Presenter: Dr. George Siemens University of South Australia/University of Texas (Arlington)
Date: February 18, 2026
Abstract: Universities
have become end-consumers of AI. Unlike previous technology innovations,
where higher education played an active role in technology developments
and adoption, learner and institutional use of AI has advanced with
only minimal voice from the university system itself. While frontier
labs, such as Anthropic and OpenAI, have focused on offering services
for learners, they’ve largely sidestepped the system, leaving
universities as spectators. This talk will highlight the urgent need for
universities to collaborate around shared data, technology, and
services to ensure that the mission of serving learners remains central
in the adoption of AI in courses and classrooms. When universities
collaborate and pursue open standards, they have a sufficiently powerful
voice to shape the products and services offered by big tech companies,
shifting power from closed systems to the network of education
institutions.
Presenter
bio: George Siemens researches how human and artificial cognition
intersect in knowledge processes. He co-founded Matter and Space – a
human development platform that responds to the systemic impact of AI on
learning, human development, and wellness. He now serves as Chief AI
Officer at SNHU. He is the founding Director and Professor of the Center
for Change and Complexity in Learning (C3L) at University of South
Australia and developed the Masters of Science in Learning Analytics at
University of Texas at Arlington. He has delivered keynote addresses in
more than 40 countries on the influence of technology and media on
education, organizations, and society. His work has been profiled in
provincial, national, and international newspapers (including NY Times),
radio, and television. He has served as PI or Co-PI on grants funded by
NSF, SSHRC (Canada), OLT (Australia), Intel, Boeing, Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation, and the Soros Foundation. He has received numerous
awards, including honorary doctorates from Universidad de San Martín de
Porres and Fraser Valley University for his pioneering work in learning,
technology, and networks. He holds an honorary professorship with
University of Edinburgh. Dr. Siemens is a founding President of the
Society for Learning Analytics Research (http://www.solaresearch.org/).
In 2008, he pioneered massive open online courses (sometimes referred
to as MOOCs). He is President of the Global Research Alliance for AI in
Learning and Education (GRAILE – www.graile.ai).
