With the DataSci+AI Forum on March 26–27 just around the corner, we've been thinking about what it means to build AI strategy that's grounded in real human experience. A study conducted last year, right here at the University of Pittsburgh offers a timely and provocative set of answers.
Ideas
Establishing and Sharing Strategic Guidance for AI and Data Science Across the Academic Mission
How Are Students Actually Using AI?
The headlines say students are cheating their way through college with AI. The data says it's more complicated.
Pitt's own Annette Vee — Associate Professor of English, Director of the Composition Program, and a leading researcher on AI and writing — recently synthesized findings from over ten major reports on student AI use, including her own original research with Pitt students. Here's what stands out.
Introduction to the Responsible Data Science Scholars Program
By: Emily Durning
What if students made their own decisions on AI?
By: Emily Durning
In your everyday life, how do you decide when to pull up ChatGPT to answer your question or help you with a task? This past December, Nora Mattern and I wanted to see how this cohort of RDS Scholars would navigate these decisions through the lens of responsible uses.
Can I use AI tools on this dataset?
By: Naveena Nagaraju (6/30/2025)
Understanding Data Licenses Before Using AI Tools
With many turning to tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini for analysis, writing, or generating data science insights, one concern that people should be thinking about is: “Can I upload this dataset?”
What Pitt Students Are Actually Doing with AI - Key Takeaways from the 2024 SERU Survey
A preliminary report from the 2024 Student Experience in the Research University (SERU) survey offers important insights into how undergraduate students at Pitt are engaging with generative AI tools such as ChatGPT. Rather than fueling hype or fear, the data gives us something more useful: clarity.
Here are the key takeaways:
University students feel ‘anxious, confused and distrustful’ about AI in the classroom and among their peers
What happens when AI moves from tool to classroom tension?
Explore how university students are wrestling with anxiety, confusion, and even distrust, not just toward artificial intelligence itself, but toward classmates and instructors, as generative AI reshapes learning and relationships on campus.
Data science leadership hub director relishes role to guide Pitt through AI landscape
In the current blink-and-you’ll-miss-it trajectory of artificial intelligence-related developments, discussion about the potential benefits and drawbacks of AI’s role and applications in society often boil down to an overly simplistic “good or bad” paradigm.
Michael Colaresi, the newly named director of the new academic Hub for AI and Data Science Leadership (HAIL) and strategic advisor to the provost, prefers a more nuanced view of the game-changing digital technology.