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A flat vector editorial illustration in warm tones on a textured cream background. It features a large coral microphone connected by a dark gray, single line to a small, teal, rectangular microchip, illustrating the concept of large AI processing capabilities in compact hardware. The image uses muted sage and olive organic shapes with dotted patterns.

3 min read

Voice AI Is About to Get a Lot Cheaper and Faster — What Associations Should Know

Mallory Mejias: Apr 6, 2026 5:57:47 PM

If your association has been watching voice AI from the sidelines — maybe impressed by the demos but put off by the cost or complexity — the calculus...

A table-top comparison of two conceptual sketches for an AI audio agent. On the left, a crumpled napkin shows a rough hand-drawn flowchart. On the right, a neat engineering blueprint transforms the sketch into a technical, labeled architectural diagram of deep neural networks and NLP engines.

6 min read

From Hackathon to Live Product in 60 Days: A Playbook for Association AI Experiments

Mallory Mejias: Mar 24, 2026 6:30:00 AM

In late January, a group of 14 people gathered at a beach house in Florida for six days. They worked 16 to 18 hour days, mostly self-directed, with...

AI Agents Member Services Innovation AI Audio

A stylized, vector-style illustration depicting a signal path traveling between two tin cans. On the left, a horizontal tin can has orange sound waves emanating from it, representing speaking. A wavy wire connects this can to a sequence of components along the path: a cluster of gray gears, a green rectangular circuit board, and a gray funnel. The wire finally connects to a vertical tin can on the right, which is slightly tilted as if for listening. The image is on a solid light background with subtle gray shadows beneath the cans.

6 min read

How We Built Grace: The Tech Stack Behind Sidecar's Voice AI Agent

Mallory Mejias: Mar 23, 2026 11:44:51 AM

Sidecar recently launched Grace, a voice AI agent that lives on our website. You can talk to her about Sidecar's offerings, ask questions about the...

AI Agents Member Services AI Audio

Sidecar Sync episode 126 cover featuring Amith Nagarajan and Mallory Mejias

30 min read

Meet Grace: Sidecar’s New AI Agent Takes the Stage | [Sidecar Sync Episode 126]

Mallory Mejias: Mar 20, 2026 9:33:03 AM

Summary: In this episode of Sidecar Sync, Amith Nagarajan and Mallory Mejias pull back the curtain on one of Sidecar’s most ambitious experiments...

AI Agents Sidecar Sync Podcast AI Audio

1 min read

Meet Grace, Our New AI Voice Agent

John Huisman: Mar 16, 2026 11:03:15 AM

We built something we're excited about and wanted to share it. If you visit sidecar.ai now, you'll notice something new: a research preview of our AI...

AI Agents Leadership AI Audio

A retro-style diptych illustration shows a woman feeding gray association documents into a gramophone-like machine on the left, while on the right, colorful musical notes and speech bubbles emerge from its pipes.

4 min read

From Text to Talk: Turning Your Association's Written Content Into Engaging Audio Experiences

Mallory Mejias: Sep 11, 2025 3:18:31 PM

Your association is sitting on thousands of pages of valuable content that most members will never read. Board minutes, research reports, white...

Artificial Intelligence Microsoft AI Audio

Sidecar Sync Episode 98 featuring Amith Nagarajan and Mallory Mejias

39 min read

Inside the AI Audio Revolution: Translating, Conversing, & Composing | [Sidecar Sync Episode 98]

Mallory Mejias: Sep 4, 2025 10:04:37 PM

Summary: In this audio-focused episode of the Sidecar Sync, Mallory Mejias and Amith Nagarajan explore three groundbreaking advancements in AI audio...

Artificial Intelligence Sidecar Sync Podcast google Microsoft AI Audio ElevenLabs

Sidecar Sync podcast episode cover featuring hosts Mallory and Amith, with the tagline 'AI Knowledge for Associations' and playful sound effect captions like [laughs], [sighs], [whispers], and [cries]. Episode 86.

38 min read

Emotions, Accents, and Avatars Galore & Why Apple Says It’s All Just an Illusion | [Sidecar Sync Episode 87]

Mallory Mejias: Jun 20, 2025 11:59:02 AM

Summary: In this episode of the Sidecar Sync, co-hosts Amith Nagarajan and Mallory Mejias dive deep into the cutting edge of AI-generated audio and...

Sidecar Sync Podcast AI Video Generation AI Audio ElevenLabs HeyGen Apple