[Virtual] Y-AIM: Yale AI & Impact Makers November Meeting

Join Shail Khiyara ’96, inaugural chair of the Yale SOM Professional Alumni Group for Artificial Intelligence, for a special Y-AIM session, Understanding AI from First Principles, led by Yale SOM alum Anudeep Yegireddi ’17 on Thursday, November 6, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM ET! 

A Journey from Neurons to Transformers

If you feel overwhelmed or disconnected by the pace of AI, know that you don't need to be. This talk strips away the hype to reveal the underlying principles that power today's AI revolution, from ChatGPT to DALL-E to voice synthesis.

We'll trace a path: from pioneering neuroscience experiments on cat vision in the 1950s, and cover the breakthrough moments in AI such as "backpropagation" and "deep learning," to the 2017 transformer architecture that changed everything. Along the way, you'll understand "attention," the fundamental pattern that enabled the explosion in complexity of what AI can do in the last few years. 

What You'll Gain:

• Intuition over jargon: Understand what's actually happening inside these systems, explained in plain language
• Mental models: Build frameworks that help you evaluate new AI announcements and separate signal from noise
• Confidence: Navigate conversations about agents, training, and AI capabilities with clarity
• Timeless principles: Learn foundations that remain relevant as specific tools come and go

This isn't about becoming a practitioner—it's about developing the conceptual foundation to engage meaningfully with the AI transformation happening around us. Whether you're in product, strategy, operations, or leadership, you'll leave with a compass for understanding where AI is going and why.

No technical background required. Just bring your curiosity.

When: Thursday, November 6th, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. ET

Where: Zoom link will be provided upon registering

Cost: Free