This year, artificial intelligence is the buzzword. On university campuses, students who just graduated high school are checking out the latest computer science course offerings to see if they can take classes in machine learning. The truth about the age of Artificial Intelligence has caught many university administrator's attention. In the age of AI, to be successful, everyone, no matter what jobs, skill sets, or majors will at some point encounter AI in their work and their life. Penn State saw the benefits of working on AI projects early, specifically when it comes to teamwork and collaboration.

This year, artificial intelligence is the buzzword. On university campuses, students who just graduated high school are checking out the latest computer science course offerings to see if they can take classes in machine learning. The truth about the age of Artificial Intelligence has caught many university administrator's attention. In the age of AI, to be successful, everyone, no matter what jobs, skill sets, or majors will at some point encounter AI in their work and their life. Penn State saw the benefits of working on AI projects early, specifically when it comes to teamwork and collaboration.

Idea submissions are now being accepted for the 2020 Nittany AI Challenge. Student teams with a wide variety of skill sets are invited to submit their ideas for using artificial intelligence to improve the world by providing solutions for problems within the areas of education, health, sustainability, climate change and humanitarian challenges. Teams selected to participate in the three-phase process will be assisted in developing a minimal viable product (MVP) and have opportunities to receive prizes from a pool of $50,000. The deadline for idea submissions is Jan. Brad Zdenek, innovation strategist for the Nittany AI Alliance, said students do not have to be coders to participate, as each team has a need for various skill sets.

The Nittany AI Alliance awarded three Penn State student teams a combined total of $25,000 on Tuesday, September 10 at the Nittany AI Challenge Celebration event. Students Christina Warren and Mathew Mancini developed Revu, a product designed to keep students engaged during reading assignments. Revu works by generating multiple-choice quizzes and other tests to measure comprehension of key concepts in order to keep students focused. Warren and Mancini won $15,000 for their product. In the future, they hope to add features that will generate flashcards, save quizzes and notes, and design a mode specifically for instructors.