Detailed: How Startups & Spinoffs Win with an AI-Assist

For a startup on a budget with limited people resources, a solid communications plan can be

generated in 1/10th the time it would take using traditional tools or hiring an agency. Building on the previous post, CFS could try simple AI prompts to begin forming its public influence campaign against the much larger, entrenched TerraPower.

One of my first jobs as an electronics engineer was in the startup division of a major telephone carrier. Our mission was to create a business that could grow into a revenue generating machine. A business line with stock impact. My job was making sure our products worked flawlessly. Eventually it evolved into competitve threat analysis. That is where I was introduced to PR and the power of public perception, as well as the means and methods for staving off nimble startups. Turns out, it didn't always matter if my product was technically better. A shock to the system for someone rooted in the binary logic of an engineer. Truth eventually wins...no? No.

While my personal belief system crumbled, I began developing arguments suporting our claims of superiority and undermining competitor's claims. According to boxer Mike Tyson, "everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face." Unfortunately, Tyson's wisdom was a lived truth for me that year. But it introduced me to exceptionally good guerella startup tactics too; all of which can be used by CFS in its fight against TerraPower. AI figures into all of the tactics, for the most part making them hyper efficient and cost effective.

Starting Promptly

There are hundreds of startup PR prompts for sale right now. While some are good, a startup on a budget you can be successful with a simple AI prompt framework.

1. AI Prompt Framework (Best Practices – discussed in another blog post):

2. Tell Chat GPT (or its competitors) how you want it to act.

3. Give it relevant background information.

4. Ask your questions.

5. Ask Chat GPT to ask you clarifying questions before giving you the best possible response.

6. An example for CFS:

   1. How you want it to act: You are in charge of External Communications for a fusion energy startup company called Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS).

   2. Relevent background: You are competing with the largest energy companies in the world. Your fusion energy product has the potential to make all other forms of energy generation irrelevant if production and distribution achieve scale. Your competitors include a nuclear fission energy company owned and promoted by Bill Gates, the former founder of Microsoft. All your competitors, including Bill Gates’ company, are already forming alliances with one another to scale up the use of their competitive fission energy production, potentially driving you out of the market before you can launch your superior product.

   3. Ask your questions:

      1. What are the current alliances and partnerships they have already formed?

      2. What alliances and partnerships are they likely to pursue given their past partnerships?

      3. What are the opportunities for my company to pre-empt their alliances and partnership deals?

      4. What are opportunities to form alliances and partnerships with organizations who are against fission nuclear energy?

      5. Who are the most influential writers and journalists covering fission energy, fusion energy, and climate change?

      6. Who are the most influential public speakers, thought leaders, social media influencers?

      7. Who are the most influential local, state, and Federal government officials who have input on nuclear fission and other forms of energy production?

      8. Who are the biggest detractors against fusion energy?

         1. Summarize their arguments against fustion energy?

      9. Who are the biggest proponents of fusion energy?

   4. Tell Chat GPT to ask you questions: Chat GPT, ask me clarifying questions before you respond in order to provide me with your best possible answers.

After a little back and forth responding to Chat GPT's clarifying questions, it provided the output below. From here a few things should happen:

1. The information is a great place to start, but it's just a start. This early stage data must be turned into actionable information, pressure tested, then acted upon with clear KPIs in sight. For example, research into each individual/organization must be done to confirm individual opinions, their data sources, financial connections, their power/impact ranking, etc. All of which can be aided again by Chat GPT or its competitors using the same Prompt Framework.

2. Also, per research from MIT&BCG, aligning AI-assisted communications strategy with AI-assisted business strategy is essential before taking action. Ideally, both plans should be done interdepentently and have overlapping KPI measurements.

3. On a small starup budget, the simple prompting process can be very effective. A time will come for more in-depth and perhaps expensive options but this method is great on a $0 budget.

Writers and Journalists:

1. Bill McKibben - Environmentalist and author, writes extensively on energy and climate change. Founder of 350.org.

2. David Roberts - Former Vox journalist, now writes the “Volts” newsletter on energy and climate.

3. Jeff St. John - Senior editor at Greentech Media, covers renewable energy and grid technology.

4. Juliet Eilperin - Senior national affairs correspondent for The Washington Post, covers environmental issues.

5. Naomi Klein - Author of "This Changes Everything" and climate activist.

6. David Wallace-Wells - Author of "The Uninhabitable Earth."

Public Speakers and Thought Leaders:

1. Elon Musk - CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, frequently speaks on renewable energy and innovation.

2. Michael Liebreich - Founder of Bloomberg New Energy Finance, expert on clean energy and sustainability.

3. Amory Lovins - Co-founder of Rocky Mountain Institute, advocate for energy efficiency and renewables.

4. Katherine Hayhoe - Climate scientist and professor, known for her work on climate communication.

Social Media Influencers:

1. Mark Z. Jacobson - Professor at Stanford University, advocate for renewable energy, active on Twitter.

2. Leah Stokes - Assistant Professor at UC Santa Barbara, energy policy expert, active on Twitter.

3. Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson - Marine biologist and policy expert, co-founder of the All We Can Save project.

4. Emily Atkin - Journalist and author of the “Heated” newsletter on climate change.

Influential US Government Officials

1. Senator Joe Manchin - Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

2. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - Proponent of the Green New Deal.

3. Senator Lisa Murkowski - Former Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

4. Secretary Jennifer Granholm - Secretary of Energy, focuses on renewable energy initiatives.

5. Representative Frank Pallone - Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Critics of Fusion Energy

1. Mark P. Mills - Senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, skeptical of renewable energy scalability.

2. Michael Shellenberger - Environmentalist and author, critical of some renewable energy technologies.

3. Vaclav Smil - Scientist and policy analyst, known for his critical views on energy transitions.

4. Ted Nordhaus - Co-founder of the Breakthrough Institute, often critiques renewable energy optimism.

Podcasts:

1. The Energy Gang - Hosted by Stephen Lacey, Katherine Hamilton, and Jigar Shah, covers energy and climate issues.

2. Drilled - Investigative podcast by Amy Westervelt on climate change and the fossil fuel industry.

3. How to Save a Planet - Hosted by Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Alex Blumberg, focuses on climate solutions.

Social Media Influencers:

1. Greta Thunberg - Climate activist with a significant social media presence.

2. Leah Stokes - Assistant Professor at UC Santa Barbara, active on Twitter discussing climate policy.

3. Jamie Margolin - Co-founder of Zero Hour, climate activist with a strong online presence.

Public Speakers:

1. Elon Musk - CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, advocates for renewable energy and sustainability.

2. Jane Fonda - Actress and activist, organizes Fire Drill Fridays to protest for climate action.

3. Al Gore - Former Vice President and climate activist, known for "An Inconvenient Truth."

Researchers and Academics:

1. Michael Mann - Climatologist and geophysicist, known for the "hockey stick" graph.

2. Katharine Hayhoe - Climate scientist and professor, effective climate communicator.

3. James Hansen - Former NASA scientist and prominent climate researcher.

Market Research Organizations:

1. BloombergNEF - Provides research and analysis on clean energy and climate change.

2. Carbon Tracker Initiative - Independent financial think tank on the impact of climate change on capital markets.

3. Rocky Mountain Institute - Research organization focusing on energy efficiency and sustainability.

Additional Influential Figures:

1. Christiana Figueres - Former Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

2. Bill Gates - Philanthropist and author of "How to Avoid a Climate Disaster."

Influential Proponents of Fusion Energy

1. Dennis Whyte - Director of the Plasma Science and Fusion Center at MIT.

2. Bob Mumgaard - CEO of Commonwealth Fusion Systems. (Nice job CFS! )

3. Steven Cowley - Director of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

4. Cathy Foley - Chief Scientist of Australia, advocate for fusion energy research.

5. Ian Chapman - CEO of the UK Atomic Energy Authority.

6. Tim Luce - Chief Scientist at ITER.

7. David Kingham - Executive Vice Chairman of Tokamak Energy.

8. Arati Prabhakar - Director of DARPA, supports advanced energy research including fusion.

9. Kim Budil - Director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

10. Michl Binderbauer - CEO of TAE Technologies.

Top Detractors of Fusion Energy

1. Mark P. Mills - Senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, skeptical of renewable energy scalability.

2. Michael Shellenberger - Environmentalist and author, critical of some renewable energy technologies.

3. Vaclav Smil - Scientist and policy analyst, known for his critical views on energy transitions.

4. Ted Nordhaus - Co-founder of the Breakthrough Institute, often critiques renewable energy optimism.

5. James Hansen - Former NASA scientist, skeptical about the timelines and feasibility of fusion energy.

6. Richard Heinberg - Senior Fellow at the Post Carbon Institute, skeptical about fusion energy solving climate issues.

7. John Constable - Director of the Renewable Energy Foundation, critical of fusion energy investment.

8. David Keith - Professor at Harvard, critical of the cost and practicality of fusion energy.

9. Roger Pielke Jr. - Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, skeptical of fusion energy's potential impact.

10. Andrew Revkin - Environmental journalist, cautious about the hype surrounding fusion energy.