OpenAI and Arizona State University Team Up to Build Personalized AI Tutor

Arizona State University (ASU) is collaborating with OpenAI, marking the AI research startup's first partnership with a higher education institution. Commencing in February, ASU will gain complete access to ChatGPT Enterprise, OpenAI's business tier tool. The partnership stems from six months of negotiation and earlier experimentation by the university's faculty and staff with ChatGPT and other AI tools.

In the past year, ASU initiated an AI accelerator program that united researchers and engineers to develop AI-driven services. Concurrently, the university introduced prompt engineering classes to enhance AI literacy. Additionally, ASU secured an agreement with the Pennsylvania state government, facilitating the deployment of ChatGPT Enterprise among certain state employees for administrative tasks.

This partnership aims to create a personalized AI tutor for students, extending support beyond specific courses to include study topics. ChatGPT Enterprise will play a vital role in ASU's largest course, Freshman Composition, providing writing assistance to students. Additionally, ASU envisions utilizing the tool to develop AI avatars, serving as creative companions for various subjects, such as bots generating poetry or songs related to biology.

“Research shows that nearly two-thirds of organizations are already actively exploring the integration of AI,” said ASU's Chief Information Officer, Lev Gonick. “By providing access to advanced AI capabilities, these tools are leveling the playing field, allowing individuals and organizations — regardless of size or resources — to harness the power of AI for creative and innovative endeavors,” he added.

The ChatGPT Enterprise, launched in August, boasts superior capabilities, including GPT-4 access devoid of usage restrictions, a performance leap of up to two times compared to predecessors, and API credits. ASU intends to leverage this collaboration across multiple domains, deploying ChatGPT in coursework, tutoring, and research activities.

According to the official statement, OpenAI and ASU assured that prompts entered by the university community into ChatGPT will remain secure, with OpenAI explicitly stating that it does not utilize this data for model training.

“ASU recognizes that augmented and artificial intelligence systems are here to stay, and we are optimistic about their ability to become incredible tools that help students to learn, learn more quickly, and understand subjects more thoroughly,” ASU President Michael M. Crow said.