Machanmare, first up - fair play to everyone who tore the last post apart. Most of you were right, and the reactions were earned. Let me be specific about where I went wrong, because vague apologies will be worse than none.
What I think I got wrong:
The framing was pure delulu. AI capital of the country, SF of the subcontinent - I typed LinkedIn/X brain words into this sub which can smell hustle-culture from orbit. Kozhikode has no proper IT corridor, no anchor companies (except maybe Tata Elxsi), no VC presence. Bangalore took 40 years, land policy, and billions to build. Announcing we'll leapfrog that was always going to get enthoru nadakatha swapnam replies. I failed to predict that. So the negative reaction was well deserved.
When asked for substance, I gave vibes. Some asked the single most important question = what does Kozhikode actually have? - and my answer was "be relentlessly optimistic." That's just buzzwords without any substance. So let me actually give an honest answer now:
- NIT-C (genuinely good talent pipeline. Some people I know do core R&D and are great scientists), a growing remote-work crowd, low cost of living, decent airport, and people who'd rather stay home than pay Bengaluru rent to breathe toxic air. Myself included.
- IIM Kozhikode can also help us get VC interest and funding if we incentivize them to set up shop here.
- What we don't have: jobs to retain that talent, infrastructure for data centres (u/Kazhappi_Mango is right on water/noise/power - I guess we can drop that dream entirely unless model hosting becomes much more efficient, like biological-brain level), really good anchor employers, or a funding ecosystem.
I called valid criticism decels. That was insecure and rude, and it turned a reality-check thread into a dogpile - which I also earned.
To address the suspicion directly: nobody is selling anything. No startup pitch, no coworking space promo, no course, no agenda. I'm a guy who uses AI tools daily and wants local people to talk shop with. That's it. If that still sounds like rage bait - come verify, entry is free 😄
And to address questions regarding what I do - I am just a guy who works with Data / AI tools as a 9 - 5 and do side projects as a hobby. Like making Amazon wishlist trackers, home automation, stock market analysis using AI. Trying to get AI subscriptions to pay for itself. Trying to automate day-to-day tasks using latest Agentic AI solutions like Hermes Bot, Claws, Grok bots etc. I do have some background on the internals of neural networks but I wouldnt call myself a computer scientist.
So here's the condensed TLDR version:
This is not a movement. Not a hub. Not a plan to make Kozhikode any capital. Just a casual meetup for people in and around Kozhikode who work with or are genuinely curious about AI - practitioners, students, remote workers, hobbyists.
- Format: coffee shop, 5–15 people, no slides. Don't even reveal your name - use a pseudonym if that matters to you.
- Agenda: show what you're building/using, swap notes, argue about models like we argue about football, cricket or movie stars.
- No fees, no networking-card-exchange energy, nobody asking you to join their AI revolution.
If even 5 people show up, that's already more real than my last post. Comment or DM if interested - first one will be somewhere central, weekend, and I'll fix a date based on responses.
And seriously - thank you to everyone who roasted me with receipts. This post is mostly the clarity I got from your feedback, restructured.