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Tue, 23 Jun 2026

Tue, 23 Jun 2026 Stanford was their golden ticket - could AI help or hinder that?

The BBC spoke with Stanford University graduates about what they really think about artificial intelligence.
Some key points from the article include:
* Many students are skeptical about the impact of AI on their future careers and society at large.
* Some students believe that AI can be a useful tool for solving certain problems, such as climate change, but others worry about its potential unintended consequences.
* The article highlights a protest by some students against Google's involvement in providing AI tools to the Israeli military, which was led by Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO and a Stanford alumnus. The article also mentions that some students are concerned about the impact of AI on their mental health and well-being. Psychology major Colbey Harlan uses AI for creative writing but worries about its potential environmental consequences and the need to slow down progress in order to avoid "things getting out of control." Atash Heil, an Earth Systems major, believes that AI can be useful in training models like climate models that predict how the climate will change. However, he also feels privileged to have grown up without AI because it allowed him to use his brain and is bracing for a future heavily defined by AI. The article suggests that students are grappling with the complexities of AI and its potential impact on their lives and society.