Maine AI Coalition

Maine Tech Week 2026: AI Takes Center Stage

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Note: This is a sample news entry. The dates, location, and theme of Maine Tech Week 2026 are real (mainetechweek.com). The AI-specific sessions, speaker names, and MAC involvement described below are fabricated for illustrative purposes.

Maine Tech Week returns to downtown Portland October 19–22, 2026 for its second annual gathering of Maine’s technology community. This year’s theme — Intersections — sets up a program that deliberately crosses boundaries between disciplines, sectors, and perspectives.

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What is MAC

My story

Left Maine after college to work at BBN BBN deployed original Internet in 1983; I joined in 1984 Became a graduate student at Harvard Protocol wars. Big companies and the US government tried to kill the internet Simplicity, openness, speed, working implementation was on the other side GOSIP mandate 1990 Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) switches Harvard

About MAC

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The Maine AI Coalition is a nonprofit organization in formation. Our mission is to reduce the burdens and maximize the benefits of AI for the citizens of Maine, with particular attention to the Mainers most easily left behind: rural communities and lower incomes.

What We Do

AI is changing Maine — its economy, its institutions, its everyday life. National information resources can’t tell Mainers what’s specifically relevant to them. We fill that gap.

Contact

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For general inquiries: info@mainely.ai

MAC CoP Sponsorship Process

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MAC provides infrastructure — meetings support, online discussion and email participation, and a dedicated website — to Communities of Practice that serve Maine’s AI ecosystem. We welcome applications from Maine groups that are just forming and from existing Maine communities looking for infrastructure support for AI related CoP.

What MAC Provides

A dedicated section of the MAC website
Online discussion and email participation setup and hosting
Support for scheduling and hosting hybrid meetings
Visibility through MAC’s network and communications

What We Ask Of Conveners

A sponsored CoP requires at least two committed conveners, with a commitment to recruit toward four. From conveners we require:

National Resources

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Vetted national organizations, research institutions, and policy resources on AI. MAC selects for quality and accessibility — not comprehensiveness.

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Other Maine AI Initiatives

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Maine organizations, projects, and initiatives working on AI — distinct from MAC’s Communities of Practice. MAC does not endorse these organizations but provides links as a service to Mainers navigating the AI landscape.

Davis Institute for Artificial Intelligence — Colby College

The first AI institute at a liberal arts college, founded in 2021 with a $30 million gift from the Davis family. Based in Waterville, the Davis Institute takes a cross-disciplinary approach to AI education and research, integrating AI into the liberal arts curriculum and hosting research collaborations with peer institutions. Recent work includes a $20 million NSF-funded project on AI for mental and behavioral health, in partnership with Brown University.

Reports & Research

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Reports, studies, and data relevant to AI’s impact on Maine’s economy, workforce, government, and communities. Maine-specific resources are prioritized; national resources are included where directly applicable.

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Tools & Guides

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Practical guides, tutorials, and tool recommendations for Maine citizens, businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies working with AI. MAC focuses on resources that are accessible to non-technical audiences and relevant to Maine’s context.

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