Workers turn to AI skill-building meetups as networking formats shift

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Highlights

Activity-based AI training events such as workshops and hackathons are attracting high demand, with waitlists reaching nearly 1,000 participants and in-person events selling out.
Eventbrite reported a 23% increase in microevent attendance in 2024, while Devpost-listed community AI hackathons rose from 369 in 2024 to 706 last year.
A Harris Poll showed three-quarters of workers find traditional networking less personal, leading companies like Sonar to adopt hands-on AI events to boost team skills and cohesion.

Hands-on events blend networking with AI training

As reported by Business Insider, groups in cities from Boston to Boise are hosting meetups that pair in-person interaction with AI practice, including agent-building workshops, hackathons, walk-and-talks, and founder-focused fitness classes.

The format is gaining traction as workers look for ways to strengthen both professional ties and technical skills at a time when employers want more AI capability and candidates feel pressure to keep up. Organizers describe the events as a more engaging alternative to traditional networking, with learning-by-doing replacing casual small talk as the main draw.

In Manhattan this month, about 60 people attended a sold-out AI After 5 workshop focused on building AI agents. Mina Abdulla, who founded the group this year to help women learn how to use AI, says the setting is meant to make AI feel more approachable through shared experimentation rather than solitary study.

Other organizers are seeing similar demand. Paige Kehoe, founder of Audacious AF, says nearly 1,000 people joined the waitlist for an early workshop on using Claude, while No-Code NYC founder Erik Israni says interest in his long-running community has widened as AI draws in both developers and nontechnical workers.

Demand rises as workers seek practical value

Traditional networking formats are losing appeal as workers say they feel such events have become more transactional. A Harris Poll conducted for Express Employment Professionals late last year found that three-quarters of workers felt networking was becoming less about personal connection, while happy hour participation fell 9% this year.

At the same time, activity-based events are drawing more attention. Eventbrite data showed microevent attendance grew 23% in 2024, and nearly 60% of people last year said they wanted events where socializing happened around an activity rather than connection-making being the sole focus. Community AI hackathons listed through Devpost also rose from 369 in 2024 to 706 last year.

The trend is also reaching companies directly. Tariq Shaukat, CEO of software company Sonar, says an in-person hackathon recently helped the firm's technical team build skills faster by bringing remote and office-based staff together in a less structured setting.

For workers, these meetups serve both as a response to anxiety over AI-driven job changes and as a way to counter isolation after years of remote work. That combination is helping recast networking as a setting for experimentation, peer learning, and practical career development.

In our earlier article on how U.S. CEOs are evaluating AI agents, we noted that many large companies are already reporting efficiency and growth benefits, even though only a small share currently sees the technology as truly transformational. The survey also highlighted continued hiring, retraining, and sustained investment in AI infrastructure as firms try to close skills gaps and prepare for deeper human‑AI collaboration.

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