Attendees listen to a presentation in the conference room.
More than 225 business owners, founders and community members attended Queens AI 2026, a free three-day program held October 6 to 8. It was presented by the Queens Chamber of Commerce, with SJ Innovation and Firstlight Cloud Xchange.
The program was built for business owners without a tech team, many of whom told organizers they did not know where to start with AI. Each event focused on practical tools people could use the same week, with organizers working one-on-one with attendees at their tables.
Three days, three neighborhoods:
Tuesday, October 6. From Idea to Website: A Lovable Workshop, Thikana, Jackson Heights. About 52 people came to build a working website in one evening, with no code. Many left with a live site of their own.
Wednesday, October 7. Queens AI Innovation Day, LaGuardia Community College, Long Island City. About 150 people attended the main day, joined by speakers, sponsors and exhibitors. Queens Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Grech opened the program. The afternoon included three panels, hands-on workshops, an exhibitor floor, and a live demonstration of Queens Chamber AI, the Chamber’s free AI platform for members.
Attendees talking with exhibitors at the tables.
Thursday, October 8. AI for Small Business: Work Smarter Every Day, Greater Nexus, Jamaica. About 25 owners worked through real tasks such as quoting, scheduling and customer follow-up.
What attendees told organizers:
The biggest lesson of the week: people get stuck at different points, so a lecture alone does not work. Organizers moved from table to table to help each person past the step where they were stuck.
Three themes came up again and again. Everyone is at a different step: some owners had never opened an AI tool, while others used one daily but could not get reliable results. AI feels inconsistent and overwhelming: the same question can get a different answer each time, and many owners did not know which tool to trust. And there is real worry about jobs: many attendees asked whether AI would replace their work or their staff, and these questions were answered openly, in person, during the sessions.
What the partners said:
“Queens leads from the ground up. Our small businesses are the heart of this borough, and they deserve the same access to AI as any big company. This week was about giving them that access, in their own neighborhoods, at no cost,” said Thomas J. Grech, President and CEO of the Queens Chamber of Commerce.
“I am part of the American dream because the internet arrived when I was starting out, and I learned to use it. AI is that moment again. Every Queens business owner deserves the same chance, and nobody should be left behind because they did not know where to start,” said Shahed Islam, CEO of SJ Innovation, who came to the United States from Bangladesh and co-founded the company in 2004.
“AI is here to stay. Because we can’t really know what its capabilities and impact will be three years from now, it is important for business owners to learn about it now. By applying AI in a safe way today, small businesses can be prepared for what is to come next. Queens AI worked this week on helping bridge the gap from talk to actual use, and brought forth practical implementation tips for local small businesses in Queens,” said Iris Lentjes, Customer Care and Operations at Firstlight Cloud Xchange.
Sponsors and community partners:
Queens AI 2026 was made possible by its sponsors and exhibitors: Abundant IoT, Ancero, Atlas, Azuga, CDML Computer Services, Tabby and Vocal IP, with David Grumer Consulting, Coran Ober P.C., Fincadia Capital and The NYBB Group. Community partners BSP Community, Greater Nexus, the St. John’s University Venture and Innovation Center, Thikana Group and Flushing Tech helped bring the program to their neighborhoods and networks. Queens AI 2026 was part of AI Week New York. The main day was hosted at LaGuardia Community College.