Oct 4-5) - Six hackathon projects submitted via GitHub pull requests - Regional expansion: Surrey, Chilliwack, Mind/AI/Consciousness groups - Weekly programming structure launched Key moments: Gabriel Zaro's community framework, Udbhav's technical infrastructure, Dean Shev's AI album showcase, Eduardo joining from Chile, NASA satellite data access announcement. Gabriel Zaro: "There's as many AI note takers in this meeting as there are people. We're that type of crowd, eh?" KK on Evolution: "Six months ago these people sent Word documents. Now they're telling AI agents to manage their Git workflows." KK on NASA: "Some of the datasets are like live satellite feeds from NASA satellites monitoring groundwater." KK on Government: "They identified us as a legitimate stakeholder. We'll be invited to these roundtables." Gabriel on Community: "This is the type of thing that gets me out of my brain state." 📍 Chapters 0:00 — Opening Circle 1:18 — Weekly Office Hour 11:11 — Vancouver AI → BCAI 16:46 — NASA Space Apps Vancouver 28:16 — Notion Submissions 31:12 — AI Music Analytics 32:57 — GitHub PR Flow 36:58 — Onboarding Survey 40:58 — Discord Setup 50:23 — Stripe + Newsletter 52:02 — Resources & Funding 55:10 — Fridays 12–1 PT

AI Transparency Builds Trust: The Lesson Learned #shorts

Hiding AI use can betray your community. A creator learned that transparency, explaining the WHY and HOW of AI, restores trust. Transparency beats perfection in community building. #AITransparency #CommunityBuilding #EthicalAI

AI's Impact: Environmental Harm & Intellectual Property #shorts

"From 'How should I use AI ethically?' to 'Why aren't AI companies being held accountable?' This Philadelphia organizer made the shift in real-time at our Vancouver meetup. Personal responsibility is important. Corporate responsibility is essential. You can't solve systemic problems with individual solutions. Time to organize for the AI future we actually want. #AIOrganizing #SystemicChange #VancouverAI

AI Advocacy: Organizing for a Meaningful AI Future #shorts

It occurred to someone that celebrating AI's capabilities isn't enough. Now, there's an initiative to organize and educate people about AI, ensuring they understand its impact and can collectively demand benefits for humanity. AI is everywhere, even if you're not 'into' it. #AIadvocacy #AIeducation #tech #futureofAI