OpenAI gathers global educators in San Francisco to reimagine higher education through AI

AIHigher Education

23 Oct

OpenAI’s inaugural Higher Education Forum brought together faculty, researchers, and university leaders to explore practical applications of AI in teaching, research, and institutional strategy.

OpenAI, the developer behind ChatGPT, hosted its first Higher Education Forum in San Francisco this week, bringing together a select group of educators, researchers, and university leaders to discuss how artificial intelligence is reshaping higher education.

The event formed part of OpenAI’s Education Forum Guild, a new initiative designed to build an ongoing network of collaboration between academic institutions and AI developers.

In a LinkedIn post, Doreen Mayrell, Ed.D, Curriculum Designer and Academic AI Prompt Engineer, said she was invited to share findings from her AI-powered flipped classroom model for College Algebra, a course known for low national pass rates.

Mayrell wrote that the model “significantly improves performance” and that the event offered an opportunity to connect with others “who care deeply about making education more personal, equitable, and engaging.”

Faculty presentations focus on practical AI use

Throughout the afternoon, participants attended presentations and tabletop exercises led by educators and OpenAI executives. Sessions focused on pedagogy, research, and institution-wide AI integration, including a session on humanizing AI in the classroom and another on AI-enabled discovery in the humanities and social sciences.

Tim Mousel, Department Chair and Professor at Lone Star College, said on LinkedIn that being selected among over a thousand applicants made participation “an honor.” He described the event as an opportunity to “witness cutting-edge presentations” and “engage in roundtable discussions about the future of AI in higher education.”

Mousel also referenced a discussion with Kevin Weil, OpenAI’s Vice President of AI for Science, and highlighted the value of the informal networking that took place alongside formal sessions. “These exchanges were just as valuable as the structured programming,” he said.

OpenAI builds collaboration through Education Guild

According to event materials, the Forum marked the beginning of an ongoing initiative designed to connect OpenAI researchers with educators testing AI-driven teaching methods. Participants were encouraged to co-create resources and case studies to be shared with the wider higher education community.

The agenda included presentations from faculty across universities such as the University of Cambridge, UC Berkeley, Brown University, and Miami Dade College, as well as internal sessions led by OpenAI’s science and education teams.

In her post, Mayrell reflected on the importance of collaboration in shaping the future of AI in education. “It is an incredible experience,” she wrote, “learning from amazing people who care deeply about making education more personal, equitable, and engaging.”