The University of Michigan has formed an advisory committee to recommend how it should approach the evaluation, use and development of emergent artificial intelligence tools and services.

The Generative Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee consists of faculty, staff and students from across the university and is jointly sponsored by Laurie McCauley, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, and Ravi Pendse, vice president for information technology and chief information officer.

The 18-member committee is chaired by Karthik Duraisamy, professor of aerospace engineering and of mechanical engineering in the College of Engineering, and director of the Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering Research.

The emergence of programs such as ChatGPT has sparked concern throughout higher education institutions in recent months. While some educators point to the benefits of using generative AI as a learning tool, there also is concern that students can use these platforms to plagiarize essays and other coursework.

McCauley said the group will help guide the university through the new era of AI technology.

“We quickly understood the need to grapple with the educational impact of generative artificial intelligence technology and its application. With an impressive reserve of faculty expertise on GAI, U-M is positioned to take a proactive approach to analyze the opportunities and hazards of GAI in academia,” she said.

“Engaging with emergent, disruptive technology is something at which we excel, and I am confident the university will arrive at a solid foundation to guide our engagement with GAI in the weeks, months and years to come.”

The GAI Advisory Committee will work to create guiding resources for the university community to identify ways to handle the impact of the programs, provide training and support infrastructure for the use of GAI tools, and study its longer-term implications for work and life at U-M.

“ITS (Information and Technology Services) is committed to offering state-of-the-art AI services to our community as we explore the best ways that generative artificial intelligence can serve our university ecosystem,” Pendse said.

“We must consider the benefits and pitfalls of AI thoughtfully while also being forward-thinking and agile as we support our faculty, staff and students. I am confident that Michigan will be a world leader when it comes to integrating AI services into higher education, and we hope that the guidelines we create will be leveraged by institutions around the globe.”

Other committee members are:

• Varun Agrawal, undergraduate student, College of Engineering.
• Brian D. Athey, Michael Savageau Collegiate Professor, professor of computational medicine and bioinformatics, and of psychiatry, and chair of the Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, Medical School.
• Tazin Daniels, associate director of the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching.
• Kapotaksha Das, graduate student, College of Engineering.
• Nick Gaspar, distance learning director and adjunct lecturer in nursing, School of Nursing, UM-Flint.
• Anne Ruggles Gere, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor; Gertrude Buck Collegiate Professor of Education, professor of education, School of Education; professor of English language and literature, LSA.
• Cait Hayward, director of research and analytics, Center for Academic Innovation; adjunct lecturer in education, Marsal Family School of Education.
• Libby Hemphill, associate professor of information, School of Information; associate professor of the Digital Studies Institute, LSA; research associate professor in the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research, Institute for Social Research.
• Robert Jones, executive director of support services, ITS.
• Nigel P. Melville, associate professor of technology and operations, Stephen M. Ross School of Business; associate professor of integrative systems and design, College of Engineering. 
• David Mendez, associate professor of health management and policy, School of Public Health; associate professor of technology and operations, Stephen M. Ross School of Business.
• Rada Mihalcea, Janice M. Jenkins Collegiate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, professor of electrical engineering and computer science, College of Engineering.
• John Rodriguez, strategic communications manager, Office of the Vice Provost for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
• Kayte Spector-Bagdady, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, interim co-director of the Center for Bioethics & Social Sciences in Medicine, Medical School. 
• Theresa Tinkle, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor; professor of English language and literature, and director of the Sweetland Center for Writing, LSA.
• Colleen van Lent, lecturer IV in information, School of Information.
• Paul Watta, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, College of Engineering and Computer Science, UM-Dearborn.

The committee’s preliminary report is due by June 30. The basis of the report will set the foundation for the university’s path forward with generative AI in the short, middle and longer terms.

Tags:

• artificial intelligence
• Generative Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee