STORY: :: Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
A new AI collaborator has entered the classroom at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Vancouver.
:: Steve DiPaola/SFU
“Hi there, I am Kia from SFU. How can I help you with questions about AI?”
Alongside her creator, Professor Steve DiPaola,
:: September 11, 2025
Kia’s aim is not to lead classes, but to engage in real-time discussions, debate complex topics, and explore questions.
:: Steve DiPaola, Simon Fraser University
”So the notion of bringing that into this intro class is both a performative notion that is is fun to talk to it, but it’s also a way for the class to see a very high-end system and deal with all the ethical issues that it brings up.”
:: On AI
DiPaola has helped design other AI bots for use in other SFU departments.
He sees the potential for its greater good within the higher education sphere.
“It can be a crutch to use, and we haven’t figured out a way to to grade people, so to speak, or tell them what they can and cannot do. So you have some teachers saying ‘no, no, you can only do it on paper and you can’t use an AI at all’ which is not training people for the future, versus this other way of teaching students how to use it correctly at the right level.”
He cautions against accepting what information AI provides to humans as completely accurate, with AI hallucinations a problem.
He also understands the ethics of AI usage can be complicated.
Students were surprised to see its use in his class.
“I feel like it’s a bit of a new frontier, and there’s a lot of questions on how it can be integrated and how to do it responsibly.”
”I think if we were still using it very experimental way, but I think I would be hesitant a little bit to see it, just because I feel like, you know, as a college student, you want to hear from experts, you want to hear from people, and it’s the person to person that aspect I enjoy.”
The university has embraced an interdisciplinary approach to developing AI.
Ethicists sit alongside computer scientists in conversations in its development.
:: Steve DiPaola/SFU
DiPaolo hopes the approach prompts other technologists to make AI open sourced and more accessible to everyone.
