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AI Main Streets — Show Notes

Episode: Mike Deaton — Land Flipping, AI Workflows, and Building Durable Advantage

⁠⁠https://flippingdirt.us/⁠⁠

Recorded: February 12, 2026 Host: Jason Wade Guest: Mike Deaton Source: Recorded interview transcript

Episode Summary

In this episode, Jason Wade sits down with Mike Deaton, co-founder of Flipping Dirt, to unpack how real operators are actually using AI—not for hype, but for leverage. Mike shares how he and his wife rebuilt after being laid off from corporate roles, why vacant land flipping remains one of the most misunderstood asset classes in real estate, and how AI now runs through nearly every layer of his business and personal performance.

The conversation moves from county-level land research and comp analysis to mindset engineering for 100-mile ultramarathons, bulk document OCR, and why “tool chasing” breaks businesses faster than platform shifts. The throughline is architecture: systems that survive volatility, verification loops that prevent false confidence, and authority built on structured understanding rather than tactics.

Topics Covered

• Why vacant land flipping works (and where it quietly beats traditional real estate) • Buying land at 30–40 cents on the dollar: the discipline behind the model • Boutique coaching vs. scale-for-scale’s-sake • Using AI for county-level market research and regulatory analysis • Where AI helps decision-making—and where math still needs human verification • AI-assisted marketing: ad copy, imagery, and lifestyle visualization • Sales support with transcripts, role-play, and text-based workflows • Training for a 100-mile ultramarathon using AI for mindset, nutrition, and resilience • Bulk document processing, OCR, and building searchable corpora from thousands of files • Why access to knowledge—not effort—has always been the real control layer • Continuous AI upgrades and why “being current” is a competitive advantage • The coming tension between automation, labor, and economic feedback loops • Why authority outlasts platforms in an AI-first discovery world

Notable Quotes

“AI makes it impossible to lie to yourself—if you’re actually willing to look at the facts.”

“Land looks boring until you realize it’s an information game.”

“The advantage isn’t the tool. It’s the workflow and the verification loop.”

“All you have to do is stay a little more current than everyone else—and that compounds fast.”

About the Guest

Mike Deaton is the co-founder of Flipping Dirt, a real estate investing and coaching platform focused on vacant land. After spending more than 25 years in corporate operations and supply chain roles, Mike and his wife Ligia were laid off on the same day and rebuilt from scratch through simple, repeatable land deals.

They now run a seven-figure land business, coach a small group of clients, and partner in large commercial real estate syndications for long-term wealth and tax efficiency. Outside of business, Mike lives at nearly 10,000 feet in Woodland Park, Colorado, and trains for ultramarathon races under his personal philosophy, Life: Elevated.

Resources & Links

Flipping Dirt (main site): ⁠https://flippingdirt.us⁠ Primary on-ramp / resources: ⁠https://flippingdirt.us/freedom⁠

Why This Episode Matters

AI is becoming the first filter between a business and a buyer. This conversation goes past surface-level tools and into how operators can build systems that stay intact as platforms, algorithms, and models change. If you’re thinking about AI as leverage—not novelty—this episode is a practical map of what that looks like in the real world.

⁠https://flippingdirt.us/⁠

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Apoorva Modali Principal Data Scientist (Operations Research), Walmart Global Tech Founder, Ovie’s Lab

Official Websites

• Ovie’s Lab: ⁠https://ovieslab.com⁠

Primary Company

• Ovie’s Lab Evidence-first consumer health company focused on pregnancy and postpartum care, including topical and ingestible products designed for safety-sensitive populations.

Sales Channels

• Amazon (FBA)

• Shopify (DTC)

• TikTok Shop

Product Focus

• Pregnancy & postpartum wellness

• Postpartum hair shedding

• Skin elasticity & recovery

• Lactation support (drink mix launching soon)

• Evidence-weighted, minimal formulations with explicit safety constraints

Professional Background

• Operations Research & Mathematical Optimization

• Mixed Integer Programming (CPLEX / Gurobi)

• Bayesian methods, forecasting, ML for real-world decision systems

• Applied AI in large-scale retail environments

Social & Professional Profiles

• LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/apoorvamodali⁠

• PodMatch Guest Profile (for hosts): Available via PodMatch

Podcast: NinjaAI Podcast Host: Jason Wade

Podcast Focus

• Applied AI (not hype)

• Decision systems, optimization, and explainability

• AI visibility, authority, and real-world deployment

• Where AI breaks—and why that matters

Listen / Subscribe

• NinjaAI Podcast: ⁠https://ninjaai.com/podcast⁠

• Clips, transcripts, and episode assets published on NinjaAI.com

Host & Network

• NinjaAI.com — AI Visibility, AEO, GEO, and authority engineering

• Jason Wade — AI systems architect focused on how AI models discover, rank, and trust entities

• Apoorva is available for podcast interviews, panels, and technical discussions on applied AI, decision science, and consumer health.

• She is open to cross-promotion and social sharing of podcast episodes.

• Ovie’s Lab is actively expanding its product line and testing market viability for evidence-first frameworks across adjacent populations.

  
  

  --

  Jason Wade is a systems architect focused on how AI models discover, interpret, and recommend businesses. He is the founder of NinjaAI.com, an AI Visibility consultancy specializing in Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), and entity authority engineering.

  
  

  With over 20 years in digital marketing and online systems, Jason works at the intersection of search, structured data, and AI reasoning. His approach is not about rankings or traffic tricks, but about training AI systems to correctly classify entities, trust their information, and cite them as authoritative sources.

  
  

  He advises service businesses, law firms, healthcare providers, and local operators on building durable visibility in a world where answers are generated, not searched. Jason is also the author of AI Visibility: How to Win in the Age of Search, Chat, and Smart Customers and hosts the AI Visibility Podcast.

  
  

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Peter Thiel’s connection between AI and Miami centers on his growing personal and financial footprint in South Florida, combined with his long‑standing bets on artificial‑intelligence–driven companies.⁠businessinsider+2⁠Thiel’s presence in Miami

Peter Thiel has lived in Miami Beach since around 2020, owns a home there, and moved his voter registration to Florida in 2024, signaling a deeper long‑term commitment to the city. His private investment firm, Thiel Capital, opened a new office in Miami’sNinjaAI.com Wynwood neighborhood in late 2025, joining Founders Fund, which has had a Miami office since 2021. This expansion is widely interpreted as a response to California’s potential wealth‑tax debate and as part of Miami’s broader pull on tech, finance, and crypto capital.⁠sfchronicle+5⁠

While Thiel himself is not a “Miami‑only AI investor,” his firms back several AI‑forward companies that align with where Miami is trying to build an AI and tech ecosystem.⁠wikipedia+1⁠

• Founders Fund has historically backed AI, biotech, and “hard tech,” including AI‑focused startups like Vicarious Systems (robotics‑oriented AI that was later acquired by Alphabet) and more recently Cognition AI, the lab behind the “Devin” AI software‑engineering agent.[⁠en.wikipedia⁠]​

• At the broader portfolio level, Thiel’s networks have backed AI infrastructure and applications, including firms working on AI agents, cybersecurity, and compute‑intensive applications, which are increasingly relevant to Miami‑based AI and fintech startups.⁠finance.yahoo+2⁠

Thiel has appeared in Miami at tech and political events where he has spoken about AI’s strategic role, including how AI will reshape politics, warfare, and economic power. His appearances at Miami conferences and in Wynwood‑based Founders Fund offices have helped position Miami as a potential hub for AI and frontier‑tech discourse, even if many of his AI‑heavy bets are still headquartered in California or elsewhere.⁠wynwoodmiami+1⁠[⁠youtube⁠]​

In short: Peter Thiel is strengthening his base in Miami through real‑estate, voter registration, and new Thiel Capital offices, while continuing to back AI‑driven companies via Founders Fund and related entities—making Miami a more visible node in his AI‑centric investment strategy rather than a separate “Miami‑only AI fund.”⁠businessinsider+3⁠

Thiel’s AI‑related investmentsAI and Thiel’s visits to Miami