Houston, TX – June 26, 2024 – Bryant University is proud to announce the launch of a best-in-class Generative AI chatbot, that is already enhancing community engagement. Developed through a strategic partnership with alliantDigital, provider of advanced AI and intelligent automation solutions, the next gen chatbot, named Ask Tupper, after the school’s mascot, is now available to the entire community including incoming first year students.
“As you know, in higher education, 25% of the student community is new every year. We literally answer the same questions over and over, year after year. AskTupper will be able to handle most of these questions 24x7x365. Beyond AskTupper, we’re encouraging our entire community to use AI ethically and responsibly to assist them with their work”. said Chuck LoCurto, Bryant CIO.
Bryant’s Gen-AI chatbot has been designed from the ground up and is a highwater mark in the education sector. It aims to simplify how the community accesses information, receive certain guidance, and keeps the community informed about certain events, and life on. Evolving from alliant and Bryant’s collaboration, the bot is capable of assisting students with a wide range of tasks, including:
- 24/7 Support: Providing real-time answers to students’ queries about university policies, procedures, resources and important events.
- Providing Dynamic Updates: Community is able to get updates on everything from what is for lunch to what the score of the basketball game is.
- Campus Navigation: Helping students locate campus facilities, offices, and upcoming events.
The next generation bot is now available to all Bryant faculty, staff, and students, but the university is developing and testing more advanced features with alliantDigital.
“If you look at our history, we’ve had a longstanding commitment to supporting education at every level. This opportunity with Bryant, however, is truly a new frontier. We have a chance here to really reimagine the college experience and Bryant is already positioned to be a leader in leveraging AI,” said Chris Stephenson, alliantDigital’s Managing Director of Intelligent Automation and AI.
Bryant has also established a best in class testing protocol that heavily involves its student body in development. A large group of nearly 100 students, staff, and faculty extensively tested the AI and provided feedback before deployment. In addition, the university hosted its first annual Prompt-A-Thon, where students were encouraged to think of and try out chatbot designs to better assist the campus community. Spearheaded by LoCurto, the event gave valuable guidance for the usage of AI, as well as a launching off point for the next round of gen-ai innovations from Bryant.
alliantgroup’s CEO, Dhaval Jadav, commented on the partnership, stating, “We are thrilled to join forces with Bryant University to create a dynamic AI solution that addresses the evolving needs of students. This collaboration underscores our dedication to fostering technological innovation and making a substantial impact in the education sector.”
“At Bryant, we are committed to leverage AI tools and technology in our teaching, research and operations to enhance student learning and experiences. This partnership provides an opportunity for additional experimentation with AI by faculty and staff” said Rupendra Paliwal, Bryant University Provost and Chief Academic Officer.
