Altera Meetup: Earth Day Challenge
Our April meetup lands on Earth Day and we're leaning into it. We'll open the evening with a real conversation about the environmental impact of AI, the energy consumption, the water usage, the infrastructure behind the tools we build with every day. Inspired by The AI Doc, we're not steering away from what's actually happening. This isn't a shame-based conversation. It's an informed one. Knowledge is empowerment and that's the kind of community Altera is.
Our guest speaker is Andy Masley, a writer and researcher who has become one of the most prominent voices on AI and its environmental impact. A former high school physics teacher turned full-time writer, Andy does deep dives on AI, data centers, energy consumption, and policy in a way that is rigorous, accessible, and genuinely hard to look away from. His work on AI and the environment is what built his audience, and we are bringing that conversation to Atlanta.
Then we flip it.
Because if AI is part of the problem, it can also be part of the solution. After the conversation, we turn to imagination. The challenge this month is to produce a 30-second video that envisions a world where AI helps solve the very problems we just talked about. Water. Energy. Ecosystems. The future of the planet. You'll choose your concept from one of three themes:
The Future We're Building — what does a thriving planet look like in 2050 and what role does AI play in getting us there? Restore — what if AI became one of our most powerful tools for healing ecosystems? Show us that world. Amplify — whose climate story isn't being told? Use AI to give it a voice.
The angle is yours. You'll work in groups of 3-4 and the concept comes together during the meetup, but the best work starts before the room fills up. Start thinking now. Come with ideas. Make the script. **(but if someone strongly prefers to work solo, you can)
Not sure where to begin? Here's a simple framework to get you started: Start with a short script. What is your video actually saying? Then build a shot list and use your tools of choice to generate your images and video. Finally, bring all the pieces together into an edit, music, narration, dialogue, sound design. That's your film. The point is to build this together in the room with your group. Don't do all the work before you get there. Come ready to collaborate.
Details on groupings and exporting will be shared the night of the event! The Run of Show 6:00 PM — Doors open, networking 6:30 PM — Welcome + intro 6:45 PM — Andy Masley on the environmental impact of AI 7:05 PM — Challenge kickoff 7:15 PM — Group challenge begins 8:15 PM — Showcase 8:35 PM — Wrap + close