AI on Trial: YOU Are the Jury

Is Artificial Intelligence the ultimate innovation — or a dangerous force we’re failing to govern?

AI on Trial is an immersive, courtroom-style experience unlike anything you’ve attended before. This is not a panel, not a keynote, and not a debate. It is a live mock trial where artificial intelligence itself is put on the stand and you, the audience, serve as the jury.

AI is no longer theoretical. It shapes how we work, create, learn, and make decisions every day. This event invites you to move beyond headlines and hype and wrestle with the real, complex questions surrounding AI’s impact on society, ethics, and responsibility.

This is an event like no other, high-energy, participatory, intellectually rigorous, and designed to challenge how you think about technology long after the verdict is delivered.

⚖️ The Case Against AI

AI stands accused of four serious charges — each grounded in real-world concerns, not science fiction:

Grand Theft Data
Did AI systems unlawfully or unfairly use massive amounts of human-created data without proper consent, transparency, or governance?

Hallucinations in the First Degree
Have AI systems caused real harm by confidently producing false information that people reasonably relied upon?

Asphalt & Battery
Can AI be meaningfully linked to physical harm or damage when embedded in real-world systems like transportation, automation, and infrastructure?

Workforce Manslaughter
Has AI contributed to large-scale job displacement at a pace that outstrips society’s ability to adapt, reskill, and respond?

These charges will be examined carefully through testimony, evidence, and structured argument — not fear, hype, or speculation AI on Trial - Script.

🧑‍⚖️ Inside the Courtroom

Judge

Curtis Michelson — Presiding Judge

Prosecution (The Doomsayers)

Rajiv Menon — Prosecuting Attorney

Defense (The Utopians)

Will Gorman — Defense Attorney

Witnesses
You’ll hear testimony from expert witnesses across different backgrounds, including:

Joseph — Prosecution Witness
Annie — Prosecution Witness
Beth Kennedy — Defense Witness
Witness #4 — Special Witness (revealed live during the trial)

Bailiff

TBD

The Jury

YOU — the audience

Each witness has been carefully written and staged to surface nuance, tension, and tradeoffs — not simple answers or strawman arguments AI on Trial Meeting Notes.

🎤 How the Trial Works

The evening follows real courtroom structure, adapted for an interactive audience experience:

• Court opening and jury orientation
• Reading of the charges and live audience polling
• Opening statements from Prosecution and Defense
• Witness testimony and cross-examinations
• Closing arguments
• Live jury deliberation and final verdict

Throughout the trial, you’ll be asked to engage, reflect, and vote — not just observe. This experience is designed to give you thinking tools, not talking points, so you can navigate AI conversations in your workplace, community, and personal life more thoughtfully AI on Trial - Script.

🧠 What This Trial Is — and Is Not

This court is not deciding:

Which AI company is “good” or “bad”
Whether AI has moral agency
What the future will definitively look like

Instead, the trial asks a harder question:

Are we assigning responsibility wisely — or simply blaming the tool instead of the system?

The goal is not comfort. The goal is clarity.

🍷 After the Verdict

Once the court adjourns, stay for networking, conversation, and connection with technologists, creatives, founders, students, and professionals from across Central Florida. Expect spirited discussion, differing perspectives, and a room full of people still debating the verdict long after it’s announced.

📅 Event Details

🗓 January 29, 2026
📍 Orange County Regional History Center
⏰ 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
🎟 Capacity is limited

Contact the host of AI on Trial