California State University launched the largest of its kind AI initiative across all 23 campuses involving tech giants like Adobe, Google and OpenAI.
SAN DIEGO — The California State University announced an unprecedented AI initiative, integrating artificial intelligence across all 23 CSU campuses. AI tools under ChatGPT Edu will be available to roughly 460,000 students and 63,000 faculty and involves some of the world’s largest tech companies, including Adobe, Google, Microsoft, Linkedin and OpenAI.
It will be the largest implementation of ChatGPT by any single organization or company in the world, OpenAI said.
“We are proud to announce this innovative, highly collaborative public-private initiative that will position the CSU as a global leader among higher education systems in the impactful, responsible and equitable adoption of artificial intelligence,” CSU Chancellor Mildred García said. “The comprehensive strategy will elevate our students’ educational experience across all fields of study, empower our faculty’s teaching and research, and help provide the highly educated workforce that will drive California’s future AI-driven economy.”
But not everyone is thrilled.
The California Faculty Association, the 29,000-member union, say it’s concerned about faculty jobs, academic freedom, intellectual property and surveillance.
The union argues that any integration of AI in the classroom should be led by faculty, not tech companies or administrators, and that faculty should have the freedom to decide whether or not to incorporate AI into their teaching methods.
“Faculty should have the power to decide how and whether to use these tools and should not be subject to repercussions for using A.I. in responsible ways, nor for refusing to use it,” CFA said in a statement.
CFA reps also voiced concerns over the use of AI in surveilling faculty and students, as well as the environmental toll associated with AI’s massive energy consumption.
According to the union, CSU officials acted with little to no input from the community.
“Management decision-making is directly responsible for cuts, loss of work, and layoffs. At the same time, they continue to invest university resources to launch initiatives with little to no input from faculty, students, and staff,” the CFA wrote in a statement.
The CFA also criticized AI for exacerbating systemic issues like racial discrimination, citing its use in biased policing, hiring, and artistic production. The union emphasized that faculty-created work is protected by their contract, urging the CSU to respect these intellectual property rights.
While Chancellor García said the rollout will be responsible and equitable, the union plans to meet with CSU management to discuss how this initiative will impact faculty work.
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office will also be involved by finding key AI skills needed in the state’s workforce to incorporate relevant training into the AI Workforce Acceleration Board.
The CSU expects to make ChatGPT Edu available within coming weeks.
