News & Events

This message was originally shared to subscribers August 21, 2025.

Welcome to another edition of AI Insights from ITS at Syracuse University!

There’s a lot to catch up on: GPT-5 landed in Microsoft 365 Copilot, ChatGPT rolled out Study Mode and Perplexity AI shocked everyone with a $34.5 billion Chrome bid. Students are embracing ChatGPT for personal essays while universities explore AI for mental health support. Corporate America presents a fascinating paradox: billions invested in AI, yet many still await real returns. Gen Z leads AI adoption despite ongoing privacy concerns, while regulatory developments and Hinton’s superintelligence warnings keep us all thinking. Read more below—and yes, there will be a quiz!

How are you incorporating AI into your work? Share your experiences with us!

News and Views

Access to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post is available to all students, faculty and staff with a valid Syracuse University NetID. Learn more.

Academia and Education

• Understanding Value of Learning Fuels ChatGPT’s Study Mode (Inside Higher Ed)
• Study Modes: The New AI Battleground (Ed Tech Insiders)
• Students Are Using ChatGPT to Write Their Personal Essays Now (Chronicle of Higher Education)
• 5 College Students. 5 Views on Generative AI. (Chronicle of Higher Education)
• How AI Supports Student Mental Health in Higher Education (EdTech)
• Universities Are Racing Toward AI. Is Anyone Watching the Road? (Minding the Campus)

Arts and Entertainment

• How AI is changing the music business (WBUR)
• AI-generated models shake up the fashion industry and raise concerns (PBS)
• Amazon’s Alexa Fund Invests in ‘Netflix of AI’ Start-Up Fable, Which Launches Showrunner: A Tool for User-Directed TV Shows (Variety)

Policy, Ethics and Governance

• Scaling Intelligence: The Exponential Growth of AI’s Power Needs (EPRI)
• The ‘godfather of AI’ reveals the only way humanity can survive superintelligent AI (CNN)
• Trump AI Action Plan: Short on Action (EDUCAUSE)
• Generative AI’s privacy problem (Axios)

Research and Science

• How AI could speed the development of RNA vaccines and other RNA therapies (MIT)
• Using generative AI, researchers design compounds that can kill drug-resistant bacteria (MIT)
• A new way to test how well AI systems classify text (MIT)

Tech Industry and Market Moves

• Perplexity Makes Longshot $34.5 Billion Offer for Chrome (Wall Street Journal)
• Nvidia, AMD may sell high-end AI chips to China if they pay US a cut (TechCrunch)

Tools, Research and Capabilities

• Google’s AI Pro plan for free now. Here’s how. (ZDNET)
• Google Launches Free AI Training & Tools (Google)
• GPT-5 Available in Microsoft 365 Copilot (Microsoft)
• Claude AI Can Now End Conversations It Deems Harmful or Abusive (CNET)

Work and the Workforce

• Young workers lead the way in AI learning, survey shows (HR Dive)
• AI Is Forcing the Return of the In-Person Job Interview (Wall Street Journal)
• Companies Are Pouring Billions Into A.I. It Has Yet to Pay Off. (New York Times)
• C.E.O.s Want Their Companies to Adopt A.I. But Do They Get It Themselves? (New York Times)
• 21 Ways People Are Using A.I. at Work (New York Times)

This Issue’s Tip: Tools Available to Faculty, Staff, and Students

ITS is excited to help you incorporate generative AI into your day-to-day. With that in mind, remember that you can log in to Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini using your University credentials:

• Microsoft Copilot is now powered by OpenAI’s latest GPT-5 model (the same model that powers ChatGPT). Visit m365.cloud.microsoft/chat and log in with your University email address and password to start exploring. Be sure to click “Try GPT-5” in the upper-right corner.
• Google Gemini (gemini.google.com) also is available, including access to Google’s 2.5 Pro Model featuring guided learning, a canvas editor and image generation. In addition, you can try NotebookLM, Google’s AI-powered research and writing assistant. Use your netid@g.syr.edu credentials when logging in.

This Issue’s Prompt: Planning an Event

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:

“I need to plan [describe event: faculty mixer/student orientation/department meeting] for early fall. The event should accommodate [number] people, have a budget of approximately $[amount], and achieve these goals: [list 2-3 objectives]. Generate a planning timeline, suggest 3 venue options on the Syracuse University campus, create a supply list, and draft an invitation email. Also anticipate potential challenges and suggest solutions.”

Helpful Resources

• University AI Guidelines
• AI on the ITS website
• Tech Tips Video Series

Thank you for reading. Go Orange!

This message was originally shared to subscribers July 10, 2025.

Did you miss this week’s ITS Summer Series session on generative AI? The recording is now available for anyone interested in how tools like Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT and Google Gemini are changing the way we work and create. The session covered the basics of generative AI, demonstrated how Copilot can help with tasks like writing emails and scheduling meetings and shared tips for using these tools securely with your syr.edu account. If you’re looking to get started with AI or want to see these tools in action, check out the recording and register for upcoming sessions here.

News and Views

Access to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post is available to all students, faculty and staff with a valid Syracuse University NetID. Learn more.

Academia and Education

• How Schools Are Using Artificial Intelligence (The New York Times)
• ‘Positive Review Only’: Researchers Hide AI Prompts in Papers (Nikkei Asia)

Ethical, Legal and Societal Implications

• Content Independence Day: No AI Crawl Without Compensation! (Cloudflare)
• A.I. Is Starting to Wear Down Democracy (The New York Times)
• China’s DeepSeek AI Poses ‘Profound Threat’ To National Security, House Report Claims (Forbes)

Developments and Techniques

• The New Skill in AI is Not Prompting, It’s Context Engineering (Philipp Schmid

Futures and Perspectives

• How to Prepare for an AI-First Future (BCG)
• The AI Revolution Won’t Happen Overnight (Harvard Business Review)

Human AI Interaction

• How People Use Claude for Support, Advice, and Companionship (Anthropic)
• Build and Share AI-Powered Apps with Claude (Anthropic)

Workforce and Workplace

• AI Agents Raise Red Flags for Employees (CIO Dive)
• As Job Losses Loom, Anthropic Launches Program to Track AI’s Economic Fallout (TechCrunch)

This Issue’s Tip: Watch ITS Tech Tips Videos

New technology continues to transform how Syracuse University works, teaches, learns and creates. The ITS Tech Tips video series is here to help you stay ahead of the curve with short, instructional videos designed to make technology work for you. Our latest video covers Microsoft Copilot. Learn how to use Copilot for scheduling meetings, drafting documents, summarizing files and managing your inbox more efficiently.

Join our Tech Tips mailing list to receive email notifications about new Tech Tips videos and upcoming ITS workshops.

This Issue’s Prompt: Plan a Fall Semester Kick-Off Event

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 plan a Fall semester kick-off event for students and staff. Include suggested themes, promotional ideas, a sample email invitation, and a basic timeline. The event should be engaging, inclusive, and highlight campus resources.”

Helpful Resources

• University AI Guidelines
• AI on the ITS website
• Tech Tips Video Series

Thank you for reading. Go Orange!

This message was originally shared to all students via email on July 10, 2025.

Orange Online at a Glance

Each month, Information Technology Services provides tech tips for the Orange community. Pressed for time? Here are this edition’s topics:

• Notes from the Chief Information Security Officer’s Desk
• Information Security Tip: Do Not Take the Bait
• Phishing: The Digital Confidence Scam That Plays on Your Emotions
• Hacking Humans Podcast Highlight  
• Digital Accessibility Tip: Enable Auto-Captions for Audio & Video Content on Mobile
• Interactive Campus Map

Notes from the CISO’s Desk

Cybersecurity at Syracuse is a shared responsibility. Whether you’re faculty, staff or a student, your actions—like using strong passwords, spotting phishing attempts and reporting suspicious activity—help protect our digital campus. It’s not just about tech; it’s about people. Stay vigilant, ask questions and be part of the solution. More.

Information Security Tip: Don’t Take the Bait

Cybercriminals target universities with convincing scam emails posing as trusted contacts. Learn how to spot red flags like urgent language, unfamiliar senders and mismatched links. A recent University phishing test showed 36% clicked a fake link—don’t be one of them! Review tips and report suspicious emails today. Learn More.

Phishing: The Digital Confidence Scam

Phishing emails mimic urgency and authority to make you click before you think—posing as banks, IT, even coworkers. But taking a moment to pause, verify and report makes all the difference. You’re not just avoiding a scam—you’re strengthening our campus cybersecurity. Learn More.

“Hacking Humans” Podcast Highlight

The “Hacking Humans” podcast covers the latest social engineering scams and phishing tricks. Hear stories of scammers using fake E-ZPass alerts, AI-generated get-rich-quick schemes and a $800K gold bar fraud. Tune in for real-world examples to help you stay sharp and secure. Podcast.

Digital Accessibility Tip: Enable Auto-Captions

Many mobile devices can generate automated real-time captions across all apps. To enable captions, on both iOS and Android, go to Settings > Accessibility > Hearing > Live Captions and activate the toggle for “Live Captions.” More Tips.

Interactive Campus Map

Explore our comprehensive campus map at maps.syracuse.edu, where you can sort locations by type (buidings, parking, etc.). Click “Wayfinding” and select “Show Only Wheelchair Accessible Routes” to find wheelchair-friendly paths. Maps. 

Helpful Resources

ITS and the campuswide information technology community are available year-round to help with your tech questions. Resources include:

• Answers, a knowledge base for tech-related questions
• The ITS Service Center
• The Self-Serv NetID and password management portal

Thank you for reading. Go Orange!