Dallas GILD AI Forum: AI and Engineering Leaders Dinner - Grapevine
This GILD AI Forum brings together CTOs, VPs of Engineering, Heads of AI, and senior technical leaders for candid conversations about building, scaling, and implementing AI inside their companies.
This isn't a conference. It's not a panel. It's a small, curated room of technical leaders sharing what's actually working, what's not, and the real challenges of shipping AI in the AI era.
Each Forum opens with a Conversation Starter, a practitioner sharing what their team is building with AI, followed by open Q&A. From there, the room breaks into intimate discussions where everyone has a seat at the table. Every attendee brings their own experience. Every attendee contributes.
No pitches. No performative networking. Just senior technical leaders being honest about the architectures they're choosing, the tradeoffs they're making, and what they wish they'd figured out sooner.
TRENDING THEMES FOR THIS SESSION
Conversations at the Forum are shaped by what technical leaders bring to the table. Themes likely to surface this evening include:
From AI pilots to AI in production: breaking out of the proof-of-concept trap and scaling agents into real workflows
Connecting AI to legacy systems: architectural patterns for integrating modern AI with 20-year-old stacks without breaking everything
The AI tooling budget problem: balancing experimentation with unsustainable spend as engineers blow through AI tool budgets
Engineers as curators, not creators: the shift from writing code to orchestrating AI agents, reusable components, and external services
MCP, multi-agent systems, and the orchestration layer: what's working, what's overhyped, and what technical leaders are actually building
Guardrails and governance for AI-generated code: who's accountable when the AI writes it, and what review processes actually hold up in production
Presented in partnership with Tecla and Ontop.
Tecla gives companies flexible access to vetted talent across the US and Latin America, developed for AI-native work and available from fractional engagements to dedicated nearshore pods.
Learn more at www.tecla.io
Ontop is redefining global work enabling companies to hire and pay anywhere, while giving people a Global Account to earn, spend, and live globally. Built for a world where work isn’t tied to one place.
Learn more at www.getontop.com.
CONVERSATION STARTER
Carlos Cruz is the Chief Technology Officer at Ontop, a global workforce and fintech company, where he leads technology, engineering, and AI strategy. With nearly two decades of experience building and scaling technology companies, his background combines deep technical expertise with business strategy, product innovation, and organizational leadership.
Over the course of his career, he has served as both co-founder and CTO at several startups in Mexico, including a Y Combinator-backed fintech and an edtech company. His experience spans fintech, payments, global workforce infrastructure, artificial intelligence, and the development of high-performing engineering teams.
He holds an MBA from EGADE Business School and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Applied Artificial Intelligence at Tecnológico de Monterrey, where he has also completed advanced studies in AI, machine learning, and data science.
THE FORMAT
Intentionally small and highly curated, 20 to 25 max. This is a private, off-the-record exchange under Chatham House Rules.
AGENDA
6:00–6:30 PM · Arrival, Apps and drinks
6:30–7:00 PM · Sit Down Dinner & GILD welcome
7:00 - 7:15 PM · Conversation Starter
7:15–8:00 PM · 3 x Breakout rounds
8:00–8:30 PM · Open Networking
WHO THIS IS FOR
CTOs · VPs of Engineering · Heads of AI · Technical Leaders
This session is for leaders responsible for building, deploying, and maintaining AI systems in production.
Chatham House Rules apply. Discussion stays private.