AI Goes to College

When Better Models Widen the Gap: AI's Cost Divide in Higher Ed (AI Goes to College, Ep. 36) What happens to students when the best AI models cost ten times more than the basic ones? That is the question Craig and Rob keep circling in this episode, prompted by Anthropic's brief and strange release of Fable 5. Fable 5 arrived as a guardrailed version of Mythos, a model so good at exposing software...

Episode 35: AI's Underused Capabilities and Hidden Risks What happens when a university scrapes faculty lectures from its LMS, feeds them into an AI course builder, and sells the result for five dollars a month without telling the professors whose faces appear in the videos? Craig and Rob cover a packed news cycle in this episode, anchored by two stories about institutional vulnerability. The Canv...

When in your thinking process should AI show up? A new study suggests the timing matters more than the access. In this episode, Craig and Rob work through a recent CHI (Computer Human Interaction) conference paper that found a counterintuitive pattern: participants who had AI access from the start of a 30-minute task wrote weaker reports than those who got AI late or had no access at all. Same too...

AI Goes to College, Episode 33: Accessibility Hacks, 81,000 Interviews, and the Choppy Waters of Academic AI Higher education is drowning in accessibility deadlines, grappling with what 81,000 AI interviews reveal about how people actually use these tools, and watching the academic publishing system creak under new pressures. In this episode, Craig and Rob dig into all three, with practical advice...

Craig and Rob kick off this episode with a deep dive into Claude's Constitution — the 84-page document Anthropic released to explain how Claude is governed. The document lays out a four-part hierarchy of priorities: be broadly safe, be broadly ethical, follow Anthropic's guidelines, and be genuinely helpful — in that order. Craig walks through the key language, and both hosts zero in on the uncomf...

Dr. Bette Ludwig spent 20 years in higher ed working directly with students before leaving to build something different — a Substack (AI Can Do That), a consulting practice, and most recently, the Socratic AI Method, an AI literacy program that teaches students how to think critically alongside AI while keeping their own voice intact. That last part is the hard part. Craig opens with the question...

Recording from the Deep Freeze: Craig broadcasts from snow-covered north Louisiana (running on generator and Starlink!), where AI helped him MacGyver a propane tank solution involving ratchet straps, a plastic bucket, and a shop light. Welcome to the wild world of practical AI applications. Featured Topics Oboe.com: The Future of Self-Directed Learning? Craig and Rob explore Oboe ( oboe.com ), a f...

Welcome to another episode of AI Goes to College, the podcast where Craig and Rob break down what’s really happening with Generative AI in higher education. In this episode, Rob shares a professional update and the hosts dive straight into a candid conversation about the urgent need for action when it comes to embracing and experimenting with AI in the classroom. Forget waiting for the “perfect pl...

Episode Description Join Craig and Rob for the very first live stream of AI Goes to College, recorded at the International Conference on Information Systems Education Research Workshop. In this special episode, we explore how generative AI is fundamentally changing knowledge work, starting with our own field of Information Systems as the "canary in the coal mine." Craig shares his surprising exper...

Are you ready to rethink how AI is shaping higher education? Join Craig and Rob in episode 27 of AIGTC as they dive into the recent agentic shift in AI models like Google’s Gemini 3—and what this means for students, faculty, and the future of learning. In this thought-provoking conversation, Craig shares his unsettling experience with Gemini 3’s “agentic” behavior, where AI takes the reins with mi...

Are you an educator navigating the new world of generative AI, or a college faculty member wondering how your incoming students are being shaped by technology? Join hosts Craig and Rob on this episode of AI Goes to College as they sit down with Stephen Fitzpatrick—a veteran secondary school history teacher, debate coach, and leading voice on AI in education—to explore how artificial intelligence i...

Welcome to another episode of "AI Goes to College," where hosts Dr. Rob Crossler and Craig dive into the ever-evolving landscape of artificial intelligence in higher education. In this episode, they kick things off with a lighthearted look at the viral, AI-generated parody "Redneck Star Trek," using it as a springboard to discuss the rapidly advancing capabilities of AI video creation and what thi...

Episode Overview: In this episode, hosts Craig and Rob discuss the evolving landscape of AI in academia, research ethics, and the surprising environmental impact of AI technologies. They also test-drive AI vibe coding, discuss agentic AI, and share practical advice for instructors, researchers, and students navigating a fast-changing technological world. As a bonus, listen to how a border collie w...

In this episode, Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler tackle a growing concern in higher education: how are students really using AI in their learning? Sparked by an article from the Neuron newsletter, they discuss how many students are using AI tools superficially – what they call "brain rot" – instead of engaging deeply with their coursework. The hosts argue that this shallow engagement with A...

The recent discussion between Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler centered around the alarming prediction from Anthropic's CEO regarding the potential displacement of up to 50% of entry-level knowledge work positions within the next five years due to advancements in generative AI. This assertion prompts a critical examination of the implications for higher education, particularly concerning the...

Imagine walking into a classroom where AI isn't the elephant in the room - it's a welcomed partner in learning. That's exactly what's happening in Carlos I. Torres's information security classes at Baylor University. Instead of joining the chorus of educators crying "Ban AI!" Torres is asking a more intriguing question: What if we taught students to dance with artificial intelligence rather than f...

This podcast episode elucidates the necessity for higher education professionals to cultivate a comprehensive understanding of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and its implications within the academic sphere. We, Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler, alongside our esteemed co-author France Belanger, delve into practical anecdotes regarding the integration of AI tools, such as ChatGPT, int...

In a timely discussion, Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler discuss the latest advancements in generative artificial intelligence, with a particular focus on the unveiling of Claude Sonnet 3.7. This development has prompted a wave of excitement and speculation regarding its implications for the future of programming. The hosts articulate their observations on how this model could revolutionize...

In this wide-ranging discussion, Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler explore recent AI developments and tackle the fundamental challenges facing higher education in an AI-enhanced world. They begin by examining GPT Tasks, highlighting practical applications like automated news summaries and scheduled tasks, while sharing personal experiments that demonstrate the importance of playful exploratio...

AI hallucinations, or confabulations, can actually foster scientific innovation by generating a wealth of ideas, even if many of them are incorrect. Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler explore how AI's ability to rapidly process information allows researchers to brainstorm and ideate more effectively, ultimately leading to significant breakthroughs in various fields. They discuss the need for a...

This episode of AI Goes to College discuss the practical applications of generative AI tools in academic research, focusing on how they can enhance the research process for higher education professionals. Hosts Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crossler discuss three key tools: Connected Papers, Research Rabbit, and Scite_, highlighting their functionalities and the importance of transparency in their...

Generative AI is reshaping the landscape of higher education, but the introduction of AI detectors has raised significant concerns among educators. Craig Van Slyke and Robert E. Crosler delve into the limitations and biases of these tools, arguing they can unfairly penalize innocent students, particularly non-native English speakers. With evidence from their own experiences, they assert that relyi...

Craig and Rob dig into the innovative features of Google's Notebook LM, a tool that allows users to upload documents and generate responses based on that content. They discuss how this tool has been particularly beneficial in an academic setting, enhancing students' confidence in their understanding of course materials. The conversation also highlights the importance of using generative AI as a su...

This episode of AI Goes to College explores the transformative role of generative AI in higher education, with a particular focus on Microsoft's Copilot and its application in streamlining administrative tasks. Dr. Craig Van Slyke and Dr. Robert E. Crossler share their personal experiences, highlighting how AI tools like Copilot can significantly reduce the time spent on routine emails, agenda cre...

Is ChatGPT bull ...? Maybe not. In this episode Rob and Craig talk about how generative AI can be used to improve communication, give their opinions of a recent article claiming that ChatGPT is bull$hit, and discuss why you need an AI policy. Key Takeaways: AI can be used to improve written communication, but not if you just ask AI to crank out the message . You have to work WITH AI. Rob gives an...