Build An Agent Day: Charlotte

Build An Agent Day brought business professionals, government leaders, and educators to Uptown Charlotte on July 28, 2026 for a hands-on workshop on applying AI agents to their work. The day focused on practical workflows, with no coding background required.

What we covered

• How agents work and how to choose a platform for a task.
• The S.M.A.R.T. framework: Sort, Match, Automate, Refine, Take Control.
• Writing reusable skills and instructions.
• Research agents with Manus, finished work from connected apps with ChatGPT Work, and agents grounded in files and workflows with Claude Cowork.
• Reviewing outputs, improving instructions, and deciding what people should approve.

The people behind the day

Mark Hinkle, co-founder of All Things AI and founder of The AIE Network, led the workshop. Todd Lewis, creator and chair of All Things Open, co-organized the event. Guest speaker Corey Ganim of Return My Time presented his Audit → Optimize → Automate approach during lunch.

Where we gathered

Dubois Center at UNC Charlotte Center City
320 E. 9th Street, Charlotte, NC 28202

Presented by All Things AI, with All Things Open and The AIE Network. Co-sponsored by Return My Time.

This page preserves the July 28, 2026 event program. Registration and the setup clinic began at 8 AM; the published workshop agenda ran from 9 AM to 5 PM Eastern.