At Bridging Innovation Week 2026 in Morgantown, West Virginia, Sean Hyde delivered an action-oriented session on AI readiness for small business owners, followed by a live hackathon in which he built and launched a fully functional Founder-Matching app in under 90 minutes. The events represented a visible demonstration of practical AI execution, drawing attention from local entrepreneurs and regional business development communities.
Hyde, the founder of Ideation Digital and 222 Websites, structured his session around the A.G.E. Framework, his proprietary AI readiness system designed to help small businesses adopt artificial intelligence in a structured, practical sequence. The framework guided attendees through core phases of AI adoption, offering a repeatable process grounded in real application. The session drew small business owners from across West Virginia seeking tangible ways to strengthen operations and explore AI for small business.
Rather than delivering a standard workshop, Hyde remained on-site for the entire day, offering one-on-one AI implementation support to attendees. That extended presence gave participants direct access to guidance typically reserved for paid consulting engagements. The defining moment came during the live hackathon segment, where Hyde built and launched a fully functional Founder-Matching app in under 90 minutes, connecting entrepreneurs based on complementary skills and business goals. The build was a complete, operational application developed from scratch on the event floor.
The speed and completeness of the build illustrated AI-assisted development in practice. For attendees who had learned the A.G.E. Framework, seeing a finished product emerge in less than an hour and a half translated the methodology into something concrete. Hyde noted, 'West Virginia entrepreneurs are some of the most motivated people I have worked with, and they deserve tools built for the pace they are ready to move at.'
Bridging Innovation Week 2026 brought together business owners, startup founders, and economic development stakeholders from Morgantown and surrounding states. Hyde's participation placed his agencies at the center of a broader conversation about how small businesses in West Virginia can apply AI to compete more effectively. One-on-one sessions covered automating customer communication workflows and structuring content systems to reduce repetitive tasks. Attendees left with documented action steps tied to the A.G.E. Framework.
The Founder-Matching app built during the hackathon is being reviewed for potential continued development, with interest from several participants who see it as a practical tool for the local startup community. Hyde's proprietary A.G.E. Framework provides a structured approach to AI readiness applied across both agency practices at Ideation Digital and 222 Websites.
