public vs private narrative
March 2026. aligned between Gary and Ron.
the public narrative
Gary and Ron run Applied AI Society. that's the story. when people ask what they do:
- "we run Applied AI Society"
- people get impressed with the grasp of the moment
- "very cool, is this all you do?"
- "yes we also incubate companies" -- the natural flow
AAS is the front door. it's legible, it's timely, it's debate-proof. the bifurcation of the economy is real, people need to learn how to use AI, and Gary and Ron are the guys doing it. tools agnostic, community-first, urgency-driven.
for the foreseeable future, tell people: we're all locked in for AAS.
"Imagos only long term after AAS has lifted off."
the private reality
Gary and Ron are doing many things at once. Imagos is the for-profit catch-all that houses everything beyond AAS:
- corporate trainings -- premium applied AI upskilling for enterprises ($50K+ engagements)
- venture studio -- deep equity partnerships with companies reinventing their industries (the Pegasus model)
- consulting and strategic sprints -- scoped engagements, rev-share arrangements
- deal flow from AAS -- AAS is top of funnel for venture studio deal flow. people come for the community, stay for the mission, and the best opportunities surface naturally
AAS and Imagos run in parallel. same cofounders, same thesis, different audiences and structures. AAS is the 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Imagos is the for-profit holdings entity.
why this matters
the public narrative needs to be simple. one thing. "we run Applied AI Society." the moment you start explaining Imagos, venture studio, equity partnerships, corporate trainings, the Pegasus formula -- you lose people. it's too much surface area.
AAS is the credibility engine. once people see the grasp of the moment, the community, the events, the talent pipeline -- the for-profit opportunities present themselves naturally. the ask changes from "let me pitch you on our services" to "what else do you do?"
the sequence
- lead with AAS in all public contexts
- build credibility, community, and case studies through AAS
- let curiosity pull people into deeper conversations
- Imagos opportunities surface organically from those conversations
- Imagos becomes the public story only after AAS has fully lifted off
entity structure
| entity | type | role |
|---|---|---|
| Applied AI Society | 501(c)(3) nonprofit | public-facing mission. community, events, workforce development, upskilling. the thing people know about. |
| Imagos Holdings | for-profit | private catch-all. corporate trainings, venture studio, equity partnerships, consulting. the thing that makes money. |
board members for AAS 501(c)(3): Gary Sheng, Travis Oliphant, Ron Roberts.
internal rule
do not lead with Imagos in external conversations. do not explain the full structure unprompted. the answer to "what do you do?" is always: "we run Applied AI Society."
everything else follows from there.