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Ben Newman

About

Ben Newman, founder of Shaper Collective
Washington, DC

Ben Newman saw the future in a dorm room in 2022. Within a year he was the “AI kid” in rooms full of private equity operators, learning that transformation is about people and process. A campus campaign he led against antisemitism taught him how AI could help a small group punch above its weight, so he came to Washington and founded Shaper Collective, an AI-native PR and strategy firm that helps organizations win the battle for attention. He believes transformation will be led by people who aren’t afraid to ask ambitious questions and use AI to solve hard problems.

Read more at Shaper Collective.

Origin

  1. Childhood

    Grew up outside Philadelphia.

  2. College

    Studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

  3. Nov 2022

    Got an early look at generative AI (GPT-3.5), before ChatGPT's public launch.

  4. Jan 2023

    Began advising a private equity firm's portfolio companies on AI.

  5. Jun 2023

    Founded AdaptIgnite, an AI consultancy for small businesses and private equity portfolio companies.

  6. May 2024

    The UW-Madison chancellor asked to meet Jewish campus leaders during the encampment, and Ben was among them. The group brought a nearly 26-page document and 12 requests, and four outlets quoted him. He has written that the campaign ran on AI and showed him what AI could bring to opinion shaping. He traces Shaper Collective to it.

  7. Sep 2024

    Joined Rational 360 in Washington, working on healthcare and consumer goods issues and building AI workflows for its team.

  8. Sep 2025

    Started The Influence Model, a weekly newsletter on AI and influence in Washington (first issue September 5, 2025).

  9. Nov 2025

    Founded Shaper Collective in Washington, DC.

  10. Sep 2026

    Leads the Open Community Benefits Agreement for data centers at Policy Frameworks (live September 8, 2026).

Press and mentions