By Carol Ann Conover<\/p>\n
The Capital Region Small Business Development Center will host \u201cAI in Action: Practical AI for Small Business\u201d on July 30 at the ETEC Building on the Harriman State Campus in Albany, bringing together industry experts, local business owners and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko for a three-hour session to help small businesses put artificial intelligence to practical use. The seminar, scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to noon, is part of the center\u2019s ongoing AI Fundamentals programming and is sponsored by the New York State SBDC network, the Massry School of Business at the University at Albany and America\u2019s SBDC, with support from the U.S. Small Business Administration.<\/p>\n
Greg Chanese, assistant director of the Capital Region SBDC and leader of the ASBDC AI Interest Group, said the event builds on training the center previously offered. \u201cThis is a continuation of similar AI training that we have conducted out of the Center,\u201d Chanese said. \u201cAI evolves very quickly, and we want to make sure that we are helping the small business community navigate the technology safely and effectively. Everyday more and more people are starting to implement AI within their business, and we want to make sure that we help them with it.\u201d He said the seminar will pair a presentation with hands-on work, focusing on \u201chelping the business community use AI for real-world, practical small business operations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tonko, who represents New York\u2019s 20th Congressional District, will speak at the event after his office approached the center about his involvement, Chanese said. \u201cWe\u2019ve worked with the Congressman\u2019s office on different topics over the years, and this is something that they approached us about having the Congressman be involved with,\u201d he said. Chanese said Tonko\u2019s remarks will address AI\u2019s broader reach, while the center\u2019s presentation will focus on practical applications. \u201cAI is something that effects large swaths of people and businesses, so the Congressman will be there to talk about it briefly on a larger scale than we will during our presentation, which will be more focused on practical application of AI,\u201d Chanese said.<\/p>\n
Attendees will leave the hands-on portion with skills they can apply directly to their operations, according to Chanese. \u201cWhat we want the businesses that attend to be able to walk out with is a comfortable level to be able to apply what they\u2019ve learned at their business,\u201d he said. The workshop will cover AI applications in marketing, business operations and ideation, using examples from participants\u2019 businesses. \u201cThey\u2019ll be able to use examples straight from their own business but with the advantage of having someone helping them use it more effectively,\u201d Chanese said.<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span>Small-business AI adoption has climbed sharply in recent years. The U.S. Census Bureau\u2019s Business Trends and Outlook Survey found that 8.8% of small businesses reported using AI in the production of goods or services as of August 2025, up from 6.3% six months earlier. The SBA Office of Advocacy reported that the adoption gap between small and large firms had narrowed significantly over the same period. Chanese said the technology can benefit businesses across sectors when treated as a tool rather than a wholesale replacement for existing operations. \u201cIf you utilize it as a tool, realizing that it\u2019s not the entire business but just a helper, there are a number of different industry sectors that could use it,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not something that needs to be used, but it can be a business tool just like so many others to help along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n The July 30 seminar will be the first in a regional series the center plans to hold throughout its coverage area, though Tonko\u2019s participation is limited to the initial session, Chanese said. \u201cThis seminar will be the first in a short regional series that we will be hosting,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ll be traveling around our coverage area so that we can help as many small businesses with this topic as possible throughout our coverage area. The Congressman will only be participating in the event on the 30th, but we will be taking this on the road.\u201d Registration information is available at capitalregionsbdc.org\/course\/ai-in-action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Carol Ann Conover The Capital Region Small Business Development Center will host \u201cAI in Action: Practical AI for Small Business\u201d on July 30 at the ETEC Building on the Harriman State Campus in Albany, bringing together industry experts, local business owners and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko for a three-hour session to help small businesses […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":89,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-news"],"yoast_head":"\r\n