# Most Agencies Talk About AI. Ben Newman Builds With It.

Ben Newman founded Shaper Collective after national public affairs campaigns on
K Street. Since 2022, he has advised private equity firms and large enterprises
on generative AI adoption, then built Shaper Collective to run that same
discipline for causes and candidates.

## Public Affairs and Agent-Building Rarely Live in One Person

Washington teaches how power moves. Building agents teaches how attention moves
now. Shaper Collective brings those two disciplines into the same firm.

National public affairs work taught Ben how coalitions form, how a message
survives contact with a newsroom, and how stakeholders decide. Generative AI
strategy and adoption work added a second practice: building trustworthy
systems that keep a person's voice intact and make better decisions under
pressure.

## The Influence Model Tracks How AI Is Rewriting Washington

Ben writes [The Influence Model](https://bennewmandc.substack.com), a weekly
newsletter on how AI is reshaping the tactics of influence in Washington. The
newsletter tests the operating thesis behind Shaper Collective in public.

## Live Campaigns Prove the Operating Discipline

In Lakewood, Colorado, three community voices produced 109 pieces of content
and 170 social posts around a special election. The work generated more than
52,000 views, more than 836 engagements, and zero guardrail violations without
ad spend.

In Virginia, one community voice generated 132,000 views and more than 4,400
comments in six days.

- [Contact Shaper Collective](https://shapercollective.com/contact/)