The VienerX Newsletter

Last week, we re-launched our newsletter after a 20 year break. The response has been overwhelmingly positive, both in terms of the metrics, as well as verbal feedback from customers. I want to take a moment to thank everyone who chose to spend a few minutes to read what we had to say.

If you missed the re-launch of our newsletter, click here to read it and to sign up for future editions.

The original newsletter, which ran from 2000-2004, was a massive success and a point of pride for our company. When I asked Jordan (Chief of Brand), what he was thinking for new marketing ideas; the very first thing he said was, “we should start a newsletter.” Little did he know, I was already thinking the same thing.

As Mason (Chief Operating Officer) mentioned in the launch video for the newsletter (you can watch that here), the newsletter created a personal level connection. In today’s digital age, full of chatbots, and global support teams, that personal connection is more valuable than ever.

We are excited to share something new with you every couple of weeks. These stories, insights, and updates help strengthen the connection between our team and the people who matter most: you.

In other news, on behalf of everyone at VienerX, would like to wish our readers a happy Halloween! While I’m decidedly not a scary movie guy, I am Reese’s Cups guy. I have very fond memories of Halloween from when my children were younger, as well as from my own childhood. It’s a very fun time of year for so many. So for those who celebrate, enjoy the holiday and save some candy for the rest of us!

VienerX is proud to introduce the “Above C-Level” Podcast, a video podcast series hosted by company Founder/CEO Wayne Viener and CRO Shane Gossert. The podcast will discuss how business executives leverage enterprise information technology to Make Their Company Work. We sit down with some of the top executives in the channel. The first episode was just released on Wednesday, and you can check back for new episodes every other Wednesday!

About The Hosts

Wayne Viener – An executive leader with over three decades of experience in enterprise IT strategy, cybersecurity, and business growth. Founder and CEO of VienerX, an IT consulting and services firm operating in 22 states plus Washington D.C. Wayne is known for building scalable technical operations while serving as a trusted advisor to business owners, C-level executives, and franchise organizations.

Outside the boardroom, Wayne was featured on FOX 5 in Washington, D.C. as the “IT guy” in the run up to Y2K. He is also widely recognized as the de-facto postgame voice of the Maryland Terrapins, hosting football, men’s basketball, and men’s lacrosse coverage that reaches fans across the country.

For more than two decades, his postgame shows and commentary have made him one of the most familiar voices in Maryland sports—heard on 1300 The Bet AM in Baltimore and featured on NBC affiliate broadcasts.

Shane Gossert – Shane Gossert brings over 15 years of experience in the telecom channel to VienerX. As one of the top sales representatives in the field for more than a decade, he contributes a wealth of industry knowledge to the podcast. A Maryland native with professional experience across the United States, Shane has consistently exceeded sales goals at every organization he’s worked with and has earned numerous awards for his achievements. His career includes partnerships with multiple Fortune 500 companies.

Outside the office, Shane is a key member of a touring band that has released several albums. He also played NCAA collegiate soccer and is a U.S. Soccer–certified youth coach. An active member of the community, Shane has volunteered his time with organizations including Walter Reed Hospital for the 82nd Airborne Association, the Bowen Foundation for Children with Autism, and Habitat for Humanity.

We sat down with VienerX Generalist, Bill Lioreisis and CEO Wayne Viener to discuss the process of creating an AI chatbot. Wayne has been working on bringing a “CPA character” named Hal to life using ChatGPT tools.

Hal Brenner is a 68-year-old accountant who was born in the Philadelphia area. When he was 10, his family moved to Miami Beach, and as a teenager, they relocated to Manhattan. After attending college at Georgetown University in D.C., he settled in Northern Virginia, where he married his wife, Ella, and they raised two kids. Today, Hal is retired and living the good life hitting golf balls in Boca Raton, Florida.

If you ask him anything about his life, he’ll be happy to tell you. About how he grew up an New York Giants fan, but after graduating from Georgetown in 1979 and living in the D.C. area for years, he eventually switched over to being a Commanders fan. Although he’ll fully admit, when the two teams play, he is torn.

About his kids, Rachel, a lawyer in New York, and David, working in tech finance in Silicon Valley, who are the pride and joy of his life. If you spend some time talking to Hal, it’s not a stretch to feel like he’s a real, witty, Grandpa who is enjoying the fruits of retirement.

Except Hal isn’t real. He’s an AI persona built using ChatGPT (technically, a GPT). VienerX’s Wayne Viener spent months working on him, and was later joined on the project by Bill Lioreisis. This is the story of how Hal came to life.

Beginnings

This project started very differently than its current form. Wayne, who has spent much time learning about the cutting edge of AI, decided it would be an interesting challenge to develop an AI bot to help with financial questions. Wayne didn’t just want the bot to be a boring financial GPT though, he wanted to give it personality, and he wanted him to have persistent memory, the technical term for the ability to remember what you tell him last time. That eventually became Hal.

From there it developed further. Over the course of the next few months, Wayne, who was joined by Bill, began to conceptualize the idea as something that could be marketed to customers.

The Story Side

The story, the actual personality, was Wayne’s doing. He compares it heavily to story writing, something he has a lot of experience in through his second career as a sports journalist. Those who know him can see the personal touches in Hal. The Philadelphia in his background mirrors Wayne’s older son, Jordan’s years living in the city. While Hal’s current home in Boca is where Wayne’s mother has lived off and on since 1982.

When writing the details for Hal’s story, one thing that Wayne was very careful about was pouring enough detail into Hal that he would be perceived as a real person. He estimates that there are several thousand words put into creating the background of Hal’s personality. That said, even with putting all the effort in, one thing the team emphasized was stress testing it.

Most AI tools are based on Large Language Models (LLMs). LLM AI has a tendency to do what is called, “hallucinating.” Not in the human sense, although similar. Hallucinating in this sense, is having the GPT generate a piece of false information and presenting it as factual. This can be because of technical failures or other reasons. These hallucinations can be difficult to discern from the truth, particularly if you as the user don’t already know what the answer is. For this reason, as ChatGPT itself always says at the bottom of the screen, it is always critical to verify important information. If you are suspicious of the information that your doctor gave you, you seek a second opinion. People must be willing to take that same level of skepticism, perhaps more, with their AI agents.

Another common thing that had to be worked out with testing was consistency of answers. A simple question like “where do you live?” can easily be inconsistently answered, particularly when Hal has “lived” in five locations throughout his life. Like any other AI source, it is important to always double check information when using even a specialized bot.

The Technical Side

ChatGPT, the tool behind Hal, allows developers to access an Application Programming Interface (API). Think of the API as the “vanilla” version of ChatGPT. When a user interacts with ChatGPT using their account, they’re effectively customizing it with their own data. This same philosophy applies when designing customer AI bots, albeit, with more steps.

For Hal, the goal was to have the AI remember specific details and use them in every interaction, this is known as persistent memory. Achieving that required a process called “wrapping”, building a structure for the GPT’s memory to live in. This was no small task. The logic of AI memory is complex. For example, the developers had to program it so that after each interaction, Hal could access relevant portions of memory and summarize them accurately in about 100 words. This foundation is what allows Hal to function as a consistent and believable persona.

The Future of Hal

Hal is close to being ready for prime time. The team at VienerX learned a lot throughout his development and will soon be ready to build AI bots for customers. When asked how this story should end, Hal itself responded, “Technology may do the math, but it’s human judgment that gives it meaning. I’m here to keep that judgment alive — just faster, clearer, and maybe with a little more Boca charm.”

As Microsoft continues its evolution of the Windows platform, we are already thinking about what’s next after Windows 11. While Microsoft has not officially announced Windows 12, there is growing discussion across the technology community about what the next generation of Windows will bring and how it differs from Windows 10 and Windows 11.

Windows 10, released in 2015, represented the final step in the classic Windows lineage. It focused on stability, compatibility, and broad hardware support, becoming the foundation for modern business computing. Security was improved with features like Windows Hello, BitLocker, and TPM 2.0 awareness, but Microsoft’s intent at the time was to keep Windows 10 as the “last version,” updating it continuously.

Windows 11 changed that vision. Released in 2021, it brought a cleaner interface, centered taskbar, and modernized system design built on the Fluent framework. The emphasis shifted toward security and performance, introducing strict hardware requirements such as TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, and modern CPU architectures. It also marked the beginning of integrated AI features, highlighted by Microsoft Copilot, as well as tighter cloud integration through Microsoft 365.

The next version, often referred to as Windows 12, remains unconfirmed but widely discussed. It is rumored to expand Microsoft’s focus on AI and modular design. The interface is expected to include further refinements to multitasking, gestures, and voice controls. The core system may become more modular, allowing faster updates and improved performance across different types of hardware. Security will likely be enhanced again, with deeper integration of trusted computing and more advanced device management tools. Some reports suggest that new devices may require dedicated neural processing units (NPUs) to support on-device AI capabilities.

For businesses, the move from Windows 10 to 11—and eventually to 12—means continued emphasis on modernization, hardware refresh, and the integration of intelligent tools. Microsoft’s long-term direction is clear: a smarter, safer, and more adaptive operating system that blends local computing power with cloud and AI services.

VienerX continues to monitor the roadmap closely. With Windows 10 reaching its official end of life in October 2025, organizations should plan now for the transition to Windows 11 and the next generation that follows. As always, our goal is to make your company work—securely, efficiently, and ready for what’s next.