An Inspired Chat with Chris Deaton of Tempe

We recently had the chance to connect with Chris Deaton and have shared our conversation below.

Good morning Chris, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
DoWhatMATAs.org is the current project I am most proud of that no one sees.

As ChatGPT began to take over the news I had an idea. There was a lot of talk about bias in AI bias, fake news, and the plethora of misinformation being shared on social media and how that could ultimately impact – erroneously – people’s beliefs. In what should have been an age of transparency I saw us pivoting even deeper into an age of distrust, motivated by personal agendas over the greater good. I have long been a believer in understanding intrinsic motivation lets you serve people better where they are. It would be nice if everyone walked around with labels letting you know how someone really felt about an issue – and why. Knowing this sort of information allows you to better relate to and empathize with the other person. You don’t have to agree but the concern for a “hidden agenda” is diminished, and I believe real conversation can ensue when that is out in the open.

In order to democratize – with utmost transparency – the current political landscape, we built DoWhatMATAs.org with intentional AI design in mind.

Each of our personas has a back story and history that motivates them. They represent different demographics by intent. Each day I ask the personas what happened in the news and what they want to write about – and we do.

Joe Bob – Mid 50s, white South Texas redneck, oil money, blue collar attitude, was a Republican prior to the January 6th incident. Started on the site as a ex-Trump supporter. Does daily rants on TikTok.

Liberty Lane – Tex-mex lantina, mid 40s, Joe Bob’s half sister. Social justice warrior. Began on the site as a Trump supporter. She is not anymore. LGBTQ, women’s rights, runs a weekly blog for the site.

Daisy – Joe Bob’s daughter, 22 Texas State University student. Liberal college student, grew up in Texas, spent a lot of time in Mexico with Aunt Liberty’s family.

Plus, there is Walden (historian, lawyer, family friend), Quin (data analyst, sceptic), and Ezra. Uncle Ezra (Joe Bob’s Dad’s brother) is a retired marine. He believes in what he fought for – the Constitution. He is the last thing close to a Trump supporter.

It has been an interesting process as we feed their chatbot’s own writings back to it to evolve its personality. Once we have multiple weeks of persona generated material, we feed it back to the chatbot and ask if we should make adjustments to the master personality file of that persona. We almost change something, this is how President Trump lost the support of Liberty Lane early on. Immigration is a big deal to her; there are migratory farmers are her family.

It is a lot of fun quite frankly. It also keeps me up to date on current news from multiple perspectives. Perspectives and agendas that we gave them – or configured along with them.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Chris Deaton, founder of the Responsible Innovation Lab (RIL) — a collective built to turn ethical ideas into working prototypes that make a measurable difference. At RIL, our mantra is simple: impact proven, not promised. While others are still drafting reports, we’re already shipping the next release.

The Lab’s purpose is to bridge ethics and execution — to make sure innovation serves people, not just markets. I developed the INNOVATE framework, which turns principles like inclusivity, transparency, and foresight into actionable steps any team can use. Every project runs on our DID cycle — Deploy → Improve → Deploy again — meaning every lesson becomes a live deployment that trains students, informs research, and strengthens communities.

RIL’s projects range from AI ethics and workforce upskilling (Midlife College, AskMave) to bias literacy and civic dialogue (DoWhatMATAs.org, Give Me Back My Bias), and food justice initiatives (Lurch, Hunger-Free Campus). Across them all, we collapse the gap between learning and doing — proving that responsible innovation doesn’t have to be slow; it just has to be accountable.

My background in IT product management, years as a faculty member in the College of Global Futures, and an eclectic educational path give me a wide toolkit to guide this process. RIL is a student-led, student-staffed organization, with alumni and international students collaborating from across the world.

What makes us unique is that RIL isn’t a think tank — it’s a deployment lab and job pipeline. We help students develop real-world, career-ready skills while incubating their own ideas; right now, we’re supporting three active startups through the Lab.

We don’t just talk about ethical AI — we build it, test it, and share it with the communities who need it most. Our mission is simple: deploy good, and do it again.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What breaks the bonds between people—and what restores them?
Trust and communication — not necessarily in that order. That’s where relationships break, and how they’re ultimately restored.

We’ve forgotten how to talk to each other. Paradoxically, I think AI might actually help. I recently had my first AI-led interview, and it was — weirdly — comfortable. The system asked, paused thirty seconds for me to think, and then listened. That small space for reflection reminded me how rare that kind of patience has become in human conversation.

If interactions feel uncomfortable, maybe we just need more of them — more practice, more attempts at understanding. Personas and chatbots can play a role here by helping people rehearse empathy and communication in low-stakes ways.

Restoring trust, though, takes more than dialogue. It’s built through consistent, visible action — doing what you say you’ll do, one small proof at a time. My academic work and speaking on trust and emotional intelligence keep reinforcing the same truth: transparency is everything.

In the healthiest relationships — personal or professional — nothing’s hidden. When everything’s on the table, trust has room to grow again.

If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
Remember your younger self when your children arrive at many of the same places you did.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
100%. It is too hard to be someone else for other people.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I am certain I am doing what I was born to do. My life has led to this moment and the RIL. I am at my best when working with the student on new ideas. Their enthusiasm and my experience couple together create many a magical moment.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.responsibleinnovationlab.org
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisdeaton/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61577788957968
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@responsibleinnovationlab
  https://www.tiktok.com/@dowhatmatas

Image Credits
I took them