Artificial Intelligence and the Future of the University: A Conversation with James Evans

The University of Chicago Center in Beijing

20th floor, Culture Plaza
No. 59A Zhong Guan Cun Street
Haidian District Beijing 100872

On October 24, the University of Chicago Center in Beijing welcomed more than 70 attendees for Artificial Intelligence and the Future of the University, a conversation with James Evans, Professor of Sociology and Data Science at the University of Chicago and Director of the Knowledge Lab. Drawing on his research at the intersection of computational social science, collective intelligence, and scientific discovery, Evans explored how artificial intelligence is reshaping university education and research, raising fundamental questions about how knowledge is produced, shared, and understood. The discussion considered these developments in the broader context of the university’s intellectual mission.

In education, Evans examined three approaches universities are exploring: teaching with AI, without AI, and about AI. These approaches raise questions about where AI strengthens students’ thinking and cognitive agency, and where it may diminish them. The discussion highlighted the challenge of understanding how different uses of AI shape learning, and what these differences mean for the role of universities in education.

Turning to research, Evans discussed how AI is moving beyond its traditional role as a tool toward becoming an assistant and, potentially, an autonomous participant in scientific discovery, capable of proposing hypotheses, conducting experiments, and drafting papers. This shift raises questions about how research should be organized so that human and artificial scientists complement rather than simply replicate one another. A central concern is how to preserve diversity and surprise in scientific discovery while ensuring that research remains accountable and its processes understandable. Together, these questions invite a broader consideration of the university’s purpose in a world where machines increasingly participate not only in processing knowledge, but also in generating and transmitting it.

The conversation and subsequent question-and-answer session brought these themes together, inviting participants to reflect on how universities might navigate the evolving relationship between human intellect, artificial intelligence, and the pursuit of knowledge. By creating space for thoughtful discussion of these questions, the event reflected the University of Chicago Center in Beijing’s role in fostering rigorous academic exchange on issues shaping education, research, and contemporary intellectual life.