UNSW Rolls Out ChatGPT Edu for 10,000 Staff
▼ Summary
– UNSW Sydney has purchased 10,000 ChatGPT Edu licenses for all permanent and fixed-term staff, marking Australia’s largest education deal with OpenAI.
– The decision followed a successful 10-month trial involving staff, aiming to provide secure AI tools for research, education, and professional use.
– The rollout includes training and guidelines to ensure safe, responsible, and value-aligned AI usage by staff.
– User data and prompts on the platform remain private and will not be used for model training, with access being optional and provisioned over several months.
– UNSW will purchase carbon credits to offset emissions associated with the ChatGPT Edu agreement.
The University of New South Wales has secured a landmark agreement with OpenAI, acquiring 10,000 ChatGPT Edu licenses for its academic and professional staff. This initiative represents the largest educational deployment of the AI platform in Australia, aimed at integrating advanced artificial intelligence tools into daily university operations.
Following a ten-month pilot program, the university confirmed the expansion, emphasizing a secure and private environment for users. All prompts entered into the system remain confidential, and data will not be used for training OpenAI’s models, addressing common concerns around privacy and intellectual property.
Chief Information Officer Chrissy Burns highlighted that the rollout will be gradual and supported by comprehensive training and clear usage guidelines. “Our focus is on introducing this technology safely and reliably,” she stated, adding that the approach reflects the institution’s values and encourages responsible AI adoption.
Participation is optional, and staff will receive training before gaining access to the platform. The full provisioning process is expected to take several months to complete, ensuring smooth integration across departments.
In a notable sustainability effort, UNSW also committed to purchasing carbon credits to offset emissions generated by the use of ChatGPT Edu, aligning the initiative with the university’s broader environmental goals.
(Source: IT News)
