On Jan. 13, Colgate Information Technology Services (ITS) hosted an AI showcase for Colgate staff and faculty members. The day-long program covered an array of AI-related topics, including data privacy, resources for Colgate employees, an introduction to Google’s Gemini tool, digital creativity, and a panel discussion from the perspectives of entrepreneurship, sustainability, AI governance, risk, and compliance. The showcase was attended by more than 80 Colgate faculty and staff members and was moved from its planned location in 560 Case-Geyer to Golden Auditorium to accommodate the volume of RSVPs.
Usman Ahmad ’23, application integration developer, and Sandeep Samsani, an infrastructure engineer, presented on a Colgate-specific AI chatbot they are developing in collaboration with accounting to answer commonly asked questions. Other ITS staff members, including Instructional Designer Robin Bridson and Director of Creative Technologies Ahmad Khazaee ’05 delved further into how Colgate-specific Gemini tools can be developed to streamline work (such as creating process documents). Mark Sandford, associate director of collections services in the University Libraries, presented on how Google Gemini was used to write a script that automatically identified and repaired missing book records after a library system migration.
ITS staff members noted that Gemini is included within Colgate’s Google Workspace and the data is protected under the same agreement as Google Drive, Gmail, and other Google Suite products.
Christian Vischi, assistant director for entrepreneurship and innovation, says he came into the session with a limited understanding of AI and concerns about how his data would be used. “I was not only thrilled with the many operational tips that were shared but with the level of security that Colgate's Gemini has, namely that our chats are not used to improve the model.”
Several resources, including slides and handouts, are compiled on this Google site for employees who were unable to attend. You can also view the list of presentations and presenters.
Please reach out to itshelp@colgate.edu for all your AI-related queries.