As the AI NEXTGEN America Conference approaches, Career Communications Group has announced key updates.
The conference will focus on AI’s impact on jobs, education, finance, healthcare, cybersecurity, energy, manufacturing, skilled trades, and economic opportunity.
Career Communications Group also revealed an expanding lineup of speakers and panelists for the inaugural event at the Baltimore Convention Center.
Notable speakers include leaders in higher education, cybersecurity, human factors engineering, and national security.
The lineup also features entrepreneurs specializing in advanced textile manufacturing, carbon footprint reduction through solar power and battery storage, biological diagnostics and therapeutics, secure artificial intelligence, AI transformation, and data analytics.
Additional speakers will address distance learning quality by equipping educators with effective tools and training, as well as topics in marketing, AI, robotics, and organizational development.
These leaders will address pressing questions about artificial intelligence, such as: Will AI take my job? What skills are needed for the future? How will AI affect education and healthcare? What are the implications for cybersecurity, energy, and finance? Where will new jobs emerge?
Conference sessions will cover topics including the current role of AI, workforce changes, energy demands, advanced manufacturing, education, healthcare, national security, and the future of finance.
Career Communications Group has announced the 2026 AiNEXTGEN America Futurist Awards honorees.
These awards recognize leaders, innovators, researchers, educators, executives, organizations, and emerging talent shaping the future of artificial intelligence, technology, industry, and the workforce.
Presented during the AiNEXTGEN America Conference and Futurist Awards, these honors celebrate achievements in artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, digital infrastructure, energy, healthcare technology, defense, workforce development, education, and emerging technology.
The 2026 top honors go to Dario Gil, Ph.D., Under Secretary for Science at the U.S. Department of Energy (Futurist of the Year), and Isabella Piña, CEO, President, and Founder of Inspired Solutions (Technologist of the Year).
"The Futurist Awards recognize people and organizations who are not simply anticipating the future, but actively building it," said Tyrone Taborn, CEO and publisher of Career Communications Group. "These honorees represent the leadership, imagination and commitment needed to translate technological advancement into opportunity and impact."
Futurist of the Year
- Darío Gil, Ph.D., Under Secretary for Science, U.S. Department of Energy
Technologist of the Year
- Isabella Piña, CEO, President & Founder, Inspired Solutions
Industry and Technology category winners include the Advanced Manufacturing Leader, AI Innovator, Digital Infrastructure Leader, Energy Pioneer, Financial Technology Leader, Healthcare Technology Leader, and Maritime Defense Innovator awards.
Advanced Manufacturing Leader
- Charlisha Greene, Vice President, Global Supply Chain & Integration – Air Dominance, The Boeing Company
- Christopher Johnston, Contracting Officer, Army Contracting Command - Detroit Arsenal
- Jay Lee, Sc.D., Director of Industrial Artificial Intelligence Center, University of Maryland
AI Innovator
- Jeannice Fairrer Samani, Ph.D., CEO and Managing Director, Fairrer Samani Group, LLC
- Daniel Sierra-Sosa, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, The Catholic University of America
Digital Infrastructure Leader
- Lucia Chung, Vice President and CIO, Engineering & Product Support, The Boeing Company
- Robert Slone, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Scientist, UL Solutions
Energy Pioneer
- Anthony Kinslow II, Ph.D., CEO and Founder, Gemini Energy Solutions
- Migo Szeman Ng, Ph.D., Principal Research Scientist, UL Research Institutes
Financial Technology Leader
- Thomas Phillips, Chief of the Intelligence and Security Command and the Ground Vehicle Systems Center, Army Contracting Command - Detroit Arsenal
Healthcare Technology Leader
- Betsy Butler, Program Manager, Tanaq Health
- Qian Zhang, Ph.D., Research Scientist IV, UL Research Institutes
Maritime & Defense Innovator
- Juan Henderson, Acting PEG Chief, Air Force Materiel Command, AFNWC/NIZ Engineer
The Workforce, Community, and Impact category features the AI Governance Leader, Community Workforce Impact Leader, Corporate Responsibility Leader, Educator of the Future, Future Workforce Employer, and Community, Impact, and Workforce Development Leader awards.
AI Governance Leader
- The Catholic University of America
- Ryan McManus, Founder. techtonic.ioAI Thought Leader
- Center for Responsible AI at Virginia State University
- David Shrier, Professor of Practice, AI & Innovation, Imperial College London Business School
Community Workforce Impact Leader
- Kara Branch, Founder and CEO, Black Girls Do Engineer
- Christine Burkette, CEO, Promising Integrations Consulting Firm
- Rozlyn Chambliss, Ph.D., Program Integrator, The Boeing Company
Corporate Responsibility Leader
- Heidi Spahn, Global Corporate and Community Investment, Corteva Agriscience
Educator of the Future
Agentic FuturePath AI
- Kim Lewis, Ph.D., Vice President for Research and Chief Research Officer, Howard University
- Becki Rowan-White, Senior Education Programs Manager, UL Research Institutes
Future Workforce Employer
- Tamika King, Site Facility Manager, Leadec
- Andrea Lewis-Allen, Senior Manager, The Boeing Company
- Sol Rashidi, CEO, ExecutiveAIHumanitarian Impact
Workforce Development Leader
- University of Maryland Global Campus
The Creative and Emerging Technology category includes the Creative Technology Innovator, Interactive Media Innovator, and Special Recognition awards.
Creative Technology Innovator
- Audapt, LLC
Interactive Media Innovator
- Tennessee State University, SMART Center
- Valeria Palacios Cruz, Student, Ceulver/TecNM University
Special Recognition
- Kemal Badur, Assistant Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, University of Chicago
- Branville Bard Jr., D.P.A., Vice President for Public Safety, Johns Hopkins University
- Stephan Daniels, Product Quality Manager, Apple, Inc.
- Donald “Doni” Glover, Founder and Publisher, BMORE News
- Tammie Jones-Jefferson, Regulatory and Stewardship Leader, Corteva Agriscience
- Aleksandra Przegalińska, Professor & Vice Rector for Innovations and AI, Kozminski University
- Amy Webb, CEO and Founder, Future Today Strategy Group
The 2026 Futurist Awards highlight the wide range of individuals and organizations driving technological transformation. This year’s honorees represent industry, government, higher education, research, entrepreneurship, and community organizations, reflecting the interconnected ecosystem shaping artificial intelligence and the future of work.
The AiNEXTGEN America Conference and Futurist Awards convene leaders, innovators, educators, technologists, and emerging talent to explore artificial intelligence and the technologies shaping the future of work, industry, and society.
Career Communications Group, Inc. is a media, workforce development, and technology organization dedicated to advancing opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Through its publications, conferences, digital platforms, and STEM City USA initiatives, CCG connects students, professionals, educators, employers, and communities.
