The lit-up 'Onward Rose City' rooftop sign in Portland at night

Portland-Grown · Human-Centered

About Us

AI Portland exists to help people show up for one of the most important technological and cultural shifts of our lifetime, together.

Our Mission

We believe moments like this deserve to be experienced together.

Artificial intelligence is changing how we create, work, learn, communicate, and imagine what's possible. These moments don't come around very often. They're exciting, uncertain, messy, and full of possibility.

History is unfolding in real time.

Rather than watching it happen from behind our screens, we believe there's value in showing up—in the same room—to ask questions, challenge ideas, share perspectives, and imagine what's next.

More than an AI community.

We're a community for people navigating one of the most significant technological shifts of our generation.

Artists sit next to engineers.

Founders meet educators.

Researchers share ideas with designers.

Students challenge executives.

Curiosity is the only prerequisite.

Whether you're building AI products, experimenting with creative tools, leading organizational change, or simply wondering what all of this means, there's a place for you here.

The Portland, Oregon Old Town sign at dusk

Portland has something unique to contribute.

Every city approaches technology differently.

Portland has always been different.

We value creativity.

Craft.

Community.

Curiosity.

Human-centered design.

We believe those values matter as AI becomes part of everyday life.

AI Portland exists to help cultivate that conversation—not just about what AI can do, but about what kind of future we want to build together.

Meet our Team

Nicole Mors

Nicole is a designer who's endlessly curious about how technology shapes the way we create, work, and connect, and more importantly, what those changes mean to people and hopefully for people.

By day, she leads Product Design at Lithia & Driveway. She co-founded AI Portland to create the kind of conversations she wanted to be part of. Through events, storytelling, and the (Super)charged by AI podcast, she enjoys bringing together people with different perspectives to explore ideas, challenge assumptions, and imagine what's next.

Outside of work, Nicole spends her time with her kids, reading a good book, tackling a home project, and hanging out with Gary, her beloved French bulldog.

Megan Notarte, PMP

Partner at Cloud Four

Megan is a technology leader with over a decade of experience in spearheading innovative initiatives and managing high-impact projects across various industries. As the co-founder of AI Portland, she’s built a community focused on demystifying generative AI and its applications, organizing monthly events that bridge the gap between AI technology and practical business applications. Megan’s career also spans roles in operations and business management, including as a Partner at Cloud Four, where she’s led strategic initiatives and managed sizable projects for various companies, including several in the Fortune 500.

Megan and Nicole speaking together on stage

Our Story

Like many good ideas, AI Portland started with a conversation.

In late 2023, Nicole and Megan found themselves talking about AI almost every time they got together. One evening, over a bottle of wine, Nicole floated an idea:

“If we're this fascinated by what's happening, there have to be other people who want to talk about it too. We should start something, we should make a group, AI Portland.”

Megan's first response?

“Absolutely not. We're way too busy.”

By the next day, she'd changed her mind.

What began as a single meetup has grown into a community of thousands, bringing together people from across Portland to explore one of the defining moments of our time.

The conversations have expanded beyond our events into our podcast, stories, partnerships, and growing network—but the heart of AI Portland hasn't changed.

It still begins with people gathering in a room, curious enough to ask:

What's happening?

What does it mean?

Where do we go from here?

What started as a conversation between two friends has evolved into the largest tech organization in Portland.