At the recent Hemispheric Congress of CAMACOL, our Director of Marketing and Admissions, Eng. Jairo Cruz, had the honor of presenting a paper on how artificial intelligence (AI) and the Metaverse are redefining the boundaries and possibilities of higher education. In this article, we will explore how technology has experienced exponential development and how AI has become a transformative force in many areas of our society, especially in the field of education.
Evolution of Artificial Intelligence
The history of AI dates back to 1950, when Alan Turing, after deciphering the Enigma machine during World War II, published his work “Computing Machinery and Intelligence”. Turing proposed that if machines could think and pass the Turing test, then they could be considered a form of artificial intelligence. In 1961, Marvin Minsky published “Steps to Artificial Intelligence”, inspiring other researchers to launch new initiatives in the field of AI. In 1979, a computer program developed by Hans Berliner defeated world chess champion Luigi Villa, marking a milestone in the development of AI.
The Era of the Metaverse:
The Metaverse is an interconnected collection of 3D virtual worlds where users can interact as avatars. This concept has gained relevance in the educational field, giving rise to what we call “Metaversity“, a hybrid between the metaverse and the university. In the Metaversity, students can attend classes, discuss, and collaborate in real-time, transcending geographical barriers. Metaverses offer the opportunity to conduct experiments and simulations in a safe and controlled environment, allowing students to explore and learn in a practical way.
Integration of Artificial Intelligence in Education:
The integration of AI in education allows for personalized learning, adapting content according to the needs and abilities of each student. It also facilitates administrative automation, advanced research, and the promotion of innovation in different interdisciplinary fields. However, it also presents challenges, such as ethics and privacy, costs and accessibility, and staff training and updating. It is crucial to ensure that technology benefits everyone without leaving anyone behind and to forge an ethical, fair, and sustainable path in the integration of artificial intelligence.
Universities must adopt a proactive role in building and regulating educational spaces in the metaverse, ensuring that education is equitable, accessible, and high-quality. They must be at the forefront of the era of artificial intelligence, not only as learning centers but also as guides in technological adaptation, preserving the essence of human education while integrating innovation.
Transcript of the presentation:
“I am very pleased to receive this invitation from Caracol. At this Artificial Intelligence Congress, I have been assigned to present on the Metaverse and what universities are doing with artificial intelligence. Clearly, technology has experienced exponential development in recent decades, and artificial intelligence has become a transformative force in many areas of our society.
Let’s talk a little about the evolution of artificial intelligence. We can go back to 1950, when, after deciphering the Enigma machine during World War II and laying the foundations for current computing, Alan Turing published his work “Computing Machinery and Intelligence.” Turing proposed that if machines can think and pass the Turing test, posing as humans, then they are artificial intelligence.
Marvin Minsky published his book “Steps to Artificial Intelligence” in 1961. This scientist compiled the early steps of the field of artificial intelligence in an academic work and inspired other researchers to push forward new initiatives. In 1979, a computer, created by Professor Hans Berliner of Carnegie University in the United States, defeated the then world chess champion Luigi Villa with the computer program Beca G.
This victory spurred new projects for more complex games. In 1997, the Deep Blue program, developed by IBM, won against the then world chess champion, Garry Kasparov. The first match was in 1996, where the machine lost, but an improved version won the following year.
In 2005, we began to see computers at the wheel of an autonomous car developed by Stanford University in the United States. It won a robot vehicle competition and drove 212 kilometers in the desert without any human support. In 2014, a computer successfully passed the Turing test for the first time. The program was called Eugene and was developed in Russia, posing as a 13-year-old child. The entire jury in this competition thought the machine was, in fact, a 13-year-old child.
In 2016, there was an experiment on social networks with Microsoft launching Tay and connecting it to social networks. When released on the Internet, it was a chatbot capable of learning from interaction with people. Within just a day of operation, the software became racist, xenophobic, and homophobic, so Microsoft had to withdraw it. Precisely because artificial intelligence is fed by all the humans who interacted with it on social networks.
Last year and earlier this year, the famous GPT-3 was launched by OpenAI. Now, what lies ahead? Artificial intelligence will surpass human intelligence when, according to engineer and futurist Ray Kurzweil, the so-called technological singularity is reached and computers are capable of reasoning better than a human. Many experts, however, are not so optimistic about the arrival of an artificial intelligence capable of thinking for itself.
So, what is Metaverse City? This is the educational convergence of the future. The concept of the metaverse highlights how technology is redefining the boundaries and possibilities of higher education in the modern world. Metaverse City is a hybrid of the metaverse and the university, an immersive and digital educational institution that transcends physical and temporal barriers, making the most of artificial intelligence and virtual reality capabilities.
The concept of the site’s goals has several key elements. One, immersive learning. Two, global interaction. There are no longer geographical limits and it is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Simulations are increasingly realistic and all this is optimized with artificial intelligence. Definition of the Metaverse concept: The Metaverse is an interconnected collection of 3D virtual worlds where users can interact as avatars, create and experience digital environments together.
This word comes from “meta,” which means “beyond,” and “universe.” In current universities, we are observing immersive virtual classrooms; digital spaces are being created where students can attend classes, discuss, and collaborate in real-time, all this transcending geographical barriers with simulations and labs in the metaverse. Metaverses offer the opportunity to conduct experiments and simulations in a safe and controlled environment, allowing students to explore and learn in a practical way.
During the pandemic, we saw how, for example, many graduations were held in the metaverse or virtually, where students attended virtually from their homes, as they could not have contact because everything was closed. Thus, students from the years 2020 and 2021, and in some countries until 2022, had their graduations virtually.
These events go beyond the academic. Universities are using the metaverse to organize student events, promote social interaction, and celebrate academic and cultural achievements in a digital space. At Atlanta University, for example, we are beginning to experiment with virtual student fairs where we place a virtual stand in one of these metaverses and students, represented by avatars, enter and visit our virtual stand, leave us their information, and we can interact either with a chatbot or an admissions representative.
What benefits can a university have by integrating artificial intelligence? One of the benefits is the personalization of learning
. AI can tailor content according to the needs and abilities of each student and can have a recommendation system for courses and career paths. Another benefit could be administrative automation, with virtual assistants to answer student queries and automation of processes in admissions departments for student selection. In addition, integrating AI into the university would allow for advanced research, fostering innovation in different interdisciplinary fields, and improving social interaction.
Now, let’s also talk about the challenges of integrating artificial intelligence into universities. The first would be ethics and privacy, ensuring that student data is well protected and that there is awareness of biases in algorithms and decision-making. All these processes should be reviewed and supervised by a human. A second challenge is costs and accessibility. It should be ensured that AI-based solutions are available to all students and not just a few. The management of costs and funding for emerging technologies must be done equitably. Another challenge is training and updating staff.
It is crucial to prepare academic and administrative staff to adapt to the integration of artificial intelligence and, likewise, to promote a mindset of continuous learning in academia. Currently, we are witnessing a redefinition of the educational landscape with artificial intelligence. To illustrate, the images shown during the presentation were entirely created with artificial intelligence.
Using the Dell and Open Chat platform, for example, I asked the platform to create a futuristic representation of a digitized university campus merged with the metaverse, where student avatars interact with holographic classrooms and an immersive learning environment. And the one you are seeing on screen was one of the options I liked the most.
So, this is an original image created specifically for this presentation. Regarding the educational transformation driven by artificial intelligence, the following points stand out: ultra-personalized learning based on individual student profiles, real-time assessments and feedback through advanced artificial intelligence systems, and real-time global collaboration, eliminating geographical barriers.
In the era of the Metaverse, universities must adopt a proactive role in the construction and regulation of educational spaces in the metaverse, ensuring that education is equitable, accessible, and of high quality. It is essential to foster collaboration between universities, technologists, and students to shape the future of digital learning.
Universities must be at the forefront of the age of artificial intelligence, not only as centers of learning but also as guides in technological adaptation, preserving the essence of human education while integrating innovation. A joint effort is needed to direct the path of artificial intelligence in education, ensuring that technology benefits everyone without leaving anyone behind, and forging an ethical, fair, and sustainable path in the integration of artificial intelligence.”