This message was originally shared to subscribers August 7, 2025.
Trump’s new AI Action Plan puts innovation and competition at the center, encouraging schools and agencies to adopt tools like ChatGPT and Claude. The plan reflects growing urgency to match China’s rapid integration of AI in education.
At the same time, companies like Microsoft and Google are investing billions into data centers to support AI growth. Higher ed is feeling the impact too, as tools are introduced to support student advising and career readiness.
Graduates face shifting job expectations, and younger users are interacting with AI in ways older generations are still figuring out. The semester ahead is shaping up to be a turning point.
News and Views
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Academia and Education
- AI Isn’t Just Helping Students Cheat — It’s Exposing How Broken the Education System Is, Prominent Academic Says (Business Insider)
- We’re Producing a Generation of Students Who Will Feel They ‘Don’t Fit’ in the AI World, Economist Tyler Cowen Warns (Business Insider)
- Google Commits $1 Billion for AI Training at US Universities (Reuters)
- OpenAI’s Education Head Says Students Should Use ChatGPT as a Tool, Not ‘an Answer Machine’
(Business Insider) - Google Would Like You to Study With Gemini Instead of Cheat With It (The Verge)
- Majority of Students See Responsible AI Use as Key to Career Success, New Research Says (New York Post)
- Trump Admin Seeks to Unleash AI in Schools (The Hill)
- How College Possible’s AI Tool Softened the Blow of Federal Cuts (Inside Higher Ed)
- Measuring the Occupational Implications of Generative AI (arXiv)
- AI Is Wrecking an Already Fragile Job Market for College Graduates (The Wall Street Journal)
- NSF announces $100 million investment in National Artificial Intelligence Research Institutes (NSF)
Policy, Ethics and Governance
- Judge Sends Hangdog Lawyer to AI School After He’s Caught Using ChatGPT to Cite Imaginary Caselaw (PC Gamer)
- Anthropic Wants to Sell the Government Claude for $1 (Axios)
- OpenAI’s Sam Altman Warns of AI Voice Fraud Crisis in Banking (AP News)
- The Global AI Contest Hits the UN (PYMNTS)
- Silicon Valley’s New Strategy: Move Slow and Build Things (The Wall Street Journal)
- By the Numbers: An AI Development Disconnect (HR Dive)
- The AI Boom’s Hidden Risk to the Economy (The Wall Street Journal)
Science and Society
- Generation AI: Why Gen Z Bets Big and Boomers Hold Back (PYMNTS)
- Google Will Use Machine Learning to Estimate Users’ Age (ADWEEK)
- YouTube to Roll Out New AI-Powered Technology Aimed at Identifying Teen Users (CBS News)
Tech Industry and Market Moves
- OpenAI Hits $12 Billion in Annualized Revenue (Reuters)
- Google Plans to Invest $6B to Build a 1-Gigawatt Data Center in India (MSN)
- Anthropic Surges Ahead in Enterprise AI Race (Menlo Ventures)
- Anthropic Yanks OpenAI’s Access to Claude Model (PYMNTS)
- Google Gets Its Swag Back (The Verge)
Tools, Research and Capabilities
- OpenAI Introduces Study Mode (OpenAI)
- OpenAI Launches New Open Models, Rivaling Offerings by DeepSeek and Meta (Semafor)
This Issue’s Tip: Prep for Fall While You Soak Up Summer
Still in summer mode but starting to think about fall? AI can help you ease into the semester—without giving up your vacation mindset. Use it to organize your digital life before classes ramp up: sort through your inbox, clean up your calendar, summarize course materials, or build a simple to-do list for move-in or syllabus week. Faculty can use AI to refresh last year’s assignments or draft welcome emails in seconds.
It’s a great way to get a head start—so when the semester begins, you’re already a step ahead.
This Issue’s Prompt: Personal Insight Builder
A prompt is how you ask generative AI tools to do something for you (e.g., creating, summarizing, editing or transforming). Treat it like a conversation, using clear language and enough context to get the result you have in mind.
To get more practice, use the generative AI tool of your choice (for example, Microsoft Copilot, OpenAI ChatGPT or Anthropic Claude) to execute the following prompt:
“Help me reflect on a recent experience that challenged me in a positive way. Ask me a few questions to get started, then summarize my responses as a short personal insight I can use for a journal entry, blog post, or class discussion.”
Helpful Resources
Thank you for reading. Go Orange!