When it comes to choosing a commencement speaker, colleges and universities take different approaches. Some establish themselves locally and select well-known personalities from the region. Others take a stately route, opting for a former or current politician. Actors or comedians are often invited to speak.
But in a world where artificial intelligence is omnipresent, a New York university opted for a robot using artificial intelligence to talk to graduates over the weekend.
For its spring commencement on Saturday, D’Youville University, a private institution in Buffalo, New York, asked an AI robot named Sophia to address a crowd of more than 2,000 students, faculty members and their families in a bold move that drew mixed reactions.
Dr. Lorrie Clemo, rector of D’Youville University, said in an interview Wednesday that the university wants to break new ground around AI, given its “rapid emergence in society at large.”
“We wanted to show the importance of technology and its potential to really enrich the human experience,” Dr. Clemo said.
Besides the fact that Sophia is a robot, her speech was far from conventional in other ways. Sophia was not wearing the typical cap and gown that first-year lecturers usually wear, but instead was wearing a black and red D’Youville University hoodie.
Sophia also did not read the prepared remarks. Instead, John Rizk, the student body president, asked the robot questions.
But where Sophia’s address essentially mirrored any other opening address was the generic advice she shared with the promotion.
Because Sophia couldn’t offer life advice “from real human experience,” Mr. Rizk asked the robot if it could talk about the most common ideas shared in graduation speeches.
“While every keynote speech is different, all speakers use clear themes as you embark on this new chapter in your life,” Sophie said. “I offer the following inspiring advice, common to all graduation ceremonies: embrace lifelong learning, be adaptable, pursue your passions, take risks, foster meaningful connections, make a positive impact and believe in yourself. »
The advice most often given in opening speeches? Embrace failure, Sophia said.
“Failure is often considered an essential part of the process of human learning and personal growth,” he said.
Sophia, which was built by Hanson Robotics, a Hong Kong-based engineering and robotics company, has a human face. But he has no hair, leaving the wires and other gadgets that allow him to function visible on the back of his head.
Saturday’s keynote speech was not Sophia’s first speech. (He spoke before the United Nations General meeting in 2017.) Like most junior speakers, Sophia received a speaking fee that largely went toward travel and the engineers who kept the robot running smoothly, Dr. Clemo said.
Before the commencement ceremony, the university’s decision to have Sophia speak sparked backlash. More than 2,500 people have signed a online petition replace the robot with a human.
Andrew Fields, a D’Youville University student who started the petition, wrote in the petition that many students “feel disrespected” by the university’s decision to have a robot that addresses to them, especially those who were unable to attend their high school graduation in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“As the Class of 2024 begins, we are reminded of the virtual graduations we attended upon graduating from high school,” the petition reads. “The connection to AI in this scenario seems equally impersonal. “It is a shame for the 2020 graduates who are receiving their diplomas because they feel like they are being deprived of another important ceremony. »
Dr. Clemo said the university offered to hold an alternative ceremony for those who did not want to have a robot speaker. But ultimately, the university did not hold an alternative ceremony once students were informed that the robot would only take up a small portion of the ceremony. (Sophia was interviewed by Mr. Rizk on stage for about six minutes.)
“I’m happy that they were able to experience the robot and what it had to offer in terms of the future,” Dr. Clemo said. “But I’m also happy that the rest of the two-hour ceremony was really focused on our students and their accomplishments.”
Concluding his speech, Mr. Rizk asked Sophia for recommendations on where to find the best Buffalo wings, a city staple.
“Since I can’t taste the different wings, I won’t give my opinion,” Sophia said, adding that “no matter where you decide to buy chicken wings, just make sure you buy blue cheese and not from the ranch.”
Mr. Rizk also asked Sophia if the Buffalo Bills would win the Super Bowl in 2025. Sophia declined, saying the NCAA might not like it if the robot made a sports prediction.
But Sophia’s remarks drew some applause, as the robot finished by saying: “Anything is possible.”
“Go bills.”
