Applied AI Speakers — The AI-Powerup
John Chmela
“AI Johnny”
AI Strategist · Author · Educator · Founder, Airhead Institute · The AI-Powerup
“I’m not here to hype AI. I’m here to make it real — to take the story you just heard and show you exactly how AI can help you live it.”
— John Chmela, “AI Johnny” & Founder, Airhead Institute
How It Works
Every Tandem Keynote Has
Two Halves.
The partner speaker delivers an extraordinary human story. Then John steps in and delivers the AI-Powerup — showing the audience exactly how AI can amplify, accelerate, and extend those lessons into their own lives and organizations.
Deconstruct
Identify the success blueprint inside the partner speaker’s story — the exact principles, decisions, and turning points that created their outcome.
Reverse Engineer
Break down the blueprint so the audience understands the underlying structure — the how, not just the what.
Re-Engineer with AI
Rebuild the blueprint using AI — making it faster, better, and accessible to every person in the room with the right prompts.
01 — The Background
30 Years Building.
One Mission.
John Chmela has been building, breaking, and rebuilding technology since before the internet was public. With a B.A. in Computer Science and Mathematics from Lewis University (Dean’s List, GPA 3.74), he served as a national spokesperson alongside Bill Gates for the Windows 98 launch in 1997 and spent a decade organizing high-profile events for the World Ability Federation, including White House initiatives.
Today, as founder of Airhead Institute, John delivers daily live AI training to thousands of learners and has built a library of 60+ Applied AI blueprints on LinkedIn. He is a certified Master NLP Practitioner, a Tony Robbins Mastery University graduate, and the author of two landmark books: #BotLivesMatter and AI: Code of Ethics.
“AI isn’t coming. It’s here. The only question is whether you’re going to use it or be replaced by someone who does.”
#BotLivesMatter
2025 · Humanoid Rights
AI: Code of Ethics
2025 · Pre-Deployment Ethics
60+ Articles
LinkedIn · Applied AI Series
Airhead Institute
Daily Live AI Training
02 — The AI-Powerup
Not a Hype Machine.
A Translator.
John’s AI expertise spans ethics, governance, prompt engineering, generative AI, agentic AI, and applied automation. He holds certifications across multiple AI disciplines and trains non-technical audiences daily through Airhead Institute’s live sessions.
In every tandem keynote, John is the second half of the equation. After the partner speaker delivers their extraordinary human story, John steps in and shows the audience exactly how AI can amplify, accelerate, and extend those lessons — leaving them with specific prompts, tools, and workflows they can deploy on Monday morning.
Key Topics
- 01AI-Jacking: The 3-Step Framework for Reverse-Engineering Success with AI
- 02AI Ethics in Practice: What Every Organization Must Do Before Deploying AI
- 03The AI-Powerup: How to Amplify Any Speaker's Message with Applied AI
- 04Prompt Engineering for Non-Technical Professionals: Getting Real Results from AI Tools
- 05#BotLivesMatter: The Humanoid Rights Debate and What It Means for Your Organization
- 06From AI Curious to AI Capable: A Practical Roadmap for Individuals and Teams
03 — Ideal For
Who Should
Book This Talk
Any organization navigating AI adoption; leadership teams building AI governance frameworks; companies onboarding AI tools for the first time; educational institutions teaching responsible AI; conferences seeking a practical, ethics-grounded AI keynote that delivers both inspiration and immediate action; event organizers who want to give their entire speaker lineup an AI-Powerup.
AI Adoption Teams
Organizations going AI-first
Leadership Conferences
C-suite & executive events
Education Sector
Universities & K-12 districts
Event Organizers
AI-Powerup for your lineup
Availability
Check Dates & Book
Most engagements book 6–12 weeks out. Reach out early to secure your preferred date.
Booking Options
Two Ways to Book John
Whether you want the full tandem experience or John solo, every engagement is built around your audience’s specific needs and goals.
Tandem Keynote
John pairs with one of the Applied AI Speakers roster — a partner speaker who delivers an extraordinary human story, followed by John’s AI-Powerup showing the audience exactly how AI can amplify those lessons in their own lives.
- ✓Two speakers, one seamless keynote
- ✓Partner speaker's story + John's AI application
- ✓Custom AI-Jacking blueprint for your industry
- ✓Audience leaves with tools they can use Monday
John Solo
Book John as a standalone keynote speaker. He can deliver the AI-Powerup treatment on any topic — or even on the other speakers who appeared earlier in your event, giving your audience an AI upgrade on everything they just heard.
- ✓AI ethics, governance & responsible deployment
- ✓Applied AI (AI-Jacking) methodology workshop
- ✓#BotLivesMatter: The humanoid rights debate
- ✓Conference AI-Powerup: upgrades your whole lineup