On August 22, 2025, more than 80 participants gathered at Kendall Square for the AI+X Meetup @ Kendall Square, hosted by BlendED and its alumni-led AI+X Global Talent Community (GTC). The evening brought together voices from MIT, Kendall Square innovators, international student leaders, and global partnersâall united by a shared vision of advancing AI across disciplines and borders.
A Celebration of Connection
The event opened with remarks from Alexander Cheung, Director of Venture CafĂ© Cambridge, who was also the MC of this event. Alex reflected on Kendall Squareâs history of transformation and its role as a global hub for innovation . He reminded participants that while topics may varyârobotics, education, biotechâthe real magic comes from people connecting.
Vanessa W. (Program Director, BlendED) followed with a warm welcome, sharing how the meetup started as a way for students to make local connections in Boston, but quickly grew into a global gathering. She highlighted BlendEDâs mission: bridging students and industry, local and global, through project-based learning and on-campus experiences
Student and GTC Voices
The program spotlighted over 20 international students in BlendEDâs summer on-campus experience, representing Asia and beyond. Vanessa noted that their journeys are âtransformational,â combining global coursework with hands-on projects .
Haru Kagawa (University of Tokyo, GTC Co-Founder) shared the story of how nine students from six countries founded the Global Talent Community. He described GTC as âmore than just a communityâitâs a movement where AI blends with every field, inviting all disciplines to collaborateâ .
Zaer Z. Zaer Zaqy (Founder, Singapore Youth AI) brought perspectives from Southeast Asia, where millions of young learners are eager to adopt AI despite barriers in infrastructure and access. He stressed the urgency of building inclusive AI education in regions with high demand but low resources .
University and Industry Leaders
From academia, Megan Mitchell (Senior Director, MIT Open Learning ) introduced MITâs new Universal AI Learning Initiative, a bold effort to bring AI literacy to one billion learners worldwide. The initiative combines MIT faculty expertise with AI-enabled learning tools to make foundational and cross-disciplinary AI knowledge accessible across languages and contexts .
From the life sciences, Brian Madrigal (LabCentral) showcased LabCentralâs unique model of shared biotech labs and its new Biotech Ready micro-credential program. He shared how LabCentral has supported over 300 companies, raised $20B in funding collectively, and is now expanding into AI-enabled biotech innovation .
Nam Wook Kim (Assistant Professor, Boston College ) presented findings from his study on how students are using ChatGPT in data visualization and programming courses. He highlighted both the benefitsâsuch as faster problem-solving, improved debugging, and greater flexibility outside of office hoursâand the challenges, including misleading responses, dependence on AI, and difficulty in asking effective questions. His talk shed light on the evolving role of generative AI in higher education and the need for guidance in ethical and effective use .
Siddharth Somasundaram (Researcher, MIT Media Lab) explored how new sensing technologiesâbeyond traditional RGB imagesâcan expand AIâs understanding of the world. He argued that to make AI more powerful, researchers must integrate data from diverse sensors such as hyperspectral and thermal imaging .
Peter KT Yu (Co-Founder, XYZ Robotics; PhD MIT) demonstrated how AI-powered robotics are transforming warehouse automation and manufacturing. He shared his teamâs journey from winning the Amazon Picking Challenge to deploying robotics in real-world factories, bridging lab research with global industry applications .
Global Student Clubs
For the first time, student clubs from 14+ universities worldwideâ including Yonsei University (South Korea), NCU (Taiwan), UniversitĂ© de Lyon (France), and Singapore Youth AIâwere featured through custom posters and video greetings. Their participation showcased GTCâs growing network of 160+ universities and 60+ student clubs worldwide, reinforcing the movementâs grassroots foundation .
A Global Movement
The evening concluded with networking, club introductions, and mapping exercises to visualize the global reach of the community. Attendees left energized by the unique blend of local Kendall Square expertise and international student leadership.
As Vanessa summarized: âThis is only the beginning. GTC is here to connect students, institutions, and innovators across every field touched by AI.â
The AI+X Meetup @ Kendall Square marks the U.S. launch of the GTCâs event seriesâfollowing Tokyo earlier this year, and heading next to Singapore.
